[…]
I have the honour to transmit to you herewith the names of the three candidates nominated by the Greek Government with a view to the election by the Parliamentary Assembly of the new judge to the European Court of Human Rights in respect of Greece.
The names of the three candidates are as follows, in alphabetical order:
You will find enclosed the curricula vitae of the three candidates, in accordance with the model adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly, as well as a detailed description of the procedure followed for the nomination of the candidates.
[…]
Information on national selection procedure for the position of a judge of the European Court of Human Rights
The procedure for the nomination of candidates was based on the practice followed on the occasion of the previous selection of candidates for the position of a judge of the European Court of Human Rights in respect of Greece (2010), with important improvements.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs drafted a public “call for expression of interest” to submit applications for inclusion in the candidates’ list, which was signed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Justice on 31 October 2019. The deadline for the applications was 6 December 2019.
The public call was published on 1 November 2019 on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Along with the public call were uploaded the Model curriculum vitae (in the English and French languages), as well as links to relevant Resolutions and Recommendations of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the Guidelines of the Committee of Ministers on the selection of candidates for the post of judge at the European Court of Human Rights, the Resolutions of the Committee of Ministers on the status and conditions of service of judges of the European Court of Human Rights and on the establishment of an Advisory Panel of Experts on Candidates for Election as Judge to the European Court of Human Rights.
In order to ensure the widest possible dissemination of the call for candidatures, a relevant announcement was published in two national newspapers with wide circulation and was also sent by letter signed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Justice to the Presidents of the three Supreme Courts, the President of the Plenary of the country’s Bar Associations, and the Rectors of Universities with law schools.
The abovementioned public call contained a detailed job description, focusing on the requirements set out in the ECHR and mentioning the relevant Resolutions and Recommendations of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, in particular Resolution 1646 (2009), as well Resolution CM/Res(2010)26 of the Committee of Ministers on the establishment of the Advisory Panel of Experts.
In the public call, it was also stated that:
Furthermore, the public call indicated the procedure for the evaluation of candidatures, which was the same as the one followed in 2010, consisting, namely, in two stages: (a) the setting up of an Ad hoc Selection Committee, composed of the Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Secretary General of the Ministry of Justice and the President of the Legal Council of State (the Government’s Agent before the European Court of Human Rights), with the task of considering and evaluating the candidatures and making relevant recommendations to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Justice and (b) the adoption of the final list of candidates by the abovementioned Ministers.
Two important innovations were introduced in the national selection procedure.
First of all, it was decided that the Selection Committee would hold interviews with the candidates possessing the required qualifications, with a view to better evaluating the respective candidatures.
Furthermore, taking into account best practices of Council of Europe member States, the membership of the Selection Committee was enlarged to include the President of the Council of State (Supreme Administrative Court), as Chair of the Committee, as well as the former Judge in respect of Greece of the European Court of Human Rights.
To this effect, a Joint Ministerial Decision was published in the Official Gazette on 20 December 2019. According to the abovementioned Decision, the Selection Committee, tasked with the examination and evaluation of the candidatures, was composed of (1) Ms Aikaterini Sakellaropoulou, President of the Council of State, as Chair, (2) Mr Ioannis-Konstantinos Chalkias, President of the Legal Council of State, (3) Mr Themistoklis Demiris, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (4) Mr Panos Alexandris, Secretary General of the Ministry of Justice and (5) Mr Christos Rozakis, Emeritus Professor of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, former Judge and Vice-President of the European Court of Human Rights.
The Joint Ministerial Decision also provided that the Committee would select, among the candidates, those to be invited to an interview, and would, thereafter, evaluate the candidatures and draw up a list of up to six candidates to be considered by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Justice, with a view to establishing the list of three candidates to be submitted to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
Eventually, the President of the Council of State informed the competent authorities that she could not exercise her functions as Chair of the Selection Committee. Ms Sakellaropoulou was later elected by Parliament as the first female President of the Hellenic Republic.
By virtue of a Joint Ministerial Decision dated 21 January 2020 and published in the Official Gazette, as Chair of the Selection Committee was appointed Mr Ioannis Sarmas, President of the Court of Auditors.
In total, fourteen applications were submitted to the competent D03 Directorate for the OSCE and the Council of Europe of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by December 6, 2019. Later, two of the applicants withdrew their candidatures (one before the first meeting of the Committee and the second before the interviews). Hence the final number of the applicants was twelve.
In its first meeting, on January 27, 2020, the Committee reviewed the thirteen – at the time – applications and verified their compliance with required criteria. Hence, the Committee decided that all candidates would be invited in an interview on February 18, 2020. In addition, the Committee decided that its role was strictly advisory, aiming at recommending a list of candidates to the competent Ministers, who would take the final decision.
Before the second meeting of the Committee, another applicant announced that he withdrew his application. The remaining 12 candidates were invited and all of them participated in the interviews, before the Committee, at the building of the Court of Auditors. Interviews were held on February 18, 2020.
In the same day and before the interviews, the members of the Committee in its second session, decided that the questions addressed to the candidates would be: the examination of the active and/or passive knowledge by the candidates of the two official languages of the Council of Europe (English and French), the role of the Council of Europe in the shaping of international and European legal order, a description of their personal and professional qualifications and their comparative advantage as a judge of the ECHR and three questions regarding the case law of the ECHR.
Each interview lasted approximately 30 minutes and the candidates were called to answer one question in one language, and to read and summarise a text, regarding the case law of the Court, in the other. The exact time of the interviews was fixed so as to safeguard the privacy of the candidates.
In its third session, and after a thorough examination of the candidates’ curricula as well as their performance during the interviews, the Committee shortlisted four candidates, submitted their names to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Justice, who drew up a list of three candidates, among those shortlisted by the Committee, to be forwarded for opinion to the Advisory Panel of Experts on Candidates for Election as Judge to the European Court of Human Rights.
Name, forename: Ktistakis, Ioannis
Sex: male
Date and place of birth: 3 January 1971, Athens, Greece
Nationality: Greek
In this capacity, he has defended the following 55 individual applications before the European Court of Human Rights (the date of the relevant judgment in brackets): Anagnostopoulos and others (7.11.2000), Karahalios (11.12.2003), Belaousof and others (27.5.2004), Theodoropoulos and others (15.7.2004), Makaratzis (20.12.2004), Stamatios Karagiannis (10.2.2005), Karobeis (10.2.2005), Selianitis (10.2.2005), Theodoros Anagnostopoulos (10.2.2005), Charalambos Katsaros (10.2.2005), Vlasopoulos and others (10.2.2005), Oikonomidis (17.2.2005), Plastarias (21.4.2005), Kollias (21.4.2005), Koufogiannis (21.4.2005), Kabetsis (21.4.2005), Tsamou (21.4.2005), Stamos and others (19.5.2005), Makedonopoulos (19.5.2005), Moisidis (19.5.2005), Nikolopoulos (2.6.2005), Nafpliotis (2.6.2005), Aggelopoulos (9.6.2005), Fraggalexi (9.6.2005), Charalambos Karagiannis (9.6.2005), Kaskaniotis and others (9.6.2005), Ioannidis (4.8.2005), Vozinos (4.8.2005), Gavalas (4.8.2005), Spyropoulos (4.8.2005), Tsaras (4.8.2005), Renieri and others (8.12.2005), Gili and others (8.12.2005), Giakoumeli and others (8.12.2005), Georgopoulos and others (8.12.2005), Chatzibyrros and others (6.4.2006), Mantzila (4.5.2006), Athanasiou (1.6.2006), Tsiotras (1.6.2006), Sillaidis (30.11.2006), Diakoumakos (30.11.2006), Gousis (29.3.2007), Alvanos and others (20.3.2008), Meidanis (22.5.2008), Fener Rum Patrikliği (Ecumenical Patriarchate) (8.7.2008), Typopoiitiria Thivas A.E. (11.12.2008), Panoussi (22.4.2010), Saidoun (28.10.2010), Fawsie (28.10.2010), Konstas (24.5.2011), Sitaropoulos and Giakoumopoulos (15.3.2012), Ninos (7.6.2018), Molla Sali (19.12.2018), Dimopulos (2.4.2019) and Loupas (20.6.2019).
He has, also, defended the following collective complaint before the European Committee of Social Rights: International Federation for Human Rights v. Greece (5.6.2013)
University Teaching Activities
° International Protection of Human Rights: undergraduate and postgraduate studies, with particular emphasis on the Council of Europe and the United Nations system of protection of human rights.
° Refugee Law: postgraduate studies.
° Public International Law: undergraduate and postgraduate studies.
° International Protection of Human Rights, Public International Law and International Organizations (undergraduate studies).
° Faculty of Law, Georges Washington University, Washington DC (United States) (2016).
° Faculty of Political Science and Public Administration, University of Athens (Greece) (2007-2012).
In Europe
A/ European Court of Human Rights
In his capacity as Supreme Court Lawyer, he has defended 55 individual applications before the European Court of Human Rights, 3 of them before the Grand Chamber: Makaratzis (20.12.2004), Sitaropoulos and Giakoumopoulos (15.3.2012) and Molla Sali (19.12.2018) (see supra).
B/ European Committee of Social Rights
In his capacity as Supreme Court Lawyer and member of the Greek League of Human Rights (affiliated member of the International Federation for Human Rights), he has defended the following collective complaint before the European Committee of Social Rights: International Federation for Human Rights v. Greece (5.6.2013).
C/ Venice Commission (Council of Europe)
He was appointed by Greece as a Substitute Member of the Venice Commission (“European Commission for the Democracy through Law”) last September. He participated in the 120th Plenary session.
D/ National School for the Judiciary in Albania, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Bulgaria (Council of Europe)
Invited as a Council of Europe expert to offer seminars on the ECHR, addressed to high-ranking judges from Albania (April 2000), the FRY (September 2001) and Bulgaria (December 2002).
E/ European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Intolerance (EU)
As elected member of the Executive Board of EUMC (2004-2006), he had the task to draft its annual report or to offer opinions and recommendations regarding issues raised by the institutional bodies of the Union on racism and xenophobia in EU member-states.
F/ European network of legal experts in the non-discrimination field (EU)
In his capacity as independent legal expert, he submitted annual reports on the situation of human rights in Greece (2005-2008).
In Greece
A/ Greek National School for the Judiciary
He has given regular courses on the European Convention on Human Rights during four training periods addressed to newly appointed Greek judges of Civil and Penal Courts as well as Prosecutors (2013-2018). Prior to this, he had given lectures on the ECHR to high-ranking Greek judges, under the auspices of the National School for the Judiciary (2000, 2001, 2004, 2015 and 2018). He is the editor of the first book of a series of publications issued by the National School for the Judiciary: The impact of the European Convention on Human Rights on the application of Greek law, Athens-Komotini, 2003 (in Greek).
B/ National Commission for Human Rights
In his capacity as scientific counsel from 2000 (date of creation) until 2003, and then, in his capacity as substitute member (2004-2006), he submitted numerous reports related to the implementation of human rights, eight of which related to the European Convention on Human Rights concerning religious freedom (1.3.2001, 19.10.2005), the execution of domestic administrative courts’ judgments (4.7.2002), Greece’s ratification of the 12nd and 13th additional Protocols to the ECHR (28.2.2002 and 24.4.2002 respectively), conditions of detention (12.12.2002), “reasonable time” of penal proceedings (29.5.2003) and legal aid (30.10.2003).
C/ Equal Treatment Committee
In his capacity as member of the Equal Treatment Committee (2005-2006), one of the Greek specialised bodies for the promotion of the principle of equal treatment according to the Racial Equality Directive 2000/43/EC and Employment Equality Directive 2000/78/EC, he represented the Committee on various occasions and was appointed as rapporteur for the examination of the first two individual complaints.
D/ Greek League of Human Rights
In his capacity as Secretary-General of the Greek League for Human Rights (2003-2007), the oldest (1953) Greek NGO for human rights (affiliated member of the International Federation for Human Rights), he organized more than 10 conferences, colloquies and seminars in Greece regarding a wide range of human rights issues, with particular emphasis on the rights guaranteed by the European Convention of Human Rights.
E/ Marangopoulos Foundation of Human Rights
In his capacity as legal counsel (1996-1999) of the Marangopoulos Foundation of Human Rights (NGO with consultative status with the Council of Europe and the UN Economic and Social Council), he organized human rights-related colloquies and seminars in Greece, with emphasis on the European Convention on Human Rights. He is the author of two books regarding ECHR by the Foundation (in Greek): (i) Survey of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights 1997-1998, Athens-Komotini, 1999 (co-author: E. Kastanas), and (ii) Religious freedom and European Convention on Human Rights, Athens-Komotini, 2004.
Associate Professor Dr., Faculty of Law, Democritus University of Thrace (see supra)
Member of the Executive Board of European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Intolerance (EU) (2004-2006).
Non applicable.
Participation in International Conferences and intergovernmental bodies
Membership
Author, co-author, editor and co-editor of 62 books, articles and reports on the European Convention of Human Rights and general international law, published in Greek, French and English, including five monographs and six collective books. Among those publications, please note the following:
Monographs
Articles
Publication of Council of Europe
Publication of Greek National School for the Judiciary
Publication of Athens Bar Association
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I hereby confirm this.
Name, forename: Pazartzis, Photini
Sex: female
Date and place of birth: 28 June 1959, Athens, Greece
Nationality/ies: Hellenic
In 2014, I was elected by the Conference of States Parties to the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to serve as member of the ICCPR Human Rights Committee. I was re-elected in 2018 for a second mandate. This Committee is the legal organ of the Covenant entrusted with the supervision of the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (adopted in 1966). During my mandate, I have participated in the examination of a large number of individual complaints concerning violations of the rights enshrined by the Covenant. I have also been Rapporteur for a number of cases, thus taking a part in shaping the Committee’s jurisprudence in various areas. As Rapporteur on the Follow-Up to Views, I was actively involved in the supervision of the implementation of the Committee’s decisions (views) on individual complaints. Further, as Chair of the Working Group on the Committee’s Rules of Procedure, I had the opportunity to be actively involved in the revision of the Committee’s procedural rules, including the procedure concerning individual complaints.
As a professor of public international law, my areas of expertise, teaching and research are public international law both on an undergraduate and graduate level, including international human rights law, minority rights, international criminal law, reparations, public international law, law of treaties, law of state responsibility, international dispute settlement, law of the sea.
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Through different capacities, as legal practitioner/counsel and as academic, I have an extensive experience in the field of human rights, including international humanitarian law and international criminal law.
During my mandate on the Committee, I have participated in the review of the human rights situation in a number of countries, including countries, which are members of the Council of Europe. Through this, I gained valuable experience in assessing the application of international human rights obligations, in a variety of domestic legal orders, from a universal and comparative perspective. As Rapporteur on Follow-Up to Views, I had the opportunity to closely monitor the implementation of the Committee’s views by States parties and to prepare the Committee’s annual Follow-Up Report. As mandated Chair of the Working Group on the Rules of Procedure, I was involved in the revision of the Committee’s rules of procedure, in order to align the rules with the practice of the Committee, concerning both State reporting procedures and individual complaints. As elected Vice-Chair, I have chaired some of the Committee’s meetings and participated in the decision-making of the Committee on methods of work, as well as on administrative and budgetary decisions.
I have organised and/or participated in many international conferences relevant to international human rights protection and have been invited for presentations hosted among others by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe.
Selection of lectures/conference presentations relevant to human rights:
I have participated in joint meetings of the Human Rights Committee with the European Court of Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, respectively. In these meetings, Members of the UN Committee and judges discussed issues relevant to their respective jurisdictions and cross-cutting issues of human rights:
None
I have published a large number of books and articles and have edited/co-edited a number of publications. Publications concern public international law, dispute settlement, judicial function, treaty law, State responsibility, and international human rights, and include the 10 following most relevant books and articles:
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Chevalier de l’Ordre des palmes académiques, République française. http://www.athenspil.law.uoa.gr/people/director.html
I confirm that if elected a judge on the European Court I will take up permanent residence in Strasbourg.
Name, forename: Michail Pikramenos, Vice President at the Council of State, Associate Professor of Law School, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Sex: male
Date and place of birth: 11 October 1960, Athens, Greece
Nationality/ies: Greek
° Rapporteur at the plenary session of the Council of State regarding the relation between the disciplinary and penal trial in the disciplinary law of police officers under the light of the European Convention on Human Rights (Decision of the Council of State 4662/2012).
° Member of the composition of the plenary session regarding the teaching of the lesson of religion in schools under the light of the European Convention on Human Rights, expressing minority opinion (decisions of the Council of State 1749-1750/2019, 660/2018).
° Member of the composition of the plenary session for resolving the issue ne bis in idem in custom disputes under the light of the European Convention on Human Rights (penal and administrative sanction).
° President of the 2nd chamber of the Council of State regarding cases related to the presumption of innocence under the light of the European Convention on Human Rights (decisions of the Council of State 537, 297, 70/2019).
° Rapporteur at cases related to issues regarding the violation of article first of the First Additional Protocol (decisions of the Council of State 2461, 2462/2018, 3154/2014).
° Rapporteur at cases related to issues regarding the article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights on the fair trial (decisions of the Council of State 2457/2018, 3253/2017, 3508-3507/2013).
° Rapporteur at a case about the disciplinary regime of the military (decision of the Council of State 177/2006).
° President or member of the composition of the 2nd chamber of the Council of State in cases related to the principle of ne bis in idem (decisions of the Council of State 407-406/2019, 297/2019, 2103, 1104, 1103, 1102/2018).
No subject
Author of 45 articles, already published
The problem of the implementation of the administrative acts by the administration authorities in the light of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Strasbourg (in the volume with the Minutes of the Conference “Administrative theory and practice- administration and society”, Sakkoulas ed., Athens-Thessaloniki, 2007, pp. 769-784).
The disciplinary-criminal trial relationship in view of the article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, in the volume: “The European Court of Human Rights and the Council of State in a constant dialogue”, Sakkoulas ed., Athens-Thessaloniki, 2013.
The European Court of Human Rights and the Council of State in a constant dialogue (edit.), Sakkoulas ed., Athens-Thessaloniki, 2013.
Organization and Efficiency of the Justice. The European experience. Introduction/edited by Michail Pikramenos, Nomiki Vivliothiki ed., 2015.
The relation between justice and economic developments as priority of policy in E.U. and CoE, Efimerida Dioikitikou Dikaiou (Journal), 4/2016, p. 437-445).
Judicial maps and judicial time management in the administrative courts. European public policies for the reform of the judicial system, Nomiki Vivliothiki ed., 2017.
Prohibition of discriminations and the public functions. The Council of State and the interpretation of the national and the EU rules, Efarmoges Dimosiou Dikaiou (Journal), issue II/2017.
The international and European frame of principles and suggestions for the organization of justice, the judicial independence, the deontology and the status of the judges, and the issue of its implementation in the Greek judicial system, in the collective volume: “The administration of justice as main pillar of a fairly governed state”, Nomiki Vivliothiki, 2018.
The contribution of the judicial training to the approach of the European case-law by the national judges (in the volume of the proceedings of the 9th International Conference of Human Rights, co-organized by the International Center on Human Rights LIBERTAS and the Center of International Law at the University Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense, with main subject: “The dialogue of judges: Interactions between national and international courts”.
“Public confidence and the justice in a democratic society” (under publication in the honorary volume of the European Court of Human Rights in the honor of the President Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos).
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I confirm my intention to follow intensive language classes of the language concerned prior to, and if need be also at the beginning of, my term of duty if elected a judge on the Court.
Computer literate.
I confirm that I will take up permanent residence in Strasbourg if elected a judge on the Court.