llustrating the high stakes inherent in the resolution of the Georgiou case, there were key announcements about it in the days surrounding the decisions on the last tranche of Greek bailout funding for Greece (under the European Stability Mechanism).
The International Association for Official Statistics issued what they termed an “unprecedented public statement”, signed by 80 former heads of national and international statistical agencies “who between them have an unrivaled knowledge and experience of the proper production of official statistics throughout the world”. The statement (available here) firmly supported Andreas’ government deficit calculations, condemned the prosecution in explicit terms, and pointed out the “fundamental contradiction of [EU partners] providing assistance to Greece on the basis of data that is repeatedly challenged at the highest levels of the judiciary”.
When the final funding tranche of the bailout was granted on 22nd of June, the Eurogroup press release that accompanied this decision expressed concern about the ongoing prosecutions. They called for ongoing monitoring and report-back on the developments in the case as part of the post-program surveillance. An opinion piece in the Greek newspaper Kathimerini suggested that this important paragraph reflected “zero confidence of [our EU] partners in our country [Greece] and its institutions”. An IMF statement on the occasion of its discussions with the Greek government of Greece’s policies pointedly noted that“ensuring adequate protection for officials–such as those in charge of statistical reports–is essential to increase confidence in public finances and ensure data integrity.”
In other news, supportive editorials in The Economist (subscription required) and the UK newspaper The Independent continue to argue that the persecution has profound implications for investor confidence in Greece. A comprehensive story in the Irish Times characterized Andreas as an “unlikely Greek hero” and nicely and concisely summarized the saga from the beginning.
Also the following articles from members of the group Friends of Greece make important points about the persecution of Andreas and its repercussions not only for Greece but more broadly for the EU. See the article from Nicolas Veron at the Peterson Institute here, and an article from Ted Truman ’63 and Nicolas in the Greek paper Kathimerini here.
The German press had a collection of articles in the days surrounding the Greek funding decisions: Frantfurter Allgemeine Zeitung had two articles, one by Michael Martens here, and a second article here. A Suddeutche Zeitung article is here. In the Netherlands, NOS reports on the case here.