RACIST PRESIDENT OF LOCAL COMMUNE IN PIERIA VIOLATES THE CONSTITUTION.

GREEK HELSINKI MONITOR

(Greek National Committee of the International Helsinki Federation)

& MINORITY RIGHTS GROUP - GREECE

(Greek Affiliate of Minority Rights Group International)

P.O. Box 51393, GR-14510 Kifisia, Greece; tel. 30-1-620.01.20; fax: 30-1-807.57.67;

e-mail: office@greekhelsinki.gr      http://www.greekhelsinki.gr/

 

 

PRESS RELEASE

 

27/3/1998

 

TOPIC: RACIST PRESIDENT OF LOCAL COMMUNE

IN PIERIA VIOLATES THE CONSTITUTION.

 

 

The cooperating organizations Greek Helsinki Monitor and Minority Rights Group - Greece denounce the unconstitutional and extremely racist act of the president of the village “Palio Keramidi” of Pieria Vassilis Kourkontas  to forbid the circulation of all Albanian residents after sunset. The arbitrary substitution of a democratic state of law by local authorities consists a very serious blow against Democracy itself. Such deviations from the democratic system of government should result in an immediate intervention of the competent authorities.

 

There is no doubt that the responsibility of, mostly, private mass media is huge, since,   recently, they have persistently and methodically cultivated a climate of panic and hysteria, which incites many persons to unacceptable activities. Furthermore, one could inductively refer to the action of a Ku-Klux-Klan styled group against innocent Albanians in Ikaria, which is really a shame, and to the creation of a xenophobic “Committee of Robbed Victims”, consisting of people with a very clear extreme right-wing mentality. All the above incidents show that cruel racism has already become a slow bomb in the foundations of the unprepared Greek society.

 

In this context, our organizations think that the beginning of a preliminary examination, by the District Attorney, concerning the incident of Pieria, is a positive step, and they hope that this process will be continued without any obstacles, since it is obvious that the president of the commune committed the crime of “abuse of power”. Moreover, the verbal condemnation of this act by the government spokesperson, by the General Secretary of Public Order and by the competent Prefect is considered to be encouraging. However, a continuous vigilance of the government is required, so that these phenomena that amount to undisguised fascist terrorism could be fought off.

 

Consequently, we remind everyone that Article 5, par. 2, of the Greek Constitution, guaranteeing, in a clear way, complete protection of the freedom of “all those who live in the Greek territory, regardless of race, sex, color or religion”. Finally, our organizations address an appeal for a mobilization of the whole society, because the cases of racism have already started to be a real danger and to threaten fundamental human rights.