World News | Far-right Party Banned from Upcoming Election in Greece
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Greece's parliament has banned a far-right political party led by a jailed former lawmaker from participating in the general election later this year.
Athens, Feb 9 (AP) Greece's parliament has banned a far-right political party led by a jailed former lawmaker from participating in the general election later this year.
Parliament published the text of a legislative amendment Thursday that will disqualify the Greek National Party on the grounds that its leader has been convicted of a serious criminal offense.
Lawmakers approved the amendment late Wednesday.
Ilias Kasidiaris, who founded the breakaway party two years ago, is serving 13-year prison sentence for membership in and being a former leading member of Golden Dawn, a political party of neo-Nazi origins.
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A court in 2020 designated Golden Dawn as a criminal organisation for waging a campaign of violence against migrants and ideological opponents.
Kasidiaris and other members of the Golden Dawn leadership were jailed as a result of the ruling.
Public Order Minister Takis Theodorikakos told state-run television Thursday that banning the Greek National Party was appropriate.
“The Government did the right thing by responding to a demand from a vast majority of Greek citizens: to exclude a party led by a convicted member of a criminal organisation.”
Elections are expected in April with the governing centre-right New Democracy party leading but unlikely to gain an outright majority, opinion polls suggest.
The likely stalemate is expected to trigger a repeat election the following month, when a new election law takes effect.
Recent polls suggest the Greek National Party would cross the threshold of 3% of the national vote needed to gain parliamentary representation.
The party on Thursday described the vote in parliament as a violation of the constitution and voters' rights, and vowed to set up its own unofficial ballot boxes on election day.
Golden Dawn — a party that held torch-lit rallies and included senior members who openly backed violence against migrants — was represented in parliament between 2012 and 2019 following four consecutive elections held during a major financial crisis.
During Wednesday's debate, lawmakers from the Greek Communist Party said they opposed the amendment, arguing that it could be misused to ban political activism in general.
A small right-wing opposition party in parliament, Hellenic Solution, also opposed the legislative initiative, describing it as unconstitutional. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)