NEWS

50 Years Ago Today

GEORGE PAPANDREOU: The newspaper affiliated to George Papandreou, Hellas, has printed the following commentary on the peace measures (proposed by the Plastiras government): The ‘peace’ measures have been tabled in Parliament. They are less than what was promised by the EPEK party and more than is good for national security, he said, adding: The Interior Minister, Mr (Ioannis) Rendis, has said that ‘of course the disqualified deputies of the EDA party will not be sent into (internal) exile again.’ (Ed. note: the election of EDA deputies who had been exiled or detained was ruled invalid. These included Ilias Iliou, Stefanos Sarafis, Manolis Glezos and Antonis Abatielos). Before bringing them out of exile, however, he had insisted they would be sent back if their election was ruled invalid. We draw attention to the inconsistency, which does nothing for (Rendis’s) reputation. Apart from this personal inconsistency, however, there is a more substantial issue at stake. The EDA deputies are its leaders. And since they were brought out of exile in that capacity, there is no justification for keeping their followers exiled. Various committees and measures such as 15-day leave passes are therefore pointless. Mr Rendis should repeal these measures in order to be consistent. And Parliament should protect the nation. This foot-dragging has consequences on crucial aspects of the public sphere. The constitutional call for transparency in the property status of the mass media rings hollow at a time when the distribution of TV licenses is drawing to a close. The monitoring of the parties’ finances remains a dead letter, reforms on the ailing judicial system have been suspended, and the major issue of protection of forest areas has stagnated.

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