In 2021, journalists were murdered in two EU countries. One of them was Greece.
One of the murdered journalists was Giorgos Karaivaz.
A year ago yesterday, in Greece, Karaivaz was killed outside of his home.
For a year, the murder of a journalist in a European country, a Member State of the EU, has remained unsolved, putting Greece under the scrutiny of international organizations and EU institutions alike.
A year is a long time.
Some possibly hoped that, sooner or later, the murder of Giorgos Karaivaz would be forgotten. We will not let that happen.
Last June, in the European Parliament, the LIBE Committee invited the competent Greek Ministers, former Minister for Citizen protection Mr. Chrysochoides and Minister for Justice Mr. Tsiaras, to inform the Democracy, Rule of Law, and Fundamental Rights Monitoring Group about the course of investigations, starting a larger discussion about the safety of journalists in Greece. And for those that, like Mr. Tsiaras, couldn’t make it, more invitations, for other pending issues, are on the way…
We will not allow the Karaivaz murder to be forgotten. We owe it to the family, we owe it to all journalists and reporters in Greece, who deserve to live and work in safety.
It’s a matter of Democracy.