Police Reform and Social Change in Greece: The Development and Merger of the Gendarmerie and Urban Police Forces

Abstract

The reform of the Greek police that took place in 1984 is a development that has received almost no scholarly attention, but it took the form of a merger between two historically independent police forces that had previously dominated law enforcement operations within Greece - the Gendarmerie and the Urban Police. Following the introduction, a detailed historical analysis traces the roots of the particular features and unique characteristics of the two police forces up to the period of reform and merger in the 1980s. The changing political and social characteristics of the two agencies reflect the maturing of the Greek nation from a pseudo -State to a modern western type society. The paper highlights the overlooked importance of the Plakias Report of 1982, thus providing key insights into the aims and ambitions of the subsequent 1984 law. The paper concludes that the merger, although a difficult socio-political endeavour, created the basis for more accountable and democratic policing in Greece.