1 week Ago
Dates were set on Thursday for the next hearings of the trial of the two former MPs facing criminal charges over a report by news company Al Jazeera into the alleged illegal naturalisations of people as citizens of the Republic of Cyprus , commonly known as the ‘golden passports scandal’. Former House president Demetris Syllouris and former Akel MP Christakis Giovani are both facing charges including conspiracy to subvert the Republic and influencing a public official in violation of the laws criminalising corruption . Judge Nikolas Georgiades set the next hearing for April 28, with subsequent hearings set to take place on May 6, May 7, May 12, May 13, May 15 and May 16.
The setting of future court dates comes after Monday’s hearing was postponed after the prosecution failed to present e-mails as evidence due to a technical problem . Al Jazeera aired an almost hour-long expose of the scandal in October 2020 , prompting Syllouris and Giovanis to both resign. In the documentary, undercover reporters played the role of agents acting on behalf of a fictional Chinese businessman with a criminal record, aiming to secure him Cypriot citizenship.
Syllouris, Giovanis and others were shown offering to help the man in his quest for citizenship despite his criminal record. The government of the day then scrapped Cyprus’ citizenship by investment scheme , with the European Union having launched legal proceedings over claims the scheme had been used to sell passports to dubious individuals. A subsequent inquiry found that 53 per cent of 6,779 citizenships granted through the scheme were unlawful, with the government since having commenced the process of cancelling the citizenship of some naturalised through the scheme.
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