The decision taken by the Supreme Court Prosecutor’s Office to archive the case for a third time provoked a strong reaction from the Greek opposition, with the parties leveling harsh criticism and raising anew questions they say remain unanswered regarding one of the most high-profile cases in recent years.
Specifically, Evangelos Bakelas decided that the case should not be reopened in response to the submission of four requests, one lodged by former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, and another by former SYRIZA government minister Christos Spirtzis, both of whom were targets of the illegal Predator software.
The requests were submitted following the heavy sentences handed down to the four private individuals by the Single-Member Misdemeanor Court of Athens, and based on the evidence that emerged during the months-long trial proceedings. This evidence forms the basis of the latest demands to reopen the file and investigate additional aspects of the case.
In the wake of these new developments, the opposition has spoken of an “attempted cover-up” and the “burying” of a case which, as they point out, implicates the Prime Minister himself and his inner circle.
PASOK: “The shadows remain and grow”
PASOK is demanding that the Supreme Court reopen the case in response to the requests made, arguing that, as long as the file remains archived, “the shadows will remain and grow.”
The party’s spokesperson, Kostas Tsoukalas, stresses that the decision of Supreme Court Prosecutor Evangelos Bakelas leaves critical questions unanswered.
At the same time, he notes that “at a time when the convicted private individuals are publicly blackmailing the Prime Minister ahead of the appellate court; at a time when Mr. Mitsotakis’s right-hand man cynically admits he took the bullet to protect the boss; at a time when the New Democracy government is stretching the Rules of Procedure of the Hellenic Parliament and the Constitution to breaking point in order to avoid summoning the protagonists before the competent parliamentary committees and to prevent the formation of an investigative committee, this development can only reinforce the impression that all the available institutional and procedural avenues are decidedly not being utilized to fully and properly investigate a scandal that has dealt a body blow to the rule of law, fundamental rights, and citizens’ trust in our national institutions.”
At PASOK’s headquarters, they take every opportunity to remind the public that party president Nikos Androulakis was both a target of the surveillance and, along with Thanasis Koukakis, responsible for uncovering the issue which, as they state, “exposes the government and Kyriakos Mitsotakis.”
They also attach particular weight to the case of Antonis Samaras. In its press release, PASOK underscores that when a former Prime Minister, who possesses knowledge of and access to critical information of national interest, reports attempted surveillance, it cannot be treated as a private dispute.
“It is imperative to ascertain who targeted him, who had the illegal software in their possession, who gave the order, and what the intended benefit was.” The Press Release also notes that the necessary investigation was not launched in this case, either.
Greek Left Alliance: A “persistent refusal” to re-open the case
The Greek Left Alliance (ELAS) speaks of a “persistent refusal” on the part of Mr. Bakelas to retrieve the case from the archive.
They focus particularly on the new evidence which emerged from the months-long evidentiary process before the Single-Member Misdemeanor Court of Athens, which ultimately imposed heavy sentences totaling 126 years on the four convicted individuals, as well as on Tal Dilian’s confession that he sold the illegal software to governments.
“The blatant blurring of the lines between the judicial authority and the executive branch once again exposes the country internationally with regard to respect for the principles of the rule of law.”
“The Greek public is watching and judging the unacceptable stance taken by senior judicial officials who obstinately refuse to investigate such an important case with political ramifications,” the party’s Justice section notes. ELAS adds that: “After this, if the Greek Judiciary wants to enjoy public trust, its officials will have to make a point of always seeking to uncover the truth, whatever it may be, whomever it concerns and affects. Independent and unbiased, they must not resort to legal pretexts and maneuvers.”
ELAS underscores one more important parameter. As noted in the statement it issued immediately after the decision was announced on Friday: “The blatant blurring of the lines between the judicial authority and the executive branch once again exposes the country internationally with regard to respect for the principles of the rule of law.”
SYRIZA: “Democracy can’t be shelved”
SYRIZA directly links the handling of the wiretapping scandal with the proper functioning of Democracy.
In a Press Release, the party states that “democracy cannot be shelved,” adding that “the government is trying once again to bury the scandal that began in the Prime Minister’s Office without answering the fundamental questions: who gave the orders, what was the unified surveillance center, what is the relationship between Predator and the Greek Intelligence Service, and who was ultimately behind this unprecedented institutional breach?”
At the same time, SYRIZA also points the finger at Mr. Bakelas, who issued the decision to keep the case files shelved, noting that his decision acquires even greater institutional gravity, given that it “comes shortly after the government’s selection of the new leadership of the Supreme Court Prosecutor’s Office.”
They add that the decision comes “at a time when public trust in institutions has been shaken,” and that “such moves heighten disquiet over whether the scandals that plague Greek society are being credibly handled.”
SYRIZA officials condemned the decision in particularly harsh terms, speaking of an “act of institutional impunity” which the government stands by and watches, as though unconcerned.
“They made the Intelligence Services the personal preserve of the Prime Minister, they changed the law regarding the notification of those under surveillance, and they have refused to provide full transparency for four years now. They have no shame,” concludes SYRIZA’s reaction.
New Left: “A cover-up campaign”
New Left also addressed the issue, using harsh and emotive language to condemn the government, which it accuses of orchestrating a “campaign to cover up the enormous illegal surveillance scandal.”
At the same time, it speaks of “flimsy arguments” on the part of the Prosecutor’s Office and of “machinations” intended to keep “Intelligence Service officials and businessmen with whom the Prime Minister’s Office collaborated, and who played a leading role in this criminal case, in the shadows and immune from scrutiny.”
