Amnesty protests trial of Macedonian of Greece
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Date: Wed, 25 Mar 1998 00:05:58 +0200 (EET)
Message-Id: <[email protected]>
Subject: Amnesty protests trial of Macedonian of Greece
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Original sender: Panayote Elias Dimitras <[email protected]>
Amnesty protests trial of Macedonian of Greece
Amnesty International - News Release - EUR 25/29/98
PUBLIC STATEMENT
18 March 1998
GREECE
Traianos Pasois on trial for entering the country with two Macedonian
wall calendars
Amnesty International will adopt Traianos Pasois, a member of the
ethnic Macedonian minority party "Rainbow", as a prisoner of
conscience and will call for his immediate and unconditional release
should he be imprisoned after his trial in Florina today, the human
rights organization said in a letter to the Greek Government.
On 17 February 1996 Traianos Pasois crossed the border between Greece
and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, at the border post of
Niki, Florina. According to an indictment later issued against him, he
had in his possession "two wall calendars which he intended to
circulate" and which "featured photographs of pure Greek towns and
areas, under or next to which were captions written in a foreign
idiom".
The indictment further states that the captions "praised clearly
controversial and provocative actions and decisions by political
parties, groups and organizations which took part in the civil war.
[These] actions and decisions disputed the Greek character of [the
province of] Macedonia, aiming at its dismemberment, secession and
annexation by a neighbouring state then enemy of Greece". There is no
evidence in the indictment to suggest that the calendars contained
language amounting to an incitement to, or advocation of, violence.
Amnesty International believes that the charge brought against
Traianos Pasois is motivated by his public support for the recognition
of a Macedonian minority in Greece, by his affirmation of membership
of such a minority and by his support for the right to use, without
restriction, the Macedonian language and disseminate views and
opinions relating to the region.
The organization considers that by bringing Traianos Pasois to trial
simply for expressing his opinion, the Greek authorities are acting in
violation of Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR) and Article 10 of the European Convention for
the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), both
of which Greece has ratified and is therefore bound to observe.
Background
On 14 October 1997 Vasilis Romas, Costas Tasopoulos, Petros Vasiliadis
and Pavlos Voskopoulos, four other members of the "Rainbow" Party,
stood trial in Florina for "causing and inciting mutual hatred among
the citizens" and thus violating Article 192 of the Greek Penal Code
by displaying a sign, with the words "Florina Committee" in both Greek
and Macedonian, outside the Florina office of the Rainbow Party in
September 1995. The indictment against the four men also stated that
the use of the Macedonian words "Lerinski Komitet" "provoked and
incited discord among the area"s citizens [who] justifiably...identify
these words with an old terrorist organization of Slavic-speaking
alien nationals which was active in the area". The trial was postponed
until September 1998.
Amnesty International believes that the charges brought against
Traianos Pasois and the other members of the "Rainbow" Party are
motivated by their expression of public support for the recognition of
a Macedonian minority in Greece and the affirmation of their
membership of such a minority. The organization therefore considers
the four men to be potential prisoners of conscience and will ask for
their immediate and unconditional release should they be imprisoned.
Source: Amnesty International, International Secretariat, 1 Easton
Street, WC1X 8DJ, London, United Kingdom
This statement can be found in:
http://www.amnesty.org/news/1998/42502998.htm
---------------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE FROM GREEK HELSINKI MONITOR
Pasois' trial was postponed for 18 November 1998.
_______________________________________
Greek Helsinki Monitor &
Minority Rights Group - Greece
P.O. Box 51393
GR-145190 Kifisia
Greece
Tel. +30-1-620.01.20
Fax +30-1-807.57.67
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.greekhelsinki.gr
________________________________________
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