REPORTS
Minister of Development and Investment attends baptism despite pandemic restrictions suspending religious ceremonies
On Sunday, March 14, 2021, the Minister of Development and Investment, Mr. Adonis Georgiadis, tweeted about a baptism that he attended at the St Dionysius the Areopagite Church, where he became the godfather of the son of the President of the HSPPA independent authority. However, this religious ceremony took place when Attica was classified at a level of “very high risk,” of contagion due to the pandemic, and religious services were only allowed to take place on the basis that clergy and support staff were to be present, and no other guests. This measure was decreed by a Joint Ministerial Decision in force until March 16. On March 3 the Deputy Minister of Civil Protection had specifically announced the suspension of weddings, baptisms, and memorial services.
The Minister of Development subsequently tweeted that “the baptism […] took place legally following a permit issued on 05/03/2021 by the Ministry for Civil Protection when the child’s parents made the relevant application. This is a process that anyone can follow if they have serious reasons.”
In a third tweet, he claimed that the relevant permission granted by the Ministry was through a procedure that is available to all citizens, saying: “the father who received it was a regular mortal” referring to the President of the HSPPA who, although technically he is indeed a “regular mortal,” is also the holder of a public office of major importance.
In a supplementary statement, the Minister underlined that he had no involvement with the issuance of the permit. The family of the child in question made the application for private reasons which he is not in a position to make public.
A statement by the Permanent Holy Synod of the Church of Greece appeared to contradict these claims however, commenting that they weren’t aware of the possibility of a special permit to allow exceptional ceremonies.
Journalist Nikos Chatzinikolaou (Real News) also revealed that he had talked to the Deputy Minister of Civil Protection and confirmed that there is no special permit that can be applied for, and that rather the Ministry had unofficially allowed for exceptional religious ceremonies for reasons such as serious illness and impending emigration.
This report raises questions about the validity of the document presented by the Minister of Development, which as noted from the beginning on social networks and by the media, did not bear a protocol number, with which the date of issuance and exceptional reasons cited by the applicants could have been ascertained. In addition, the permit – which was not obliged to state the exceptional reasons for the ceremony – in this case made no reference to any exceptional reasons but rather referred to the fact that the baptism had been scheduled before the measures were announced, which of course was the case for a great many other ceremonies which were not permitted to take place.
In a state governed by the rule of law, everyone is equal before the law.
It is at least immoral (if not illegal) to make exceptions for specific individuals/groups on the basis of their status as members of the government.
In this case, however, concerns arise as to whether decisions taken by the Ministry for Civil Protection and the provisions of the Joint Ministerial Decision were applied to everyone in the same way.
The basis for these concerns is the fact that despite the pandemic restrictions and a ban on religious ceremonies, the baptism of a child took place, where the father of the child was the president of an independent authority, and the godfather a Government Minister.
It should therefore have been clarified whether a) baptisms could indeed take place and whether b) the special permit granted was valid and legal and whether it could indeed be obtained by anyone regardless of their occupation.
Bank Account number: 1100 0232 0016 560
IBAN: GR56 0140 1100 1100 0232 0016 560
BIC: CRBAGRAA
In a time where the very foundations of democracy are gradually being eroded by the rise of extreme nationalism, alt-right movements, the spread of disinformation and corporate capture, the efforts of organisations such as Vouliwatch are more relevant than ever.
We rely on the generosity of each and every one of you to continue with our efforts for more transparency and accounta
By financially supporting Vouliwatch you support our litigation strategy, our campaigns for transparency and accountability in the political system, the development of new civic tech tools, our research projects and last but not least our impartial and accurate