Greek Military Police

The Greek Military Police (), generally known in English by the acronym ESA (ΕΣΑ) was the military police branch of the Greek Army in the years 1951-1974. (Greek Army General Staff, Directorate of Stratonomia, History). It developed into a powerful paramilitary organization and a stronghold of right-wing, conservative Army officers. (Petridis, Exousia kai Paraexousia 1957-1967, 2001). It became the main security (secret police) and intelligence organization during the Greek military junta of 1967–1974 and was occasionally used as a death squad by the ruling Colonels. After the fall of the junta and the restoration of democracy in 1974, it was disbanded because of its brutal practices, which included the widespread use of torture.

Junta

The ESA was not created by the dictatorship, as it is sometimes believed. It was established in 1951, as Greece was preparing to join NATO. (Greek Army General Staff, Directorate of Stratonomia, History). Up until then, the Greek Army did not have a specialized military police force. Being posted in the ESA was a major bonus for Army officers because it had very extensive powers within the military, even before the dictatorship. Both the officers and the soldiers who served in ESA were picked for their extreme, almost paranoid, anti-communism. (Theodoracopoulos, the Greek Upheaval, 1978) This resulted in making ESA a bastion of the most conservative and anti-democratic members of the Greek officer corps. ESA men wore a distinctive...
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