Greece's Foreign Ministry issued
a statement on Wednesday in response to an Albanian court's
decision to reject an appeal by Fredi Beleri, an ethnic Greek
elected mayor of Himara and more recently a member of the
European Parliament, who will be imprisoned until October,
according to the daily Kathimerini. Beleri was convicted earlier
this year of vote-buying in Albania's local elections last May,
which he and Athens believe are politically motivated. In its
announcement, the ministry stated that the decision "confirmed
concerns about the level of the rule of law and the protection
of minorities in Albania." It also stated that Greece had
expressed concerns about many aspects of the case, including the
violation of the presumption of innocence, the disproportionate
sentence imposed by the court, and the denial of Beleri's right
to be sworn in.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
