30/09/2026 Session
While democracy in Greece remains firmly rooted and resilient, “sustained efforts and constructive political dialogue must converge to protect it and further entrench the rule of law”, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has concluded following a “periodic review” of the country.
In a resolution adopted last night, based on a report by Laura Castel (Spain, UEL) and Miapetra Kumpula-Natris (Finland, SOC), the Assembly reviewed Greece’s progress against Council of Europe standards of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
“With considerable sacrifices by its citizens, Greece has achieved significant progress since the deep recession of 2009-2015," the parliamentarians pointed out. “Fifty-two years after its restoration, the Hellenic Republic is characterised by stable state institutions and constitutional guarantees that ensure fundamental freedoms, the orderly alternation of governments in power, and a legal framework for the protection of fundamental rights and liberties.”
At the same time, the Assembly noted “significant persistent challenges with regard to the functioning of democratic institutions in the country. Inter alia, corruption among high level public officials; government interference in sensitive judicial investigations; legislation jeopardising the action of civil society organisations in the field of migration and asylum; violence against migrants by internal security forces; and the use of Predator spyware against politicians and journalists are matters of concern.”
The parliamentarians made a series of recommendations to the Greek authorities covering the draft constitutional amendment, the security forces and police, conditions of detention, fighting corruption, the Ombudsman and the other administrative authorities with constitutional status, Predator spyware, media freedom, migration policy, freedom of association and the proportionality of criminal penalties, among other issues.
All Council of Europe member states that are not under a full monitoring procedure or engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue are subject to periodic review. Such reports are also currently being prepared on the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.