GREECE: AMBASSADOR RAISES MLAT, TIP, IPR WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ATHENS 001541 SIPDIS DEPT FOR ALSO FOR EUR/SE E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/09/2018 TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KTIP KCRM GR SUBJECT: GREECE: AMBASSADOR RAISES MLAT, TIP, IPR WITH JUSTICE PANAGIOTOPOULOS REF: A. ATHENS 1455 ¶B. ATHENS 996 ATHENS 00001541 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Ambassador Daniel V. Speckhard for 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: In a November 6 meeting, Ambassador Speckhard raised with Georgios Panagiotopoulos, President and Justice of the Greek Council of State (an equivalent to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court),several legal issues: 1) the need for Greece to move expeditiously in ratifying the U.S.-EU Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) and Extradition Agreements, which are currently hung up in the Ministry of Justice; 2) the importance of the judiciary showing its commitment to combat trafficking in persons (TIP) by increasing convictions and sentences for traffickers; 3) Greece's inadequate regime for IPR protection and enforcement; and 4) corruption in the judiciary. Panagiotopoulos, who is traveling to the U.S. and will meet Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy this week, offered to include our concerns in his report to the Ministry of Justice on his return. This meeting was a rare chance to discuss important agenda items with one of the most senior members of the Greek judiciary. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) Panagiotopoulos is traveling to the U.S. from November 9-16 and while there will visit the Supreme Court, hold private talks and a reception with Justice Anthony Kennedy, and attend UN tribunal meetings in New York. The Ambassador met with Panagiotopoulos in advance of his visit to push forward our agenda on MLA, TIP, and IPR issues -- all of which are influenced by judicial action (or inaction). -------------- Greece's Three-Part Judiciary: A Critical Interlocutor -------------- ¶3. (C) Greece's three-pronged judiciary wields significant influence over all aspects of Greek law, and outreach to judges is important for us to push forward our agenda on TIP enforcement and IPR reform. Panagiotopoulos is the chief justice for the Greek Council of State, the highest court in the administrative and constitutional law court system, while the Court of Cassation (Areios Pagos) is the highest court for civil and penal law, and the Chamber of Accounts oversees government budgeting and fiscal law. -------------- Panagiotopoulos on MLA, TIP, IPR, Corruption -------------- ¶4. (C) Ambassador Speckhard raised USG concerns on the stalled MLA and Extradition Agreements and asked for Panagiotopoulos help in getting the implementing legislation out of the Ministry of Justice and into the Parliament so that they could be ratified. Panagiotopoulos offered to include our views in his report to the Ministry of Justice after his trip to the U.S. He said that the delays were not issues of legality, but bureaucratic, and offered to raise the issue with his wife, Caliope Bourdara, a Special Advisor to Minister of Foreign Affairs Dora Bakoyianni. ¶5. (C) Ambassador Speckhard said the United States would welcome greater judicial activity on Trafficking in Persons (TIP) and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). In both cases, it is important that the judiciary impose greater penalties and sentences for those found guilty. In response, Panagiotopoulos stated that Greece's problems were twofold: first, these were relatively new issues for Greece and Greek society to handle, and second, current and future justices required better training. When the Ambassador raised the issue of deterring judicial corruption, Panagiotopoulos asserted that corruption "essentially did not exist" in the Greek system and that recent scandals in the judiciary were an exception. He also noted that the seven judges recently dismissed for corruption were "socially ostracized" and that this provided a strong deterrent. (NOTE: Seven judges were dismissed earlier this year for a variety of money-laundering, church-related, and property scandals. Though the cases are still undeQinvestigation, corrupt judges typically receive lenient or suspended sentences. We question Panagiotopoulos' assertion that corruption in the Greek judiciary is "non existent." END NOTE.) -------------- Panagiotopoulos Proposes Judicial Conference -------------- ¶6. (C) Panagiotopoulos said that he was excited about his visit to the U.S. and expressed enthusiasm for future judicial exchanges between the U.S. and Greece. In his role ATHENS 00001541 002.3 OF 002 as President of the Board of Directors of the National School of Judges in Thessaloniki, he offered to host the Ambassador and U.S. judicial officials for a conference. This forum, Panagiotopoulos added, would be a good chance for TIP and IPR-themed training. The Ambassador offered his full support for this idea. -------------- COMMENT: Multi-Pronged Outreach Essential -------------- ¶7. (C) COMMENT: TIP and IPR issues involve all parts of the fragmented Greek legal system: courts, prosecutors, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance (including the Special Customs Service),police (under the Ministry of Interior),and the Coast Guard (under the Ministry of Merchant Marine). While Panagiotopoulos does not have direct responsibility for U.S.-EU MLAT, TIP and IPR-related matters, he meets regularly with Romilos Kedikoglu, chief justice of the civil and penal court system. Panagiotopoulos' comments on the need for judicial training highlight the GoG's problems with IPR enforcement. The Embassy has given specific policy recommendations to the GoG on improving its IPR standing, but increased judicial enforcement is still needed. Likewise, G/TIP Ambassador Lagon, Ambassador Speckhard, and Embassy and Department officials have shared with the Greeks specific steps they need to take to address TIP more effectively; these recommendations have included steps for the judiciary to take. Panagiotopoulos' report to the Ministry of Justice could help us press the Greek government from yet another angle. We will continue to pursue a multi-pronged approach in advocating our agenda on MLA, TIP, and IPR issues. END COMMENT. ¶8. (C) BIO NOTES: President Panagiotopoulos prefers to speak in Greek, and his English is basic and heavily accented. His English comprehension is good, however, and he readily understood legal terms such as "intellectual property rights." His visit to the U.S. will be his first; he mentioned having wanted to study in the U.S. as a student. Panagiotopoulos was a calm and measured interlocutor throughout the meeting. SPECKHARD