The S&D and Greens/EFA groups in the European Parliament have separately proposed amendments to the report by Ivo Vajgl (ALDE, Slovenia) on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), which will be put to the vote this Thursday in the plenary of the European Parliament (see EUROPE 12142), concerning the situation of former Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, a refugee in Hungary.
Put to the vote first, by roll-call vote, the Greens/EFA amendment, proposed by Judith Sargentini of the Netherlands, asks "the Hungarian authorities to provide all relevant information and necessary explanations concerning the case of [...Nikola] Gruevski, who fled his country with the secret diplomatic assistance of Hungary in order to avoid a prison sentence”. This is “an act of interference in the internal affairs of FYROM and, in particular, an act of contempt towards the judiciary and the rule of law in that country", the text adds, calling on Budapest to accept the Macedonian extradition request.
The amendment by S&D MEPs Victor Boştinaru, Tonino Picula and Knut Fleckenstein is less direct. The three parliamentarians considered that FYROM's judicial proceedings should continue in accordance with the country's procedures and that Mr Gruevski should be held accountable within the Macedonian judicial system. The text therefore calls on Hungary to “respect the independence" of this system and the rule of law, “to reassess the political asylum" of the former Prime Minister and to extradite him. He added that judicial procedures should not be politicized.
The S&D hopes that a large majority of the EPP will support this amendment. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)