EU ethics panel approved job for ex-commissioner at NGO implicated in Qatargate
by https://euobserver.com/author/benjamin-fox/ · EUobserverFormer EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos was given the green light to take a post with the scandal hit NGO Fight Impunity (Photo: Council of the European Union)
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By Benjamin Fox,
Nairobi
,
EU Commission officials confirmed on Tuesday (23 June) that an ethics panel had approved a request by the former migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos to take a paid role with the NGO at the centre of the Qatargate corruption scandal.
The Greek politician served in the commission of Jean-Claude Juncker between 2014 and 2019.
On Monday, the Belgian judiciary confirmed that it had issued an arrest warrant for Avramopoulos and would request that the former commissioner’s immunity from prosecution to be waived as part of its investigation into Qatargate.
A commission spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday (23 June) that the EU executive had “approved post-mandate activity” to allow Avramopoulos to take on a paid post-term appointment as a member of the ‘Honorary Board’ of Fight Impunity, following a positive opinion on the appointment from the Independent Ethical Committee of the commission in December 2020.
“We have not received any request to lift his immunity…nor have we have received any request for him for an act of legal assistance,” added the commission spokesperson.
That followed reports that Avramopoulos had requested legal representation and assistance funded by the commission. Former commissioners are entitled to such legal support but only for proceedings that relate to their official duties.
Belgian authorities have described Fight Impunity as a “criminal network”.
The scandal has centred on allegations that Qatar and Morocco bought off a handful of MEPs and officials for influence in the European Parliament to push their interests, including efforts to water down EU criticism of Qatar’s record on labour rights ahead of the 2022 World Cup, and of Morocco’s human rights record.
The scandal broke in 2022 following the arrest of Greek socialist MEP Eva Kaili and seizure of €1.5 million in cash, much of it in suitcases carried by Kaili’s father. However, Kaili and her partner, Francesco Giorgi, who were both implicated in the scandal, are still yet to face trial.
Meanwhile, the founder of Fight Impunity, former Italian MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, confessed that he had masterminded the "cash for influence" deals with Morocco, Qatar and Mauritania as part of a plea bargain for a reduced prison sentence.
Avramopoulos, who was elected to the Greek parliament in 2023 on the ticket of the governing centre-right New Democracy party, says that he was paid €5,000 per month between February 2021 and February 2022 and that the payments were taxed in Greece.
He has previously stated that his position with Fight Impunity was "entirely without executive or managerial responsibilities".
Other senior EU politicians serving on Fight Impunity’s board at the time included former EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini and former Italian MEP and minister Emma Bonino.
Avramapoulos has denied any wrongdoing and called for his immunity to be lifted to allow a full investigation to be held.
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Former EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos was given the green light to take a post with the scandal hit NGO Fight Impunity (Photo: Council of the European Union)
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Benjamin Fox is our trade and geopolitics editor. His reporting has also been published in the Guardian, the East African, Euractiv, Private Eye and Africa Confidential, among others. He is based in Nairobi, Kenya, although he often reports from London.
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