Whereas the first session of the year of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will start this Monday in Strasbourg, today is the last day for Greece to send a list of its delegation without neo-Nazis in it.
This simple act would just be the implementation of the decision that Prime Minister Samaras officially announced in December. New Democracy then adopted the same position as the one formerly adopted by the parties Pasok, Democratic Left and Syriza.
Unfortunately, several elements seem to indicate that New Democracy has decided to act in the exact opposite way than the public pledge of Mr. Samaras last month, and to include the neo-Nazi Eleni Zaroulia in the Greek delegation to the Council of Europe.
False arguments are stated, the Constitution and a nonexistent law are evoked to explain this possible turnaround, which would be as total and brutal as unacceptable.
As a reminder : the President of the Parliament is the one who decides on the composition of the delegation, this is thus a political decision.
The renewed presence of neo-Nazis in the delegation to the Council of Europe would be a true insult to all the ones, Greek and foreigners, Nobel Prize and citizens, who have gotten mobilized against neo-Nazism in Greece.
This would mean a support to neo-Nazism, against which the Coucil of Europe was built, and would send a signal of permissivity in Europe to all the racist political forces.
Last, this would allow the supporters of the dictatorship of the Colonels to enter an institution which allowed to fight the dictatorship and to settle back democracy in Greece.
Therefore, we ask Mr. Samaras to respect the democratic pledege he made and announced in December, and to have establised and announced today a list of the delegation without any neo-Nazis in it.
Unfortunately, several elements seem to indicate that New Democracy has decided to act in the exact opposite way than the public pledge of Mr. Samaras last month, and to include the neo-Nazi Eleni Zaroulia in the Greek delegation to the Council of Europe.
False arguments are stated, the Constitution and a nonexistent law are evoked to explain this possible turnaround, which would be as total and brutal as unacceptable.
As a reminder : the President of the Parliament is the one who decides on the composition of the delegation, this is thus a political decision.
The renewed presence of neo-Nazis in the delegation to the Council of Europe would be a true insult to all the ones, Greek and foreigners, Nobel Prize and citizens, who have gotten mobilized against neo-Nazism in Greece.
This would mean a support to neo-Nazism, against which the Coucil of Europe was built, and would send a signal of permissivity in Europe to all the racist political forces.
Last, this would allow the supporters of the dictatorship of the Colonels to enter an institution which allowed to fight the dictatorship and to settle back democracy in Greece.
Therefore, we ask Mr. Samaras to respect the democratic pledege he made and announced in December, and to have establised and announced today a list of the delegation without any neo-Nazis in it.