Newly elected member of the European Parliament Fredi Beleri, who is currently serving time in prison in Albania, has been given permission by Albanian authorities to attend a swearing-in ceremony for MEPs in Strasbourg, according to reports by TO VIMA.
The same reports state that Beleri will first travel to Athens on Monday morning before heading to Strasbourg. The swearing-in ceremony is set to last from July 16-19.
Greek authorities had been pressuring Albania, via the EU, to enable Beleri to attend the ceremony and exercise his duties as an MEP.
The incarcerated politician, who was elected last month on conservative New Democracy’s (ND) ticket, aims to secure the suspension of his sentence in Albanian and its repeal. ND is the ruling party in Greece.
The news comes on the heels of what the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls an “unprecedented” decision by the Albanian authorities to officially remove Beleri from his position as mayor-designate of Himare. The decision has further elevated criticism by the Greek government of the level of rule of law in Albania.
Beleri, an Albanian citizen of Greek origin, was initially sentenced to 24 months in prison and has been detained since May 12, 2023, on charges of active bribery (vote-buying) during the municipal elections.
According to the Greek-language news site himara.gr, Beleri’s lawyers submitted two requests to an Albanian first instance court, requesting early release under conditions. According to Albanian law, this is available to those who have served 2/3 of their sentence and have exhibited good behavior during their incarceration.
A second request was also filed to the Supreme Court of Cassation for the suspension of the sentence until the court reviews the appeal against the appellate court’s decision, a procedure that is reportedly reviewed promptly (between 3-5 days).
The newly elected MEP saw a recent appeal rejected by the Tirana Court of Appeals, which upheld the initial two-year prison sentence.
