Manzos: Operation of the Chora Monastery as a mosque is unacceptable – 2024-05-10 17:51:30

The Parliamentary Representative of PASOK-Movement of Change, Dimitris Mantzos, spoke today on the radio station SKAI 100.3 and the news program of Nikos Andritsos.

D. Manzos expressed the constant request to the international community “for a settlement in Gaza. Yesterday’s order to evacuate Rafah and the ongoing Israeli bombardments are not aimed at de-escalating the crisis and we fear that the humanitarian tragedy with hundreds of dead civilians in Palestine will continue. This must end with an immediate ceasefire and the start of negotiations for peace and a just two-state solution in the region. The hostages must be returned immediately by Hamas, which is currently attacking the Palestinian people and their just demands for a state, but also the massacre of civilians by the Israeli forces at the expense of Palestinians who have been displaced from their homes, apparently violation of international law”.

“Erdogan’s decision on the Monastery of Chora is unacceptable”

Asked, then, to comment on the operation of the Chora Monastery as a Muslim mosque in Turkey, he described Erdogan’s decision as “unacceptable in terms of history and international law. The Byzantine monuments of the City are not only Greek, but belong to humanity. Converting them into mosques insults their historical and religious value and, at the same time, puts them at risk, as the case of Hagia Sophia has proven. The Monastery of Chora currently has the greatest wealth of Byzantine mosaics in the City.”

He noted that it is very problematic for Tayyip Erdogan to “implement this decision just one week before his meeting with the Greek Prime Minister. He cannot say to his cabinet that “we don’t have much that separates us from our Greek neighbors and we can solve everything” and at the same time this is happening. It is hypocritical and points to the need for Greek diplomacy, in the one week we have at our disposal, to take care of the best possible preparation for the presence of the Greek Prime Minister. It is necessary to talk with Turkey, but before we sit down at the table, we must know what the other interlocutor wants. From what it seems, Mr. Erdogan’s intentions are not sincere, so the Greek government must approach this dialogue with caution and in any case with a commitment to our national lines. Immediately afterwards, of course, to inform the political forces about the results of the meeting”.

Regarding, finally, the report showing the Greek Police concluding that the break-in at the Ministry of the Interior was “staged”, D. Manzos said that “every shadow related to the 50-year legacy of conducting elections with impartiality and objective way in our country”. He emphasized that “any investigation of the case is not only welcome, but imposed in all its aspects, with emphasis mainly on the leakage of personal data of thousands of foreign voters to a New Democracy MEP, through a very problematic operation of the Ministry of the Interior”.

At the same time, he pointed out that in PASOK-Movement of Change “we have moved institutionally since the first twenty-four hours of the Email-Gate scandal. The first action we took and which we insist on is the summoning of the Minister of the Interior, Mr. Kerameos, and the head of the Personal Data Protection Authority, Mr. Menoudakou, to the Institutions and Transparency Committee, so that all the necessary explanations and answers can be given.” .

“We do not draw conclusions quickly, nor do we replace justice. We didn’t do that under any circumstances. Not in wiretapping, not in emails, not in Tempi. We demanded that justice be served and that there be no cover-up”, he concluded.