Generation 2.0 RED about its exclusion from the public hearing of institutions in the draft law on naturalization

Today, October 1, 2020, the Parliament started the elaboration of the draft law that contains, among others, provisions for the amendment of the Greek Citizenship Code.  Generation 2.0 RED although was included in the proposals for the invitation of institutions and organizations, it was finally excluded from tomorrow’s session of the Standing Committee on Public Administration, Public Order and Justice.

Generation 2.0 RED is the organization that deals primarily with issues of naturalization and citizenship, which through its years of action has built the role of the main and authoritative interlocutor in the public debate on the above issues. In this capacity, after all, during recent years we have been repeatedly invited to participate and submit our positions in sessions of Parliamentary Committees both during the drafting of bills and during the discussion of relevant issues.

Concerning this draft law in particular, we were the organization that submitted the most detailed and article-by-article comments during the public consultation process, in order to highlight with clear arguments the problems that will arise from the amendments in the naturalization process and to be taken into account by the Ministry of Interior during the preparation of the draft law, before its submission to Parliament. Our clear and documented positions, in fact, were republished by several media. 

It is particularly worrying for the conduct of the public debate but also for the parliamentary process itself, that our organization, which for years has consistently proved its specialization in matters of acquisition of citizenship, is excluded from the hearing of bodies by the competent Committee of the Parliament. However, today we also noticed that two more organizations with experience in integration issues, representing the immigrant and refugee communities, were excluded from the hearing: the Greek Forum of Migrants and the Greek Forum of Refugees. So this exclusion is even more worrying. Because, the main actors of the Civil Society are excluded, who promote the active participation in the public debate of exactly those people that the specific bill wants to regulate or maybe deregulate their life in the country.

In any case, we will proceed with the written submission of our comments on the draft law, in order to inform the members of the Standing Committee about our positions regarding the upcoming changes in naturalization.