The elected mayor of Himare and MEP Fredi Beleri remain in prison following the decision of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the two-year prison sentence on Tuesday.
Beleri has been in custody since May 12, 2023 and according to this decision, he will remain in prison until October. As an elected MEP the question now arises as to whether he will be allowed to attend the first session in Brussels in July for the European Parliament of which he is an elected member.
Following the completion of the court proceedings, Greece’s Ambassador to Albania Konstantina Kamitsi made the following statement to the media: “With today’s decision of the Court of Appeal, the trial of the elected Mayor of Himare by Albanian justice is concluded.
Unfortunately, many aspects of this case raise questions regarding the objectivity of the proceedings, such as the violation of the presumption of innocence, the prolonged pre-trial detention of Beleri, the disproportionate final sentence in relation to the alleged offense and the refusal to grant an oath. Despite the wishes of the people of Himare as expressed through the electoral process, the municipality is still governed by individuals who were not elected by the constituency.
Greece’s priority has always been respect for the rule of law, respect for democratic procedures and the protection of minority rights, which are fundamental principles of the European Union. Beleri is now officially an elected member of the European Parliament. It is an absolute democratic requirement and a requirement of the rule of law that elected MEPs have the opportunity to attend in person to all the work of the European Parliament starting from the plenary in July.”
SOURCE; ANA-MPA
