The founder of the Independent Greeks is Panos Kammenos, a former New Democracy MP who was ousted from the conservative party's parliamentary group after he refused to back President Lucas Papademos. Since then Kammenos has been stirring up resentment against Germany's role in the Greek bailout. The party's official founding session took place in Distomo, the scene of Nazi atrocities during World War Two. Kammenos rejects what he calls "blackmail" by the EU and IMF and is calling on Berlin to pay war reparations to Athens.