Independent Greeks leader Panos Kammenos will be questioned by a Thessaloniki prosecutor after suggesting residents of Halkidiki should “lynch” a local mayor for backing gold mining in Skouries which many area residents fiercely oppose, saying it would hurt tourism and the environment.
Kammenos made the comments over the weekend after appearing at the Thessaloniki International Fair. Protesters surrounded him after his speech, complaining that their drinking water and the water they use for crops and animals contained arsenic, the toxic substance often used in gold mining.
It was reported that Kammenos took sides with them against Christos Pachtas, the Mayor of Aristoteli who supports the mining project. “Pachtas should not be able to walk freely, you should lynch him,” Kammenos reportedly told aggrieved Halkidiki residents.
The first instance prosecutor’s office in Thessaloniki is going to investigate whether Kammenos was inciting others to commit a criminal act, which is punishable with up to three years in jail.
The PASOK Socialists, a member of the coalition government led by Prime Minister and New Democracy Conservative leader Antonis Samaras, said the remarks were “unacceptable and fascist-like”.
The Independent Greeks leader refused to retract the comment and said he would turn himself in to a prosecutor only if an investigation was launched into the gold mine first. The investigation could lead nowhere, however, as MP’s are immune from all crimes unless the protection is lifted by their colleagues.
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