With a new intervention by SYRIZA MEP Kostas Arvanitis, the LIBE committee of the European Parliament responds to the crime of Tempe, asking for an independent investigation without government interference, emphasizing that the guilty government officials must be brought to justice.
Costas Arvanitis, as a member of LIBE, had requested that the letter from the president of the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions, Dolores Montserrat, be forwarded with the urgent procedure. Juan Fernando López Aguilar in his response emphasizes that “the LIBE committee insists on the urgent need to take all the necessary measures to conduct a thorough and credible investigation into the train accident in Tempe, without any government interference, and bring them to justice without delay those involved, including the culpable government officials.
The LIBE committee welcomes the investigation launched by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office into the possibility that the management of EU funds by the Greek authorities has caused possible damage to the financial interests of the EU and awaits its final results.
For his part, Costas Arvanitis underlines that “the European Parliament says “no” to the cover-up and is not going to close the case before answers are given and before responsibilities are assigned. We are here. Until we know the whole truth. Until Justice is served.”
Juan Fernando López Aguilar’s letter in detail:
Dear Ms. Montserrat,
Thank you for asking the opinion of the LIBE Committee on the points raised in petition 0024/2024 by Maria Karystianou, on behalf of the “Group of people affected by the train accident in Tempi”, regarding the train collision in Tempi, Greece.
The petitioner expressed specific concerns related to the alleged corruption and financial crimes being investigated by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and the alleged manipulation of justice which led to the stalling of the investigation, 11 months after the tragic accident. The petition also calls on Parliament to support the alleged undermining of the rule of law and European values in Greece, in order to enable the punishment of those responsible for the tragic event.
Below we would like to share with the Committee on Petitions various aspects of our work on the state of the rule of law in Greece and the exchange of views with the EPPO on the main findings of its report following the investigation of subsidies for a railway safety system in Hellas.
Regarding the state of the rule of law in Greece
The LIBE Commission monitors the state of the rule of law in all EU Member States as part of the annual cycle linked to the Commission’s report on the state of the rule of law. Also, monitoring of the state of the rule of law in specific countries is strengthened by the Democracy, Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights Monitoring Group (DRFMG).
This working group has organized several meetings dedicated to the state of the rule of law in Greece with the participation of various stakeholders, including representatives of national authorities, the last of which took place on 4 April 2024.
On the initiative of DRFMG, LIBE organized a mission to Greece on March 6-8, 2023. The mission’s report expresses serious concerns about very serious threats to the rule of law and fundamental rights and emphasizes that checks and balances are essential for a strong democracy and notes with concern that they have come under strong pressure in Greece. The report also notes that the justice system is extremely slow and inefficient, leading to a culture of impunity, and that corruption is eroding public services and public goods. He also stresses that media pluralism is under threat, as media ownership in the country is mostly distributed among a small number of oligarchs, resulting in dramatic under-publicization of certain issues, such as the circumstances leading to the Tempe train crash.
Following the monitoring activity of LIBE and DRFMG, the Parliament approved on 7 February 2024 the resolution on the rule of law and media freedom in Greece. The resolution in question states “with strong concern that corruption is eroding public services and public goods and underlines that the length of court proceedings (…) will lead to a culture of impunity where corruption can thrive”.
The resolution also highlights that “authorities have not yet established a solid track record in investigating and prosecuting high-level corruption cases that leads to final convictions with a deterrent effect and calls on the government and authorities to fix these issues as a matter of priority.” Regarding the Tempe crash, Parliament believes it is “vital that the judicial inquiry into the Tempe train disaster is conducted swiftly and comprehensively, covering all parties involved, including responsible government officials.” This is particularly critical in the context of the reported violation of the integrity of the crash site and the tampering of evidence. In addition, the resolution states that Parliament “is not satisfied with the audit carried out by the competent committee of the Greek Parliament, as it appears to lack political impartiality and is reluctant to call key expert witnesses to testify.”
In the resolution adopted on 28 February 2024 on the Commission’s latest annual report as a follow-up to the LIBE report, it is noted that the Commission notes that the increase in resources for the judiciary and other measures taken by various Member States, including of Greece, “have not yet led to a reduction in the length of proceedings, with backlog cases remaining a serious challenge”.
The resolution also notes “perceived levels of corruption” in several Member States, including Greece, and recognizes the important role of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in safeguarding the rule of law and fighting corruption in the Union, and encourages the Commission to closely monitor the level of cooperation of the Member States with the EPPO in subsequent reports. This is urgent in light of reports that the EPPO’s work is being challenged by a lack of cooperation from the Greek authorities, as Ms Kövesi herself has publicly stated, and which risks being exacerbated by recently proposed legislative changes that limit the ability of the European Prosecutor’s Office to cover certain misdemeanors.
About alleged corruption and financial crimes investigated by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO)
In the Parliament’s resolution of 7 February 2024 on the rule of law and freedom of the media in Greece, it is noted that “the EPPO opened an investigation on 28 November 2022 into the misuse of €700 million in subsidies for a railway safety system”. It also notes that “23 people have since been arrested in connection with the scandal, in addition to (former) government ministers, who are protected from prosecution by a decision of the Greek Parliament, for which the Greek Constitution was invoked.” The resolution also underlines “the deep concern linked to the refusal of the Greek Parliament to conduct an investigation, as requested by the EPPO, concerning two former transport ministers”.
Following the publication of the EPPO activity report for 2023, the LIBE Committee and the CONT Committee held a joint meeting on 10 April 2024 on the main findings of the report, which were presented by the European Attorney General.
The LIBE Committee insists on the urgent need to take all necessary steps to conduct a thorough and effective investigation into the Tempe train accident, without any interference by the government, and to immediately bring those involved, including the responsible government officials, to justice .
The LIBE committee welcomes the investigation launched by the EPPO into whether the use of EU funds by the Greek authorities has caused potential damage to the EU’s financial interests and awaits its final results.
The LIBE Committee will continue its continuous monitoring of the state of the rule of law in all EU Member States, including Greece, during the next legislative term.
I believe you will find the above information useful in following this report.
Yours sincerely,
Juan Fernando
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