These charges were brought against them after they displayed a sign bearing the words "Florina Committee" in both Greek and Macedonian outside the Florina office of the Rainbow Party in September 1995. There is nothing in the indictment which suggests that they advocated violence or incited hatred.

Amnesty International believes that their prosecution is a violation of Artews3.html#MILS">click here.

Amnesty International is calling on the Greek authorities to drop the charges against four members of the ethnic Macedonian minority party "Rainbow" at their trial in Florina on 15 September 1998.

"Rainbow" members Vasilis Romas, Costas Tasopoulos, Petros Vasiliadis and Pavlosicle 10 (1) of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), which Greece has ratified and is legally bound to observe.

Article 10 (1) states: "Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers."

Should they be imprisoned after their trial, Amnesty International will adopt them as prisoners g of the Conference on the Human Dimension of the CSCE (Section IV) of 29 June 1990 and the Charter of Paris for a New Europe of 21 November 1990 – which Greece has signed – allow them to form associations to protect their cultural and spiritual heritage."

THE COURT UNANIMOUSLY:

1. Dismisses the (Greek) Government’s preliminary objections;
2. Holds that there has been a violation of Article 11 of the Convention;
3. Holds that it is unnecessary to rule on the complaints under Articles 6 § 1, 9, 10 and 14 of the Convention;
4. Holds that the present judgment constitutes in itself sufficient just satisfaction for the non-pecuniary damage sustained by the applicants;
5. Holds:
   (a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, 4,000,000 (four million) drachmas for costs and expenses;
   (b) that simple interest at an annual rate of 6% shall be payable from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement;
6. Dismisses the remainder of the claim for just satisfaction.

And according to the French News Agency:

Greece condemned for discriminating against Macedonian minority

STRASBOURG, July 10 (AFP) - The European Court of Human Rights on Friday condemned Greece for having banned an association called 'The House of Macedonian Civilisation.'

Four people brought the case on behalf of a group of about 50 people who said they were of ethnic Macedonian origin and had a 'Macedonian national consciousness.'vention Article 11:

"Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for his interests."

"Even supposing that the founders of an association like the one in the instant case assert a minority consciousness, the Document of the Copenhagen Meetinent to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg on Tuesday, March 24, 1998. A decision was reached on July 10, 1998. The Greek government refused the Macedonians the right to register this association on grounds that they were "suspected of undermining the country’s territorial integrity" simply by opening a Macedonian cultural centre. Greece must now allow the Macedonians to register their association with its proper name, the Home of Macedonian Civilization.

According to the European Con

The Court ruled that Greece had violated the applicants' right to liberty of association.

Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada

The Second World Reunion of the Association of Refugee Children from Aegean Macedonia began on July 15, 1998 in the Republic of Macedonia and was scheduled to end with an historic trip to Edessa (Voden) Greece on July 19, 1998.

The former child refugees, evacuated from Greece during the Civil War of 1946-49, have consistently been denied entry into Greece simply because they assert their Macedonian ethnic identity. Former child refugees who assert a Greek identity have been allowed to return to Greece.

Several hundred Macedonians, under the supervision of a number of human rights organizations including the Greek Helsinki Monitor, the Macedonian Helsinki Committee and the Rainbow Party, attempted to cross the border from the Republic of Macedonia into Florina (Lerin) Greece on the morning of July 19, 1998. After being held up unnecessarily for several hours at the border and having their personal belongings examined, most of these people were allowed entry. The Greek government seemed intent on delaying the celebrations planned in Edessa (Voden) as the expression of Macedonian culture is not tolerated in Greece.

However, approximately 30 people, including the executive of the Association of Refugee Children from Aegean Macedonia (from Canada) were denied entry and given no reason by the Greek government. These people do not have criminal records and as Canadian citizens do not require visas to visit Greece. The Greek government turned them back only because of their involvement in Macedonian organizations overseas and because they assert a Macedonian ethnic identity.

The MHRMC and ARCAM call on the international community to condemn Greece’s actions and to apply pressure on the Greek government to comply with all human rights conventions to which it is a signatory and allow these ethnic Macedonians to freely cross the border into Greece.

Bill Nicholov
Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada
P.O. Box 44532
2376 Eglinton Avenue East
Toronto, Canada
M1K 5K3
Tel. 416-202-8866
Fax 416-412-3385
mail@mhrmc.on.ca
http://www.mhrmc.on.ca

Press Release - June 14, 1998

The Second World Reunion of the Association of Refugee Children from Aegean Macedonia will be taking place from July 15-19, 1998 in the Republic of Macedonia with an historic trip to Edessa (Voden), Greece planned for the morning of the 19th.

The Greek government has consistently denied the former child refugees entry into Greece and therefore, the MHRMC and ARCAM request your assistance in making this border crossing a success.

During the Greek Civil War of 1946-49, approximately 30,000 children between the ages of two and fourteen were evacuated by the Red Cross. The Greek government subsequently stripped them of their citizenship and has denied them entry into Greece even to visit relatives or to attend funerals, only because they assert their Macedonian ethnic identity. Former child refugees who express a Greek identity have regained their citizenship.

The members of ARCAM plan to cross the border from Bitola in the Republic of Macedonia into Florina (Lerin) Greece. We have informed all necessary authorities expressing ARCAM's desire to be allowed entry into Greece, including international embassies located in Greece and Greek government officials, specifically: Mr. Konstantinos Simitis, Prime Minister of Greece; Constantinos Stefanopoulos, President of the Hellenic Republic; Theodoros Pangalos, Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs; Phillipos Petsalnikos, Greek Minister for Macedonia and Thrace; John Thomoglou, Greek Ambassador to Canada; Alexandra Papadopoulou, Greek Consul General in Toronto, Canada.

Unfortunately, as of June 14, we have not received a response from any of the Greek officials.

As stated in the letter:

“We would like to assure you that our objectives are peaceful and humanitarian. We want to be able to visit our places of birth, see our relatives and friends, perhaps for the last time. We feel it is our moral obligation to visit the graves of our parents and grandparents as proud sons and daughters of our native land. On the last day of the second World Reunion, on July 19, 1998, we would like to participate in a picnic which is to be held in the Republic of Greece and is being organized by Macedonians who live in Greece.”

We remain hopeful that Greece will comply with all international human rights conventions to which it is a signatory and allow ethnic Macedonians to freely cross the border into Greece.

Bill Nicholov
Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada
P.O. Box 44532
2376 Eglinton Avenue East
Toronto, Canada
M1K 5K3
Tel. 416-202-8866
Fax 416-412-3385
mail@mhrmc.on.ca
http://www.mhrmc.on.ca

Vo seloto Gorno pozzarsko (Ano Lutraki) vodenska okolija vo Grcija, pred eden mesec bile razurnati starite makedonski grobissta na crkvata Sv. Gjorgji i na nivno mesto bila izgradena nova grccka crkva so isto ime. Razurnatite grobissta datiraat do pred 200-300 godini i se odlikuvaat so kjirilsko pismo na nadgrobnite plocci. Ova kako ssto prenesuva `Dnevnik se veli vo soopsstenieto na Makedonskiot nacionalen sovet koj se povikuva na informacite od arhimandritot Nikodimos Carkjanjas. Makedonskiot nacionalen sovet inaku najostro go osudi ovoj ccin kako tesska povreda na pravata na Makedoncite vo Grcija i javno ja izrazi svojata nadezz deka nedlazzenite institucii vo Makedonija kje reagiraat kaj grcckite oficijalni pretstavnici na soodveten naccin.

Greek Desecration of Macedonian Graves
Click here for more pictures

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The Macedonian Minority

The Macedonian minority is still not recognized by the Greek government and consequently faces various forms of harassment and discrimination. These include restrictions on freedom of cultural expression, violations of the freedom of association, harassment of its political party, Rainbow, denial of entry to Greece by ethnic Macedonians and former Greek citizens living abroad, and citizenship issues.

On 24 June 1996, the European Commission of Human Rights declared admissible the complaint against Greece, filed by founder members of the association Home of Macedonian Culture. They wanted to challenge decisions of the Greek courts, at all levels, rejecting registration of their association since 1990. This was the first time that a case involving discrimination against the Macedonian minority in Greece reached the European Court and won admissibility. The Greek state attempted to refute the applicants’ claim by arguing that no such minority existed in Greece.

After the country's Civil War (1944-1949), many ethnic Macedonians left Greece along with other Greek citizens, who although of Greek origin had fought with the communist forces. A 1982 law allowed ethnic Greek refugees to return. Ethnic Macedonians still have no right to return. Moreover, even short visits to participate, for example, in weddings or funerals are usually prohibited.Also their children are often denied entry.

On 14 October 1997,the trial Vasilis Romas,Costas Tasopoulos, Petros Vasiliadis and Pavlos Voskopoulos opened in Florina. They were charged in their capacity as leaders of the Rainbow party. The case dates back to 1995 when on 13-14 September the Rainbow office in Florina was attacked by a mob of people, led by the mayor of Florina. Before that police, at the order of the local prosecutor, had removed the sign outside the party office saying "Rainbow-Florina Committee," written both in Greek and Macedonian. The defendants are accused of "having incited mutual hatred among the citizens so that common peace was disturbed" because they had hung up the sign with Slavic texts. They are charged on the basis of Article 192 of the Greek Penal Code with inciting citizens to commit acts of violence. No charges have been raised against those people who attacked the office.

Border authorities have regularly checked and occasionally seized printed material carried by people entering Greece from Macedonia.

Hristo Sideropoulos, along with several other founders of the Macedonian Cultural Centre in Lerin, filed a court case against the Greek government at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg on Tuesday, March 24, 1998.

The Macedonians have been struggling to open this cultural centre since 1990, but the Greek government has done everything in its power to prevent this. According to the European Convention Article 11:

"Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for his interests."

The Document of the Copenhagen meeting of the CSCE-HD Section 4 Article 32(6) states:

"Persons belonging to national minorities have the right to establish and maintain organizations or associations within their country and to participate in international non-governmental organizations."

Instead of abiding by these international human rights conventions, Greece illegally denies the Macedonians the right to establish the Macedonian Cultural Centre.

For more information, please visit the website of the European Court of Human Rights. A decision is expected in a few months.

For the first time ever, a dance group from Aegean Macedonia has performed in Canada. This momentous occasion took place at the 19th annual reunion of the Deca Begalci on March 21, 1998. Despite threats from the Greek authorities and Greek organizations such as the "Pan-Macedonian" organization, fifteen performers from villages all over Aegean Macedonia including Lerin, Voden and Kukush made the trip to Toronto. Dressed in traditional Macedonian costumes, they performed wonderfully in front of an emotional crowd of over 700 people. The Greek government denies the existence of any minorities within its borders and tries to suppress any display of cultural identity. This group has defied the Greek government in their attempts to achieve their basic human rights.

Amnesty International will adopt Traianos Pasois, a member of the ethnic Macedonian minority party "Rainbow", as a prisoner of conscience and will call for his immediate and unconditional release should he be imprisoned after his trial in Florina (Lerin) today, the human rights organization said in a letter to the Greek Government.

On 17 February 1996 Traianos Pasois crossed the border between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, at the border post of Niki (Negochani), Florina (Lerin). According to an indictment later issued against him, he had in his possession "two wall calendars which he intended to circulate" and which "featured photographs of pure Greek towns and areas, under or next to which were captions written in a foreign idiom".

The indictment further states that the captions "praised clearly controversial and provocative actions and decisions by political parties, groups and organizations which took part in the civil war. [These] actions and decisions disputed the Greek character of [the province of] Macedonia, aiming at its dismemberment, secession and annexation by a neighbouring state then enemy of Greece". There is no evidence in the indictment to suggest that the calendars contained language amounting to an incitement to, or advocation of, violence.

Amnesty International believes that the charge brought against Traianos Pasois is motivated by his public support for the recognition of a Macedonian minority in Greece, by his affirmation of membership of such a minority and by his support for the right to use, without restriction, the Macedonian language and disseminate views and opinions relating to the region.

The organization considers that by bringing Traianos Pasois to trial simply for expressing his opinion, the Greek authorities are acting in violation of Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and Article 10 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), both of which Greece has ratified and is therefore bound to observe.

BACKGROUND

On 14 October 1997 Vasilis Romas, Costas Tasopoulos, Petros Vasiliadis and Pavlos Voskopoulos, four other members of the "Rainbow" Party, stood trial in Florina for "causing and inciting mutual hatred among the citizens" and thus violating Article 192 of the Greek Penal Code by displaying a sign, with the words "Florina Committee" in both Greek and Macedonian, outside the Florina office of the Rainbow Party in September 1995. The indictment against the four men also stated that the use of the Macedonian words "Lerinski Komitet" "provoked and incited discord among the area"s citizens [who] justifiably...identify these words with an old terrorist organization of Slavic-speaking alien nationals which was active in the area". The trial was postponed until September 1998.

Amnesty International believes that the charges brought against Traianos Pasois and the other members of the "Rainbow" Party are motivated by their expression of public support for the recognition of a Macedonian minority in Greece and the affirmation of their membership of such a minority. The organization therefore considers the four men to be potential prisoners of conscience and will ask for their immediate and unconditional release should they be imprisoned.

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