Agis Stinas

Agis Stinas (1900-1987), real name Spyros Priftis, was a Greek politician. He was an executive of the Communist Party of Greece and then executive of various small Trotskyite parties. During the Axis occupation of Greece, he promoted a revolutionary defeatist position. He was the political mentor of Cornelius Castoriadis.

Early life
He was born in a village in Corfu. In 1918 he became a member of the Socialist Labour Party of Greece, later renamed the Communist Party. He took part in the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) as an active party member. He was sentenced to death, but instead he was imprisoned. During the 1926 election he was a parliamentary candidate in Corfu region. During 1931 he was expelled from the party.

1930s
He became a member of Archeio-Marxism party. During the 1935 Greek coup d'état attempt, he was a critical supporter of Democratic army officials. In 1936 he promoted the need for general strike. Later he was arrested by the 4th of August Regime and jailed in Acronauplia. In prison in 1937 he formed the opinion of not supporting the USSR in the next world war.

1940s
With the assistance of the far right Metropolitan bishop Pantaleon, he managed to escape prison. He founded various parties with comrades Yannis Tamtakos and Cornelius Castoriadis, who rejected the communist-led National Liberation Front and promoted Revolutionary defeatism. In 1946 he tried to stop his party from working with the Communist Party, and accused the Communist Party as a stooge of the Soviet Union. After the civil war he worked against United Democratic Left. In 1948 Stinas was represented by Cornelius Castoriadis in the Second World Congress of the Fourth International. In his memoirs Stinas wrote that he was a member of 4th International until 1947.