Tuesday - 19 March, 2024
Infinite Menus, Copyright 2006, OpenCube Inc. All Rights Reserved.
 
The Rainbow Party
» Introduction
» New Manifesto
» Old Manifesto
» Principles
» Founding Principles
» Organisation


NEWSPAPER

Nova Zora


ZORA

Zora


NEWSLETTER

Newsletter of the Rainbow Party


Следете нè на:

Aκολουθήστε μας στο:

Follow us on:




ΕFA-Rainbow supports the right of the Catalan people to decide on their future and joins the EFA campaign "Catalonia decides"

Catalonia decides


MAKEDONSKI.ORG

makedonski.org


INTERNET RADIO

Radio Macedonian Culture


A selection of Macedonian blogs in Greece


Abecedar
Aegean Macedonian Culture
Antimakedonismos
Mladini-Makedonci


Anti-macedonian policy during the elections for the European Parliament against Rainbow by the Greek state and the Greek mass media


A scandal by the Parliamentary committee

Greek TV stations sabotage EFA-Raibow

Ultra-nationalists want "borders with Serbia"!

"Hellenic Post" sabbotages EFA-Rainbow Campaign

Typical example of censorship of Rainbow

Attack of the Greek Neo-nazi party




A Greek - Macedonian dictionary by Vasko Karatza printed with the support of EFA - Rainbow
 Greek   Macedonian


D. Lithoxoou

lithoksou.net/home.html
"Extracts of Letters"




Τι έλεγε κάποτε το ΚΚΕ για τους Μακεδόνες


Denying Ethnic Identity:
The Macedonians of Greece, by Human Rights Watch


Linguistics and politics II:
Macedonian Language


Greece's stance towards
its Macedonian minority
and the neighbouring
Republic of Macedonia.


Lawed Arguments
and Omitted Truths


R. Nikovski: Memorandum to the European Parliament
Facts behind the Greek politics towards Macedonia

English  Macedonian


"Proposed disciplinary measures to stamp out the Macedonian minority in Greece by the National Security Service"


Center Maurits Coppieters
European Free Alliance
Federal Union of European Nationalities
Greek Helsinki Monitor
Greek Anti–Nationalistic Movement
Macedonian Human Rights Movement International
Macedonian Human Rights of Australia
OMO Ilinden - PIRIN
MakNews.com
The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights


Macedonian Forum for politics and history
 

OUTCOME OF THE ELECTIONS
FOR THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT


 

On the 13th of June, 1999, the RAINBOW Party (representing the Macedonian minority in Greece) participated in the European Elections.

Elections for the European Parliament are held in all the member countries of the European Union. The number of representatives a country is allotted depends upon its population. For example, Italy is allotted 87 representatives, while Greece is allotted 25.

All political parties, including RAINBOW, were permitted to participate in these elections. However, a representative must gain at least three percent of the popular vote in order to be eligible. Unfortunately, this usually means that only the larger political parties succeed in having members elected.

In the previous elections for the European Parliament the RAINBOW party officially received 7300 votes. While this may not have been enough to elect a representative, it was, nevertheless, the first time that the Macedonian ethnic minority in Greece had any political representation, whatsoever.

In these elections RAINBOW participated with the support of the European Free Alliance. In some EU member states minority candidates are able to overcome the obligatory 3% hurdle. The European Free Alliance has succeeded in sending representatives to the European Parliament in the past, and should it succeed again it would be able to offer some representation to other minority parties, such as RAINBOW, that are not able to overcome this numerical barrier.

RAINBOW prepared a slate of 25 candidates. Included in that list was Mr. Jean-Maria Bogaert of Belgium, a representative of the European Free Alliance and member of the Flemish Union. Mr. Bogaert's inclusion in RAINBOW's slate indicates the support of the European Free Alliance. 

Slate for the Elections

Candidate Town Region (Okolya)
Anastasiadis Stavros Ovcharani - Meliti Lerinska
Bekiari Marianthi Ovcharani - Meliti Lerinska
Bogaert Jean-Marie Brugge - Belgium
Boules Anastasios Ekshi Su - Xyno Nero Lerinska
Dafopoulos Ilias Zabrdeni - Lofi Lerinska
Denas Dimitrios Mokreni - Variko Kaylarska
Konstantinou Georgios Voden - Edessa Vodenska
Maggos Konstantinos Armensko - Alona Lerinska
Mainou Elisavet Krassoradi - Ahlada Lerinska
Manakoulis Hristos Ber - Veroia Berska
Manou Ioannis Ilijievo - Halkidona Enijevardarska
Mantzas Elevtherios Ekshi Su - Xyno Nero Lerinska
Missios Ioannis Gorno Kotori - Ano Idroussa Lerinska
Papadimitriou Stiliani Tsakoni - Hrisi Sobotska
Sakellarios Nikos Trebno - Kardia Kaylarska
Siekris Antonios Ovcharani - Meliti Lerinska
Siles Georgios Setina - Skopos Lerinska
Sovislis Konstantinos Ovcharani - Meliti Lerinska
Tapos Georgios Ramna - Omalos Gyumenjichka
Tasopoulos Konstantinos Zabrdeni - Lofi Lerinska
Terzis Nikolaos Gradobor - Pentalofos Solunska
Vasiliadis Petros Ekshi Su - Xyno Nero Lerinska
Vasiliou Petros Dolno Kotori - Kato Idroussa Lerinska
Voskopoulos Pavlos Lerin - Florina Lerinska
Vragkos Hristos Trsye - Korifi Lerinska

The Results

In these elections RAINBOW obtained 4951 votes, as reported by the Greek Ministry of Internal Affairs.

It is noteworthy that the crisis in Kosovo, which took place only 150 km north of the border between Macedonia and Greece, caused the elections to occur in a climate of war psychosis.

The Kosovo crisis itself was an expression of minority problems. As in the Macedonian case in Northern Greece, the Kosovo crisis relates to the denial, by the state, of basic human rights targetting a specific ethnic minority.

The images of the Kosovar Albanians fleeing the ethnic cleansing by Serb paramilitary groups resonated with the Macedonians of Northern Greece, many of whom remember the terror and ethnic cleansing undertaken by the Greek regime in 1949. Those familiar with the events of that time can appreciate the horror the Macedonians of Greece felt upon seeing those images -- images that reflected their own past.

On a larger scale the Kosovo crisis resulted in an extremely anti-Western, anti-European mood in the Greek mass media. It was very difficult for anyone to present a point of view different to the official position on this matter.

It was under these circumstances that the European Elections took place.

With regard to voting irregularities:

The majority of Greek mass media (large and small alike) refused to report anything about the election campaign undertaken by the RAINBOW party. They would not announce RAINBOW's platform, even though it promoted tolerance and understanding based on a European framework. Consequently, the RAINBOW party was denied a fair opportunity to declare its views to the general public.

With respect to Greek electoral law, all public and private stations are required to offer at least five minutes of broadcast time to the smaller parties in order for them to present their platform to the general electorate. As an alternative they are required to organize a broadcast in which all of the minor parties have representation.

In practice, the Greek MEGA Channel refused to broadcast a program presenting the platform of the RAINBOW party, despite the fact that the program had already been taped. This method of censorship generated immediate criticism from Greek Helsinki Monitor and Minority Rights Group -- Greece.

Having said all this, we must state that the national television station did allow RAINBOW five minutes of broadcast time to present its platform, after RAINBOW made a formal request to do so.

Let us also be frank. The five minutes of access afforded RAINBOW and other smaller parties is in itself severely restrictive. Compare this to the 60 minutes afforded the larger parties.

In addition, the smaller parties (especially minority parties) incur financial hardship and must pay for all their own electoral expenses. Consider that in Greece each party must print its own lists and ballots and distribute them to the polling stations. The cost to the smaller parties can be quite significant, whereas, the larger parties are financed from the public purse.

Another irregularity, which must be made known, concerns the issue of ballot distribution. The electoral commission (composed of members of regional councils) is supposed to distribute ballots of all the parties running. In many instances election officers were refusing to hand out ballots with the names of the RAINBOW candidates.

Some of the more courageous RAINBOW supporters demanded openly that they be given proper ballots or at least blank ballots upon which they could write the names of the candidates they wanted to support. However, in doing so, they had to openly declare their political sympathies to the authorities. This had the effect of neutralizing one's legal right to election by secret ballot -- specifically targetting RAINBOW supporters. It was a deliberate attempt at dissuading voters from supporting RAINBOW. Most were too intimidated to ask for RAINBOW ballot's or demand blank ones.

Irregularities of this type were documented in the districts of Serres, Ber (Verria), Voden (Edessa) and Solun (Thessaloniki).

RAINBOW is also aware that in a number of polling stations Greek judicial representatives, without valid reason, were destroying ballots that had been cast for RAINBOW candidates.

Finally, there were irregularities associated with the numerical sum of ballots. In some polling stations the numerical number of ballots cast for RAINBOW candidates was reduced by one-third to one-half after the ballots were transferred to the municipal offices and the official results were released.

In its first formal meeting after the elections, the members of the RAINBOW party reviewed the above-mentioned irregularities objectively. It was considered a positive step that RAINBOW was able to participate in the electoral process at all. Even the officially declared result of about 5,000 votes in support of RAINBOW candidates is quite successful, given the circumstances.

Eleftherotypia, a major Greek daily, pointed out that in terms of the local context RAINBOW had been relatively successful -- garnering 1427 votes in the Florina prefecture alone.

During the election campaign, and despite all the obstacles and censorship, it was possible for RAINBOW to advance its platform for minority rights in Greece under a European framework to a larger section of the population.

The RAINBOW party wants to thank all those who helped financially and morally with these elections. We also want to thank those who voted for RAINBOW and those who supported RAINBOW but were unable to vote for us because electoral officials denied them ballots.

It is our objective estimation that the election results offer a strong basis for furthering our struggle to obtain basic rights for all minorities living in Greece today.

 

Back to previous page Back to top
EFA-Rainbow Archives
EFA 2019 MANIFESTO


Γιατί να ψηφίσω
την ΕΕΣ-Ουράνιο Τόξο

Click here
to read the Abecedar!

Promotion of the
Macedonian Language
Primer at the OSCE HDIM

English Greek Macedonian

Greek irredentism and expansionism officially sanctioned by the Greek Parliament
English Greek Macedonian

Letter to Carla del Ponte,
Chief Prosecutor for the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

English Greek Macedonian

The Yugoslavian Crisis
English Greek Macedonian

Document of the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs

Related to the article - The obvious linguistic particularity - Eletherotypia, 18/11/2006

English   Greek

The ten Greek myths
on the “Macedonian issue”

By IOS team – Eletherotypia, 23/10/2005

Who says there are no
minority languages in Greece?

The "secret" census
in north Greece, in 1920

Map showing the Cultures and Languages in the E.U.

Council of Europe
Framework convention for the Protection of national minorities


English

Greek

Macedonian

Συνέντευξη: Ευάγγελος Κωφός, Έλληνας ιστορικός
Δημοκρατία της Μακεδονίας - Σκόπια είναι όνομα που εκφράζει την ταυτότητά σας

Greek   Macedonian

Ο Παύλος Φιλίποβ Βοσκόπουλος απαντά στον Ευάγγελο Κωφό.
«Το Μακεδονικό ζήτημα είναι η αχίλλειος πτέρνα του ελληνικού μύθου».

Greek   Macedonian
HomeAbout UsNewsReportsMediaLinksContact
© 1997-2015 EFA-Rainbow, All Rights Reserved.