Greek Military Police
| Military Police Στρατονομία |
|
|---|---|
| Active |
|
| Country |
 Greece
|
| Branch |
 Hellenic Army
|
| Role | Military Police |
| Motto(s) | Consciously obey the Laws (Greek: Νόμοις Πείθου) |
| Insignia | |
| Abbreviation |
ΕΣΑ (1951–1974) ΣΝ (1974–present) |
The Greek Military Police (Greek: Ελληνική Στρατιωτική Αστυνομία), generally known in Greek by the acronym ESA (Greek: ΕΣΑ), was the military police branch of the Greek Army in the years 1951–1974. It developed into a powerful paramilitary organization and a stronghold of right-wing, conservative Army officers. It became the main security (secret police) and intelligence organization during the Greek military junta of 1967–1974. 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.
From 1974, the Greek Army maintains a military police section called Stratonomia (Στρατονομία), but its powers are far less extensive than those of ESA.
The ESA was established in 1951, as Greece was preparing to join NATO. 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. 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 uniform with a royal blue cap (the soldiers wore a beret at the time), golden lanyard on their right shoulder and an armband with the letters ESA around their left arm.
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Wikipedia