Strasbourg, 09/03/2016 (Agence Europe) - European Parliament President Martin Schulz decided, as the plenary session was about to begin voting on Wednesday 9 March, to exclude Greek MEP Eleftherios Synadinos (non-attached) for the remainder of the day's sitting. This followed the comments made by Synadinos, a member of the extreme right Golden Dawn party, during the debate earlier in the morning on the EU-Turkey summit and the European summit of 7 March which was devoted to the migration crisis.
“This is a decision of principle. More and more people are trying to cross the red lines and make racism acceptable”, argued Schulz, just before the votes section, stating that, in accordance with Article 165 of Chapter 4 of the European Parliament rules of procedure on immediate measures in the event of failure to comply rules of behaviour for MEPs.
Synadinos, “immediately” excluded from the sitting, will be heard under the usual procedure. “There is no need for any further debate or to give a reminder of the rules”, Schulz added. The Paarliament president, in the face of vehement protest from Bruno Gollnisch (National Front, France), suggested that tranquilisers might be administered if he failed to calm down.
During the debate earlier in the morning, Synadinos referred a scientific paper in which Turks are likened to dogs.
Synadinos had already made the news at the start of March, standing alongside his fellow Greek and Golder Dawn member Lampros Fountoulis during a violent altercation at a European Parliament seminar organised by the EPP on the rights of minorities in Greece, and in particular the Turkish minority in Thrace, a region in the north of the country.
Golden Dawn MEPs, Fountoulis at their head and backed up by shaven-headed bodyguards, burst into the meeting room and aggressively shouted down the discussions.
“There is no Turkish minority. Go to the problems of your country, not my country”, shouted Fountoulis. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)