GREEK HELSINKI MONITOR
(Greek National Committee of the International Helsinki Federation)

& MINORITY RIGHTS GROUP - GREECE
(Greek Affiliate of Minority Rights Group International)

P.O. Box 51393, GR-14510 Kifisia, Greece Tel. 30-1-620.01.20; Fax: 30-1-807.57.67; E-mail: office@greekhelsinki.gr

PRESS RELEASE

1/12/98

TOPIC: INADMISSIBLE ATTEMPT AT SEIZING AN "OLD CALENDARIST" CHURCH BY "NEW CALENDARISTS" AND BY THE MUNICIPALITY OF GALATSI.

The cooperating non-governmental organizations (NGOs) Greek Helsinki Monitor and Minority Rights Group-Greece condemn the repeated attempts of the Municipality of Galatsi, of part of its inhabitants and of the officially recognized Church of Greece to take hold of the "Old Calendarist" church of Saint Savas in the region called Panorama Galatsiou, in favor of the "New Calendarist" inhabitants of the area.

According to several records, the initial construction of the church took place in virtue of the permit No 1611/1983 of the Urban Planning Office of Athens, which was based on the prior approval No 1536/1981 of the Holy Synod of the Church of Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece (Old Calendarists). In 1994, the church was extended without having any construction permit, which is a usual practice in Greece. In 1995, indeed, the church was the object of judicial dispute between opposing groups of "Old Calendarists". The only point in question is whether the church has been built entirely in the site of its owner.

In 1997, the Municipality of Galatsi claimed the church with the allegation that it was them who constructed it in 1994 (!). Moreover, in 1998, inhabitants of the area laid claim to the church, as well, apparently at the municipality’s encouragement. Nevertheless, by virtue of the decisions 13/98 of the Public Prosecutor of the Court of Appeal and 14690/1998 of the Court of the First Instance of Athens, the courts have decided that neither the municipality nor the inhabitants own or have constructed the church.

Unfortunately, relying on the assistance or the passivity of the authorities, the "New Calendarists" keep on using the church and the "Old Calendarists" get arrested and prosecuted for "disturbance of religious gathering" (article 200 of the Penal Code) in their own church (!), including Dimitris Glinos himself, the owner of Saint Savas, Galatsi, to be tried on 2 December 1998.

The above incident constitutes another example of how the Greek state acts arbitrarily and violates the rights of the religious minorities in Greece, either of the same doctrine or of a different doctrine or of a different religion, being encouraged by the official Church of Greece and based on the majority of the population which belongs to the latter.

Update: the trial was postponed for 18 May 1999