Parliament committee backs immunity waiver for Zoe Konstantopoulou
The Special Permanent Committee on Parliamentary Ethics of the Hellenic Parliament voted on Tuesday to recommend lifting the parliamentary immunity of Zoe Konstantopoulou, leader of the opposition Course of Freedom party.
According to sources familiar with the closed-door meeting, only lawmakers from the ruling New Democracy party supported the proposal to remove her immunity.
All other opposition parties, including PASOK, SYRIZA, the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), NIKI and Plefsi Eleftherias, voted against the recommendation, while the Elliniki Lysi party abstained.
The final decision on whether Konstantopoulou's immunity will be lifted will be made by the parliament plenary.
Case linked to defamation complaint
The procedure concerns a lawsuit filed against Konstantopoulou by Achilleas Davelis, a businessman from Volos, who accused her of defamation.
Konstantopoulou did not appear before the committee during the hearing. In a letter sent to committee chairman George Georgantas, she accused the parliamentary body of "highly abusive and repeatedly unlawful conduct" and called on lawmakers to withdraw from the process.
"I was never informed about the meeting. To this day, I have not been provided with the minutes so that I can exercise my rights, despite requesting them since July 9, 2026," Konstantopoulou said in her letter.
Konstantopoulou raises procedural objections
The Plefsi Eleftherias leader claimed that she had faced repeated inappropriate treatment during previous committee proceedings, including what she described as offensive comments and references to alleged violations of sexual freedom made by a New Democracy lawmaker.
She said she had requested the minutes and audio recordings of an earlier committee session and had filed complaints against New Democracy lawmakers George Georgantas and Vassilis Ypsilantis.
Konstantopoulou argued that these complaints should be examined before any decision is taken regarding her immunity.
She also stated that the committee had not provided the requested documents, preventing her from fully exercising her procedural rights.
