On 6 November 2024, the Hellenic Association of Prosecutors issued a statement denouncing what it described as a direct intervention by the Greek government in the operation of the judiciary, in breach of the constitutionally guaranteed principle of the separation of powers.
The statement—signed by Supreme Court Deputy Prosecutor Achilleas Zisis and Court of Appeal Deputy Prosecutor Kyriaki Kliampa—noted that on 4 November the Ministry of Justice issued a document instructing the heads of prosecution offices across the country on how to allocate the duties of prosecutorial officials.
However, according to Article 18 and Article 28 of the Code of Organization of Courts and Status of Judicial Officials (Law 4938/2022 | Government Gazette Α’ 109/6.6.2022), the prosecutor’s office is a judicial authority independent from both the courts and the executive branch (i.e. the government and the President of the Republic). Accordingly, the right to issue general instructions and recommendations concerning the exercise of prosecutorial duties lies with the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court for all prosecutors in the country, and with the Prosecutor of the Court of Appeal for prosecutors within the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal.
Furthermore, the prosecutor directs the work of the prosecution office, while the head of the Court of First Instance prosecution office designates, by formal act, the prosecutors assigned to satellite offices as well as their duties.
On the basis of the above, the Hellenic Association of Prosecutors emphasized that the contents of the Ministry of Justice’s document constitute a direct intervention in the work of the judiciary and a violation of the principle of the separation of powers, which is a cornerstone of our democratic system according to Article 26 of the Constitution. For this reason, the Association called for the “immediate withdrawal” of the government’s document “in order to restore constitutional order and legality.”
Article 26 of the Constitution provides that “1. The legislative powers shall be exercised by the Parliament and the President of the Republic. 2. The executive powers shall be exercised by the President of the Republic and the Government. 3. The judicial powers shall be exercised by courts of law, the decisions of which shall be executed in the name of the Greek People.”
Under the rule of law, state authorities—and especially the government—are obliged to respect the constitutionally enshrined principle of the separation of powers, a fundamental pillar of democratic governance.
However, according to the Hellenic Association of Prosecutors, the Greek government, in this instance, violated the principle of separation of powers through a document issued by the Ministry of Justice, in breach of Article 26 (“Separation of Powers”) of the Constitution.
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