Evangelos Venizelos
Encyclopedia
Evangelos Venizelos (born 1 January 1957) is a Greek
politician, currently Deputy Prime Minister
and Minister for Finance of Greece
since 17 June 2011. He is a member of the Greek Parliament for the Panhellenic Socialist Movement
for the first electoral district of Thessaloniki
.
He is a Professor of Constitutional Law
at the Law School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
.
on 1 January 1957. He is married to Lila A. Bakatselou and has a daughter. He was an undergraduate at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki from 1974 through 1978 and completed postgraduate studies at the University of Paris II in France
. In 1980, he received his Ph.D. in Law from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
In 1984, Venizelos was appointed lecturer at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and subsequently Professor of Constitutional Law. Among other positions, he has held a post on the board of the National Centre of Public Administration , the National Bank of Greece
, and the Committee for Local Radio (independent authority responsible for the oversight of local radio stations in Greece). He became a national figure in 1989, when he successfully defended Andreas Papandreou
from corruption allegations. During the trial, Venizelos demonstrated his powerful gift of oratory
. Impressed with his young lawyer, Andreas Papandreou included him in the PASOK list of parliamentary candidates in 1993, and when PASOK returned to power that year, Venizelos became the Government Spokesman.
He speaks French
and English
.
Venizelos is the author of a number of books, monograph
s and papers, including most recently Agenda 16 in 2007, a collection of writings about the future of the university system in Greece, including some articles previously published on the web. Other writings have dealt with current political issues and the media, foreign policy, and developmental policy. His recent works focus more on political theory and cultural issues. He strongly opposes the clash of civilizations
theory, and has written extensively about the Greek "civilization of civilizations" (Venizelos, 2001).
in the Thessaloniki A constituency in the general elections of 1993, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007 and 2009. He has been a member of the parliamentary committee for the Revision of the Constitution, on which he was spokesman for the majority party in the parliaments elected in 1993, 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2007. Moreover, he was a member of the Standing Committees on National Defence and Foreign Affairs, on Public Administration, Public Order and Justice and on European Affairs.
He has been a member of the PASOK Central Committee since 1990. In the past he was a member of the PASOK Executive Bureau.
He has held the following government posts:
After the legislative elections of 2007, in which PASOK was soundly defeated, Venizelos announced his candidacy for the leadership
of the party. In the leadership election, held on 11 November 2007, Venizelos was defeated by incumbent party leader George Papandreou
, receiving 38.18% of the vote against 55.91% for Papandreou.
When named by Papandreou to the finance and deputy PM positions in June, 2011, Venizelos said "'I am leaving defense today to go to the real battle' to reduce Europe’s biggest debt load -- almost 1 1/2 times the size of its economy." David Marsh
of London and Oxford Capital Markets in MarketWatch
wrote that both "German parliamentarians who voted solidly earlier this month to involve private-sector creditors in the next bail-out package," which Angela Merkel
has now dropped as a precondition, and "Greece’s politicians and people, who must bow to further austerity as the price for fresh external support," were central as "the stage now shifts to further players in the theatre of Greek affairs." And "[n]obody knows whether the burly new Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos will put in a starring role or turn out merely as a transitory figure."
, when elements in Greece opposed the use of the name Macedonia by the new state, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia sometimes abbreviated as FYROM. Columnist Mark Dragoumis of Athens News
opined that, "[i]n February 1994, as minister of information, [Venizelos] was instrumental in convincing the ailing Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou to impose that idiotic 'embargo' on the country later named FYROM." Dramoulis maintained that Venizelos' motivation was to gain "nationalist votes in his Thessaloniki constituency."
Dragoumis also criticised Venizelos for helping pass a law -- "in order to boost [his] popularity among Greek republicans" -- to impose a requirement on Constantine II
, ex-king of Greece, and his family if they wanted to be granted Greek nationality. The requirement was to submit a declaration that they "unreservedly respected the 1975 Constitution and accepted and recognised the Hellenic Republic." The columnist termed it a "silly precondition - reminiscent of the 'declarations of repentance' that Greek leftists were obliged to sign under pressure during the civil war and after."
There is mounting criticism in Greece for the last 5 years about the law "about responsibilities of ministers" which Venizelos authored during the previous Simitis government. According to this law which has been passed, ministers are practically immune to public prosecution for cases of political corruption. The case is a subject of repeated and regular commentary in Greece for the last years, triggered from the political situation in Greece. Venizelos has never commented on the commentaries. As a result of this particular law there was not even one politician that could be prosecuted effectively, contrary to the extend of huge financial scandals that shaken Greece the last decade. "
singer Steve Grimmett
.
Financial Times rated Venizelos as one of the worst finance ministers in EU.
.
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Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
politician, currently Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister of Greece
The Deputy Prime Minister of Greece is the deputy of the Prime Minister of Greece and the second most senior member of the Greek Cabinet. The post is not permanent, rather it is created on an ad hoc basis...
and Minister for Finance of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
since 17 June 2011. He is a member of the Greek Parliament for the Panhellenic Socialist Movement
Panhellenic Socialist Movement
The Panhellenic Socialist Movement , known mostly by its acronym PASOK , is one of the two major political parties in Greece. Founded on 3 September 1974 by Andreas Papandreou, in 1981 PASOK became Greece's first social democratic party to win a majority in parliament.The party is a socialist party...
for the first electoral district of Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
.
He is a Professor of Constitutional Law
Constitutional law
Constitutional law is the body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
at the Law School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki is the largest Greek university, and the largest university in the Balkans. It was named after the philosopher Aristotle, who was born in Stageira, Chalcidice, about 55 km east of Thessaloniki, in Central Macedonia...
.
Personal life and studies
Evangelos Venizelos was born in ThessalonikiThessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
on 1 January 1957. He is married to Lila A. Bakatselou and has a daughter. He was an undergraduate at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki from 1974 through 1978 and completed postgraduate studies at the University of Paris II in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. In 1980, he received his Ph.D. in Law from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
In 1984, Venizelos was appointed lecturer at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and subsequently Professor of Constitutional Law. Among other positions, he has held a post on the board of the National Centre of Public Administration , the National Bank of Greece
National Bank of Greece
The National Bank of Greece is the oldest and largest commercial banking group in Greece. The group has a particularly strong presence in Southeastern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean...
, and the Committee for Local Radio (independent authority responsible for the oversight of local radio stations in Greece). He became a national figure in 1989, when he successfully defended Andreas Papandreou
Andreas Papandreou
Andreas G. Papandreou ; 5 February 1919 – 23 June 1996) was a Greek economist, a socialist politician and a dominant figure in Greek politics. The son of Georgios Papandreou, Andreas was a Harvard-trained academic...
from corruption allegations. During the trial, Venizelos demonstrated his powerful gift of oratory
Oratory
Oratory is a type of public speaking.Oratory may also refer to:* Oratory , a power metal band* Oratory , a place of worship* a religious order such as** Oratory of Saint Philip Neri ** Oratory of Jesus...
. Impressed with his young lawyer, Andreas Papandreou included him in the PASOK list of parliamentary candidates in 1993, and when PASOK returned to power that year, Venizelos became the Government Spokesman.
He speaks French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.
Venizelos is the author of a number of books, monograph
Monograph
A monograph is a work of writing upon a single subject, usually by a single author.It is often a scholarly essay or learned treatise, and may be released in the manner of a book or journal article. It is by definition a single document that forms a complete text in itself...
s and papers, including most recently Agenda 16 in 2007, a collection of writings about the future of the university system in Greece, including some articles previously published on the web. Other writings have dealt with current political issues and the media, foreign policy, and developmental policy. His recent works focus more on political theory and cultural issues. He strongly opposes the clash of civilizations
Clash of Civilizations
The Clash of Civilizations is a theory, proposed by political scientist Samuel P. Huntington, that people's cultural and religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in the post-Cold War world....
theory, and has written extensively about the Greek "civilization of civilizations" (Venizelos, 2001).
Parliamentary activities
E. Venizelos was elected MP with PASOKPanhellenic Socialist Movement
The Panhellenic Socialist Movement , known mostly by its acronym PASOK , is one of the two major political parties in Greece. Founded on 3 September 1974 by Andreas Papandreou, in 1981 PASOK became Greece's first social democratic party to win a majority in parliament.The party is a socialist party...
in the Thessaloniki A constituency in the general elections of 1993, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007 and 2009. He has been a member of the parliamentary committee for the Revision of the Constitution, on which he was spokesman for the majority party in the parliaments elected in 1993, 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2007. Moreover, he was a member of the Standing Committees on National Defence and Foreign Affairs, on Public Administration, Public Order and Justice and on European Affairs.
Political activities
As a student, Venizelos served on the Central Council of the Student Union of the University of Thessaloniki (FEAPT) in 1977, and the National Student Union of Greece (EFEE) in 1975.He has been a member of the PASOK Central Committee since 1990. In the past he was a member of the PASOK Executive Bureau.
He has held the following government posts:
- Deputy Minister to the Presidency, and government spokesman, 13 October 1993 to 8 July 1994
- Minister for the Press and the MediaMinister for the Press and the Media (Greece)The Minister for the Press and the Media of Greece was the government minister responsible for the running of the Ministry of the Press and the Media.The ministry is now defunct.-Ministers for the Press and the Media :...
, and government spokesman, 8 July 1994 to 15 September 1995 - Minister for Transport and Communications, 15 September 1995 to 22 January 1996
- Minister for JusticeMinister for Justice (Greece)The Ministry of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights is a government department of Greece entrusted with the supervision of the country's legal and judicial system. It was founded as the State Justice Secretariat in April 1833, and was known as the Ministry of Justice until October 2009...
, 22 January to 5 September 1996 - Minister for CultureMinister for Culture (Greece)The Ministry of Culture and Tourism is a government department of Greece entrusted with the preservation of the country's cultural heritage, the arts, as well as sports, through the subordinate General Secretariat for Sport...
, 25 September 1996 to 19 February 1999 - Minister for DevelopmentMinister for Development (Greece)The Ministry of Development of Greece was created in January 1996 by then Prime Minister Costas Simitis through the merger of three former ministries: the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Technology, the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Tourism)...
, 19 January 1999 to 13 April 2000 - Minister for CultureMinister for Culture (Greece)The Ministry of Culture and Tourism is a government department of Greece entrusted with the preservation of the country's cultural heritage, the arts, as well as sports, through the subordinate General Secretariat for Sport...
, 21 November 2000 to 10 March 2004
After the legislative elections of 2007, in which PASOK was soundly defeated, Venizelos announced his candidacy for the leadership
Panhellenic Socialist Movement leadership election, 2007
A leadership election was held on November 11, 2007 in the Panhellenic Socialist Movement , Greece's main centre-left party, after it was defeated in the parliamentary election earlier that year...
of the party. In the leadership election, held on 11 November 2007, Venizelos was defeated by incumbent party leader George Papandreou
George Andreas Papandreou
Georgios A. Papandreou , commonly anglicised to George and shortened to Γιώργος in Greek, is a Greek politician who served as Prime Minister of Greece following his party's victory in the 2009 legislative election...
, receiving 38.18% of the vote against 55.91% for Papandreou.
When named by Papandreou to the finance and deputy PM positions in June, 2011, Venizelos said "'I am leaving defense today to go to the real battle' to reduce Europe’s biggest debt load -- almost 1 1/2 times the size of its economy." David Marsh
David Marsh (financial specialist)
David Marsh CBE is a British financial specialist, business consultant and writer on political, economic and monetary issues. He is chairman of Germany-headquartered management consultancy SCCO International and co-chairman of the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum that links...
of London and Oxford Capital Markets in MarketWatch
MarketWatch
MarketWatch operates a financial information website that provides business news, analysis and stock market data to some 6 million people. MarketWatch offers personal finance news and advice, tools for investors and access to industry research. Along with its flagship website, the company operates...
wrote that both "German parliamentarians who voted solidly earlier this month to involve private-sector creditors in the next bail-out package," which Angela Merkel
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000, and chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary coalition from 2002 to 2005.From 2005 to 2009 she led a...
has now dropped as a precondition, and "Greece’s politicians and people, who must bow to further austerity as the price for fresh external support," were central as "the stage now shifts to further players in the theatre of Greek affairs." And "[n]obody knows whether the burly new Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos will put in a starring role or turn out merely as a transitory figure."
Issues
Venizelos was active in the Macedonia naming disputeMacedonia naming dispute
A diplomatic dispute over the use of the name Macedonia has been an ongoing issue in the bilateral relations between Greece and the Republic of Macedonia since the latter became independent from former Yugoslavia in 1991...
, when elements in Greece opposed the use of the name Macedonia by the new state, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia sometimes abbreviated as FYROM. Columnist Mark Dragoumis of Athens News
Athens News
The Athens News is an English-language newspaper published in Greece.It was founded by Yannis Horn, brother of Dimitris Horn, and first appeared on 29 January 1952....
opined that, "[i]n February 1994, as minister of information, [Venizelos] was instrumental in convincing the ailing Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou to impose that idiotic 'embargo' on the country later named FYROM." Dramoulis maintained that Venizelos' motivation was to gain "nationalist votes in his Thessaloniki constituency."
Dragoumis also criticised Venizelos for helping pass a law -- "in order to boost [his] popularity among Greek republicans" -- to impose a requirement on Constantine II
Constantine II of Greece
|align=right|Constantine II was King of Greece from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1973, the sixth and last monarch of the Greek Royal Family....
, ex-king of Greece, and his family if they wanted to be granted Greek nationality. The requirement was to submit a declaration that they "unreservedly respected the 1975 Constitution and accepted and recognised the Hellenic Republic." The columnist termed it a "silly precondition - reminiscent of the 'declarations of repentance' that Greek leftists were obliged to sign under pressure during the civil war and after."
There is mounting criticism in Greece for the last 5 years about the law "about responsibilities of ministers" which Venizelos authored during the previous Simitis government. According to this law which has been passed, ministers are practically immune to public prosecution for cases of political corruption. The case is a subject of repeated and regular commentary in Greece for the last years, triggered from the political situation in Greece. Venizelos has never commented on the commentaries. As a result of this particular law there was not even one politician that could be prosecuted effectively, contrary to the extend of huge financial scandals that shaken Greece the last decade. "
Other information
Evangelos Venizelos bears a striking resemblance to heavy metalHeavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
singer Steve Grimmett
Steve Grimmett
Steve Grimmett is a heavy metal vocalist who began his career in the era of New Wave of British Heavy Metal. His original band was the short-lived Medusa, before he became known as the lead vocalist for Grim Reaper...
.
Financial Times rated Venizelos as one of the worst finance ministers in EU.
.
External links
- Personal blog (in Greek)
- Biography on Greek Parliament website
- Archive of personal web site (live site is temporarily nonfunctional) (in Greek)
- Position papers, two books (full text, in Greek)
- open-letter-from-mr-vaxevanis
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