On the occasion of her decision of the European Court of Human Rights former president of ELSTAT Andreas Georgiou states the following:

“It is with particular satisfaction and joy that I have been informed of the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in my favor that my human rights were violated – due to an unfair trial – when I was convicted of “breach of duty”. “for failing to submit to the vote in November 2010 corrected deficit figures for 2009.

He even asked to repeat the trial in AP.

In particular, it ruled that my human rights were violated when the Greek courts denied my legal request to submit a preliminary question to the competent Court of Justice of the European Union for the correct interpretation of the rules of the European Statistics Code of Good Practice. to be applied in the preparation of official statistics in the Member States.

In particular, the issue not raised concerned the correct interpretation of the rule of the European Statistics Code of Good Practice that “the heads of national statistical offices … are responsible for deciding on statistical methods, standards and procedures, as well as the content and timing of the publication of statistical data “.

This European rule, within the framework of the Principle of Professional Independence of the Code of Good Practice, is of fundamental and decisive importance for the credibility of the official statistics of the EU Member States and their protection from all kinds of political and state interference – namely the pathology that led to the “Greek statistics”.

It is for this reason that the decision of the ECtHR and the recognition of my conviction by local courts as unfair is especially joyful. It is also widely known that my own stay at ELSTAT (August 2010 – August 2015), for which I was repeatedly and continuously prosecuted for almost twelve years, restored confidence in the country’s statistics and allowed Greece and its partners in everything world to rely on this evidence, ridding the country of the stigma created by the destructive practices that my administration has abandoned.

Perhaps not so well known, the ongoing persecution I have suffered has taken a huge personal toll on me.

However, I did not, as I could, demand financial restitution in the last lawsuit – all I am passionate about and will do to the end is my full legal and moral rehabilitation, which I owe to myself, my family and comrade. statisticians in Greece, in the European Union, as well as throughout the world, where they should be authorized to work exclusively on the basis of the principles of statistical ethics in order to produce reliable statistics.

I believe that today’s decision paves the way to achieve this goal, and I thank all those who have stood by my side on this difficult journey – people and organizations around the world who have never stopped supporting me and fighting for my vindication.

Finally, I thank my lawyers, especially Konstantinos Papadiamantis, Vicky Psaltis, Achilleas Dimitriadis and Statis Potamitis, for their good fight, which they are fighting selflessly, and for their unwavering commitment to my cause, which is extremely important not only for me, but also for the country. and its institutions, and more broadly for the European Union”.