HOLY MONASTERIES OF ANO XENIA ; OSSIOS LOUCAS ; AGHIA LAVRA KALAVRYTON ; METAMORPHOSIS SOTIROS IN MEGALO METEORO AND ASSOMATON PETRAKI ; AND SIX INDIVIDUAL APPLICANTS v. GREECE
Doc ref: 13092/87;13984/88 • ECHR ID: 001-717
Document date: June 5, 1990
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Application No. 13092/87
by The Holy Monasteries of Ano Xenia, Ossios Loucas,
Aghia Lavra Kalavryton, Metamorphosis Sotiros in Megalo
Meteoro and Assomaton Petraki and six individual applicants
against Greece
Application No. 13984/88
by The Holy Monasteries of Chryssoleontissa Eginis,
Phlamourion Volou and Mega Spileo Kalavryton and
four individual applicants
against Greece
The European Commission of Human Rights sitting in private
on 5 June 1990, the following members being present:
MM. C.A. NØRGAARD, President
J.A. FROWEIN
S. TRECHSEL
G. SPERDUTI
E. BUSUTTIL
G. JÖRUNDSSON
J.-C. SOYER
H. DANELIUS
G. BATLINER
Mrs. G. H. THUNE
Sir Basil HALL
Mr. C. L. ROZAKIS
Mrs. J. LIDDY
MM. L. LOUCAIDES
J.-C. GEUS
Mr. H.C. KRÜGER, Secretary to the Commission
Having regard to Article 25 of the Convention for the
Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms ;
Having regard to :
the application introduced on 16 July 1987 by The Holy
Monasteries of Ano Xenia, Ossios Loucas, Aghia Lavra Kalavryton,
Metamorphosis Sotiros in Megalo Meteoro and Assomaton Petraki and 6
Priest-Friars against Greece and registered on 21 July 1987 under file
No. 13092/87 ;
the application introduced on 15 May 1988 by The Holy
Monasteries of Chryssoleontissa Eginis, Phlamourion Volou and Mega
Spileo Kalavryton and four individual applicants against Greece and
registered on 28 June 1988 under file No. 13984/88 ;
the report provided for in Rule 40 of the Rules of Procedure
of the Commission ;
the written observations submitted by the respondent
Government on 22 September 1988 on the admissibility and merits of
application No. 13092/87 and the observations submitted in reply by
the applicants on 9 January 1989 ;
the written observations of the respondent Government on the
admissibility and merits of Application No. 13984/88 submitted on
26 June 1989 and the observations submitted in reply by the applicants on
22 September 1989 ;
the Commission's Decision of 4 December 1989 to join the
applications ;
the oral submissions of the parties at the hearing of 5 June
1990 ;
Having deliberated ;
Decides as follows :
THE FACTS
The facts of the case may be summarised as follows.
The applicants in Application No. 13092/87 are the following
monasteries and monks:
1. The Holy Monastery Ano Xenias of Ano Xenia established in
the 9th century A.D.;
2. The Holy Monastery of Ossios Loucas of Steirio, established
in the 10th century A.D.;
3. The Holy Monastery of Aghia Lavra Kalavryton in Achaia,
established in the 10th century A.D.;
4. The Holy Monastery of Metamorphosis Sotiros in Megalo
Meteoro, established in the 14th century A.D.;
5. The Holy Monastery Assomaton-Petraki of Athens, established
in the 10th century;
6. The Priest-Friar Archimandrite Nectarios Doras (known in
his secular life as Demetrios), Superior of the Holy Monastery
Ano Xenias;
7. The Priest-Friar Archimandrite Nikodimos Zaloumis (known
in his secular life as Georgios), Superior of the Holy Monastery
Ossios Loucas;
8. The Priest-Friar Archimandrite Nikodimos Dimakopoulos
(known in his secular life as Evangelos), Superior of the Holy
Monastery Aghia Lavra Kalavryton.
9. The Priest-Friar Archimandrite Athanassios Anastassiou
(known in his secular life as Alexios), Superior of the Holy
Monastery of Metamorphosis Sotiros in Megalo Meteoro;
10. The Priest-Deacon Vissarion Vassou (known in his secular
life as Spiridon), resident in the Holy Monastery of Assomaton-Petraki;
11. The Priest-Friar Konstantinos Ramiotis, Priest of the
Church Agios Demetrios in Neochorio Artas.
Application No. 13984/88 has been introduced by the following
applicants:
1. The Holy Monastery of Chryssoleontissa Eginis;
2. The Holy Monastery of Phlamourion Volou;
3. The Holy Monastery of Mega Spileo Kalavryton;
4. Mother Catherine Kalamaki (known in her secular life as
Theodouli), Superior of the Holy Monastery of Chryssoleontissa
Eginis;
5. The Archimandrite Daniel Pourtsouklis (known in his secular
life as Dionyssios), Superior of the Holy Monastery of Phlamourion Volou;
6. The Archimandrite Nikiphoros Theodoropoulos (known in his
secular life as Constantinos);
7. The Priest-Friar Konstantinos Ramiotis, Priest of the
Church Agios Demetrios in Neochorio Artas;
The applicants are represented before the Commission by
Mr. P. H. Bernitsas, Attorney at Law.
The applications concern the Law 1700/1987 which modifies the
rules governing the administration of monastic property and which
provides for the transfer of a large part of the applicants' immovable
property to the Greek State.
The applicant monasteries accumulated extensive property by
donations before the formation of the Greek State in 1829. A great
percentage of this property had already been expropriated during the
first years of the existence of the Greek State. Moreover, large
segments of monastic property were offered by the monasteries to the
State or to landless people.
The ownership of this property by the monasteries has not been
challenged. Moreover "usucapio" (adverse possession) has always been
invoked by the monasteries as a subsidiary means to prove ownership of
land in cases where the original titles were either destroyed or could
not be produced.
Apart from the aforementioned property acquired over the
centuries, the monasteries own land and buildings acquired by them in
recent times by normal civil law procedures such as purchase, donation
or inheritance.
The legal status of the Church of Greece and of the
applicant Holy Monasteries
Article 3 para. 1 of the Greek Constitution of 1975 provides
as follows:
"Relations of Church and State
The prevailing religion in Greece is that of the Eastern
Orthodox Church of Christ. The Orthodox Church of Greece,
acknowledging our Lord Jesus Christ as its head, is
inseparably united in doctrine with the Great Church of
Christ in Constantinople and with every other Church of
Christ of the same doctrine, observing unwaveringly, as
they do, the holy apostolic and synodal canons and sacred
traditions. It is autocephalous and is administered by the
Holy Synod of serving Bishops and the Permanent Holy Synod
originating therefrom and assembled as specified by the
Statutory Charter of the Church in compliance with the
provisions of the Patriarchal Tome of 29 June 1850 and
the Synodal Act of 4 September 1928."
The Church of Greece, as well as all institutions depending
upon it - including Greek orthodox monasteries - are legal entities of
public law (Article 1 para. 4 of the Statutory Charter of the Church
of Greece).
According to Article 19 of the Statutory Charter of the Church
of Greece, the Holy Monasteries are religious institutions for the
asceticism of men and women living in them pursuing the monastic
principles, the holy rules on asceticism and the traditions of the
Orthodox Church of Christ.
Protection of property under Greek constitutional law
Article 17 of the Greek Constitution provides as follows:
"1. Property is protected by the State; rights deriving
therefrom, however, may not be exercised contrary to
the public interest.
2. No one shall be deprived of his property except for
the public benefit, which must be duly proven, when and
as specified by law and always following full compensation,
corresponding to the value of the expropriated property
at the time of the court hearing on the provisional
determination of compensation. In cases in which a
request for the final determination of compensation is
made, the value at the time of the court hearing of
the request shall be considered.
3. Any change in the value of expropriated property
occuring after publication of the act of expropriation
and resulting exclusively therefrom shall not be taken
into account.
4. Compensation shall in all cases be determined by
civil courts. Such compensation may also be determined
provisionally by the court after hearing or summoning
the expropriator, who may be obliged, at the discretion
of the court, to furnish a commensurate guarantee for
collecting the compensation as provided by law. Prior
to payment of the final or provisional compensation
determined by the court, all rights of the owner shall
be maintained intact and occupation of the property by
the expropriator shall not be allowed.
Compensation in the amount determined by the court must
in all cases be paid within one and a half years at the
latest from the date of promulgation of the decision on
the provisional compensation payable and, in cases of a
direct request for the final determination of compensation,
on the date of promulgation of the court decision, otherwise
the expropriation shall be revoked ipso jure. The
compensation as such is exempt from any taxes, deductions
or contributions."
Rules concerning monastic property
According to Law 4684/1930 the property of the monasteries
was designated as property "to be sold" (ekpoiitea) or "to be
maintained" (diatiritea). The property to be maintained was deemed to
be the property necessary for the functioning of the monasteries and
included all acquisitions after the publication of Law 4684/1930.
Property to be sold was deemed to be the remaining property. The
classification of which property fell within which category has been
effected by decrees issued separately for each monastery.
The management of the property to be maintained was left to
the Holy Monasteries and was exercised according to the laws and
decrees issued, the decisions of the Holy Synod (*) (Iera Synodos) of
the Church of Greece and the internal regulations of each monastery.
The property to be sold remained in the ownership of the
monasteries but the management was exercised by a church institution,
the for the administration of church property). According to the
statutory Charter of the Church of Greece (Law 590/1977), the ODEP was
under the supervisory authority and control of the Holy Synod which
appointed the members of its board. In respect of its administration
of monastic property the ODEP had full legal capacity to act in all
legal proceedings concerening the monasteries. The liquidation of
property to be sold by the ODEP presupposed an authorisation by the
Board of each monastery.
On 6 May 1987 Law 1700/1987 was published in the
Official Gazette of Greece. Article 1 of this Law reads as follows:
"1. On the coming into force of this law the Organisation
for the administration of church property (ODEP) is assigned
ipso jure the exclusive administration, management and
representation of all the immovable property belonging to
monasteries, in relation to which it already has active and
passive legal capacity, regardless of whether such property
belongs in accordance with the legislation in force to the
category of property 'to be maintained' or property 'to be
sold'."
Paragraph 3 of the above Article reads:
"By Presidential Decree issued following the proposal of
the Ministers of National Education and Religion, Economy
and Agriculture, there shall be laid down, in modification
of the legal provisions in force, the terms and procedure
for the sale, lease, concession of use and development by
the ODEP of movable and immovable monastic property and
any other question related to the administration and
management of such property in general. The same decree
may also authorise other administrative bodies to regulate
every detail of its application by regulatory decisions.
Specifically in case of the sale of buildings or building
land belonging to monasteries or a concession of any real
property right thereon, it is necessary to have the consent
of the Holy Monastery which is the owner, failing which the
relevant contract is null and void."
Further, Article 8 of this law provides that members of the
ODEP are to be appointed by ministerial decision of the Minister of
National Education and Religion. According to this Article the
Central Administrative Board of the ODEP has the following membership:
a) the Chairman who is appointed together with his deputy by
the Government following the proposal of the Minister of National
Education and Religion;
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(*) The body of serving bishops and the executive organ of the
Church of Greece cf. Article 3 para. 1 of the Constitution
quoted above.
b) three members appointed together with their deputies by the
Permanent Church Council (DIS) and
c) three members appointed with their deputies by the Minister
of National Education and Religion.
Articles 2 and 3 of Law 1700/1987 read as follows:
Article 2
"1. Monastic real property which on the coming into force
of this law is in the ownership or possession of the ODEP,
the Holy Monasteries or any third party, may be disposed
of by the ODEP by concession of their use for development
and exploitation, preferably to farmers who are members or
by such concession become members of agricultural cooperatives,
as well as to agricultural cooperatives and State agencies.
In exchange for such a concession the ODEP shall pay to the
Holy Monastery concerned 5 % of the gross revenue from the
concession which will be used for the monastery's needs.
Real property within the meaning of this provision includes
agricultural land and land liable to agricultural exploitation,
forest areas in general, pastures, grass meadows or other
agricultural areas in general, as well as quarries, mines
and fish farms.
2. Within a deadline of six months from the coming into force
of this law the ODEP may transfer to the Greek State by
contract to be signed between the former, as representative
of the Holy Monasteries, and the Ministers of National
Education and Religion, Agriculture and Economy, as
representatives of the Greek State, the ownership of the
aforementioned monastic real property, as well as the land
belonging to Holy Monasteries which has become part of
city plans (building land) after 1952. This transfer of
ownership to the Greek State does not affect the validity
of a concession of use which has been granted in accordance
with the terms of the previous paragraph, with the exception
of the term concerning the payment of a percentage of the
revenue, which percentage will now be paid to a corporation
to be created and will be used for educational needs. Until
the creation of the above mentioned corporation this
percentage of the revenue will be deposited in a special
account of the Bank of Greece on behalf of the Ministry
of National Education and Religion.
3. Exempted from the provisions of this Article are areas
belonging to the Holy Monasteries and destined exclusively
for cultivation by the monks themselves. The extent of these
areas is to be determined for each monastery depending on
the number of monks living therein, as well as the needs of
each monastery for environmental protection. Areas owned
by the monasteries destined for camps and for the purposes
of other church foundations are also exempted. Such areas
are determined by decisions of the Ministers of National
Education and Religion, Agriculture and Environment and
Public Works, which decisions are to be issued following
the opinion of the ODEP for each Holy Monastery, camping
and church foundation.
Article 3
1. Should the deadline in paragraph 2 of Article 2 expire
without results, the property rights over monastic assets
are regulated in accordance with the following provisions:
A) Real property which is under the use or ownership of the
Holy Monasteries at the entry into force of this law is deemed
to be the property of the Greek State, regardless of its form
of administration, management or exploitation, unless the
property right of the monastery a) is derived from a legal
title issued before the day of deposit of the bill which has
been registered or will be registered within an exclusive
deadline of six months from the beginning of the validity of
this law, b) has been recognised by law or by an irrevocable
court decision against the State. The same is also the case
for real property which is used or possessed by a monastery
but has been occupied by third persons.
B) The use and possession of the real property which is
considered to belong to the State in accordance with the
preceding clause and whose ownership was not transferred to
the State in accordance with Article 2 comes to an end and
is transferred ipso jure to the Greek State. Any form of
administration, management and exploitation of such property
ceases, regardless of the category to which this property
belongs in accordance with the legislation in force. The
State exercises from now on, against any third party, the
Holy Monasteries and the organisations for the management
of their property the rights derived from ownership, use
and possession of these assets. Their management and
administration is henceforth exercised by the Ministry
of Agriculture in accordance with the provisions of the
legislation formerly in force and this law. This transfer
of property does not affect the validity of a concession
of use which has been effected in accordance with Article
2 para. 1 of this law, with the exception of the term
concerning the percentage of the revenue, which will be
paid to the corporation provided for in Article 9 of this
law and will be used for the needs of education. Until the
creation of the above mentioned corporation the percentage
of the revenue will be deposited in a special account at
the Bank of Greece on behalf of the Ministry of National
Education and Religion.
2. Real property within the meaning of this Article includes
agricultural land and land liable to agricultural exploitation,
forest areas in general, pastures, grass meadows or other
agricultural areas in general, as well as quarries, mines
and fish farms. Real property also encompasses building
land, even if it has been included in city plans, provided
this inclusion in city plans took place after 1952.
3. To Holy Monasteries which do not own sufficient real
property there may be conceded free of charge land which is
already in their possession in accordance with paragraph 1
of this Article, exclusively for cultivation by the monks
themselves. The extent of such land will be determined for
each monastery depending on the number of monks living
therein as well as the needs of each monastery for
environmental protection. This concession shall take place
within an exclusive deadline of one year from the end of the
deadline in paragraph 1 of this Article, by contract between
the State, represented by the Ministers of National Education
and Religion, Environment and Public Works and Agriculture,
and the legal person administering the monastery's assets in
accordance with the legislation in force."
Article 4 of Law 1700/1987 provides that within a deadline of
two months from the end of the above six month time-limit (Article 3
para. 1 (a)) any person being in possession of an immovable asset
considered to be the property of the State should "deliver" (i.e.
complete the contract of transferring ownership) it to the competent
State authorities. An administrative expulsion procedure (compulsory
transfer) will be used to ensure "delivery". Moreover, the contractual
rights of third parties over immovable property cease ipso jure six
months after the transfer of the property.
Article 4 paras. 4 to 7 provides for remedies which may be
pursued in the context of the transfer procedure:
" 4. The person 'expelled' is entitled to appeal asking for
invalidation of the transfer document, if the document was
issued in violation of an essential form or without the
legal prerequisites therefor.
5. The appeal must be made within 60 days of notification
of the transfer document. This deadline and the appeal
do not suspend the enforcement. The administrative court
of appeal is competent to decide the appeal. In all other
respects the provisions of the Administrative Procedure
Code are applicable.
6. The decision of the administrative court of appeal
is subject to cassation appeal before the Council of State
in accordance with the provisions of Law 170/1973. The
cassation appeal is submitted by all the parties which
are entitled thereto within 60 days of notification of
the decision of the court of appeal.
7. Regardless of the appeal against the transfer document, the
person "expelled" and any third party are entitled to bring
an action before the competent civil court in accordance with
the general civil procedure provisions, claiming real rights
over the property. This action may be introduced within a
strict time-limit of one year starting: a) in case of voluntary
transfer of the property, on the date of the relevant transfer
and transfer document and b) in case of compulsory transfer,
if an appeal has not been introduced in time, on the date of
the receipt of the compulsory transfer document and where an
appeal has been introduced against that document, on the
date of notification of the decision of the administrative
court of appeal."
Implementation of the provisions of the Law 1700/1987
By decision of 10 July 1987 the Council of Ministers appointed
the President of the Central Administrative Board of the ODEP. On
16 July 1987 the Minister of National Education issued a decision
concerning the organisation of the Central Administrative Board of
the ODEP in accordance with Article 8 of Law 1700/1987.
The applicants in the Application No. 13984/88 challenged the
latter decisions before the Council of State (Symvoulio tis
Epikrateias), alleging that Law 1700/1987 was contrary to the
Constitution and the Convention.
In its decision 5057/1987 of 7 December 1987 the Council of
State held the following:
"The provisions of Article 3 para. 1 of the
Constitution ratify the holy canons and traditions of the
Orthodox Church. However, such constitutional ratification,
referring to holy canons and dogmatic traditions and
concerning the sphere where the sovereign rights of the
Church are exercised cannot be considered as extending to
the canons and traditions related to matters of
administrative nature. Such matters, under the influence
of time and newer concepts, are necessarily liable for
modification for the purpose of promoting the mutual
interest of the Church and the State and are settled by the
common legislator in accordance with social needs, pursuant
to the provisions of article 72 of the Constitution.
Nevertheless the legislator cannot, according to the spirit
of such provisions, modify by law the fundamental and
essential administrative institutions which have long been
estabished in the Orthodox Church. On the other hand these
same provisions enshrine the self-government of the Church.
This includes its power to decide on its affairs through its
own organs composed as provided for by law and recognises
the right of the Church to be administered by the Holy Synod
and the Permanent Holy Synod organised in accordance with
the law and the provisions of the Patriarchal tome of the
29th June 1850 and the Synodical Act of the 4th September
1929 concerning the composition of these bodies. In
accordance with the majority opinion of this Court, the
provisions of the 1700/1987 entrusting the ODEP, a public
law entity, whose Central Administrative Board members are
appointed in their majority by the State, with the
administration and management of the property of holy
monasteries are not contrary to the constitutional principle
of the self-government of the Church or to religious freedom
and Articles 9 and 11 of the Rome Convention, the Charter of
the U.N. of 16 February 1946 and the Final Act of Helsinki
of 1 July 1976. These questions, which are not related to
dogma and cult are of a purely administrative nature and are
not even related to fundamental administrative church
institutions. Moreover, the provisions of Law 1700/1987 do
not fundamentally modify ecclesiastical institutions since
the administration and management of the monastic and church
property had already been assigned to the ODEP, whose
Central Administrative Board when first formed consisted in
its majority of lay members proposed by the State.
Therefore, the allegations made are ill-founded and must be
rejected.
However, one of the members of this Court supported the
following view, which was followed by one of the asessors. The
provisions of Article 3 of the Constitution disposing that the
Church of Greece is administered by "the Synod of serving
Metropolites" does not only protect the self-government of the
Church in the sense that it is governed by Metropolites but also
its right to administer, manage and dispose of, according to
its own will, as any owner, any movable or real property
belonging to it and to the other church entities in order to
achieve its non-lucrative objectives, i.e. the establishment
and promotion of the orthodox faith of its members. Monastic
communities constitute essential parts of this Church which,
despite their characterisation (by Article 1 para. 4 of Law
590/1977) as public law entities, are derived, like the
Church, from the area lying outside the jurisdiction of the
State. Monastic life has also constituted a fundamental
mode of cult of God. Therefore, the deprivation by the
provisions of Law 1700/1987 (Article 1 paras. 1 and 3) of
all Monasteries of the administration and management of
their existing and future property (movable and real
property, building and agricultural land), and the
assignment of such powers, without the Monasteries' consent,
to the ODEP most of whose members are appointed by the State
and which is therefore alien to the administrative structure
of the Church, limits in an impermissible manner the
self-government of the monasteries and consequently the
principle of the self-government of the Church, in view of
the fact that in accordance with the Holy Canons monks must
be landless. Such a regulation violates first the
above-mentioned article of the Constitution which does not
permit modification of administrative institutions of the
Church to such an extent as to reverse its self-government,
and secondly, it seriously hinders the exercise of cult by
means of monastic life, since monastic cult cannot be
exercised "without hindrance" as guaranteed in Article 13
para. 2 of the Constitution. Finally it should be noted
that since 1953 the ODEP had an Administrative Board
appointed in its majority by the Church and was presided
over by the Archbishop of Athens. The precedents to the
contrary invoked by the majority opinion refer to isolated
particular cases and not to the administration of monastic
property as a whole. Therefore, in accordance with the
opinion of the minority the allegations of the applicants
are well-founded.
It is further alleged that the provisions of Law
1700/1987 entrusting the ODEP, an entity being alien to the
Church and not controlled by it, with the administration of
monastic property and permitting the transfer of such
property to the State without any exchange, are contrary to
Articles 17 and 7 para. 3 of the Constitution since they
impose a non-permissible confiscation of the above-mentioned
property, deprive the monasteries of their property and
impose restrictions on property rights which are not
permitted by the Constitution.
Article 7 para. 3 of the Constitution provides that
general confiscation is prohibited. Article 17 of the
Constitution rules that property is under the protection of the
State, but the rights derived therefrom may not be exercised to
the detriment of the public interest (para. 1). No-one can be
deprived of his property unless for reasons of duly proven
public interest, according to the law and always following prior
complete indemnisation which must correspond to the value of the
expropriated property. This last constitutional provision
prohibits deprivation of a person's property without the
fulfilment of the conditions specified therein. However, the
legislator is not hindered from introducing on the basis of
objective criteria and in the public interest limitations in
property, provided that these limitations do not abolish or
inactivate property rights (cf. Council of State decisions
1034/1978, 6711/1979, 3466/1980, 1503/1982 etc.)
In accordance with the majority opinion of this Court
the stipulations of Law 1700/1987 which provide for the transfer
to the Greek State of monastic agricultural and other land being
in the possession of the monasteries without lawful property
titles are not contary to Article 17 of the Constitution. Such
provisions do not deprive the monasteries of their property
rights on the above- mentioned land since the law provides that
such land does not belong to them. Moreover, the provisions of
the same law, which refer to the sale of the urban assets of the
holy monasteries or the concession of rights thereon by decision
of the ODEP, a body functioning within the framework of the
administrative organisation of the Church, do not offend the
property rights of the monasteries, since their implementation
requires the consent of the monastery owning the asset. Without
such consent the contract is absolutely null and void. Finally,
the provisions referring to the exploitation by the ODEP of the
urban assets, mines, quarries and vivariums belonging to
monasteries or any other church institution, and those
concerning the administration and management of the agricultural
property of the monasteries in general, are not contrary to the
Constitution. As regards (...), administration and management
of agricultural property of the monasteries in general and the
exploitation and further exploitation of urban assets, the
relevant stipulations do not entail deprivation of property
since the property as such of the land concerned remains with
the monasteries and in any event the income from the management
of the above-mentioned property by the ODEP is used for church
purposes. This regulation imposes limitations which are
permitted by the Constitution and are imposed in the interests
of the monasteries and in the public interest as well.
Therefore, the allegations of the applicants relating to the
violation of Articles 12 paras. 5 and 6 and 20 of the Constitution
and Article 1 of the Additional Protocol of Paris of 20 March 1952
to the Convention of Rome, which contain provisions similar to
Article 17 of the Constitution, are ill-founded and must be
rejected.
Two of the members of this Court supported the following
opinion, which was followed by one of the assessors. The
assignment under the above conditions of the administration and
management of all monastic property in general to the ODEP even
"in modification of the provisions in force" (Article 1 para. 3
of Law 1700/1987) does not merely constitute a limitation of
property tolerated by the Constitution, but affects in a
non-permissible manner and without complete indemnisation the
very essence of the monasteries' property rights. This becomes
more evident from the fact that the sole power left to the
monasteries is to agree or disagree to the sale of their urban
assets or the concession of real rights thereon by the ODEP but
they may not decide on such sale or concession, since such
decision may be made only by the ODEP which resolves dominantly,
that is without even the opinion of the monastery, on the sale of
agricultural land and the "exploitation or further exploitation"
of their real property in accordance with Article 7 of Law
1700/1987. As regards the movable property of the Monasteries,
some of which is of particularly high value (e.g. icons of
monastery museums, valuable relics, shares etc.) these are
managed by the ODEP without any limitations whatsoever. Besides,
it should be noted that Law 1700/1987 does not specify the fate
of the income from exploitation of monastic property. On the
contrary, it appears from Articles 2 para. 2, 3 para. 1 (b) and 9
of Law 1700/1987 that the income from "exploitation or concession
of use of monastic and church property in general" becomes the
possession of a private law entity, created under Article 9,
which has no church objects. Thus the provisions of Law
1700/1987 are in acute opposition not only to Article 17 of the
Constitution but also to the provisions of the Rome Convention
(Article 1 of the Additional Protocol) and the EEC Treaty. The
provisions of these treaties prevail over any provisions of law
(Article 28 para. 1 of the Constitution) and create international
responsiblity for the Greek State. Therefore, in accordance with
the minority opinion, the allegations of the applicants are
well-founded.
It is further submitted that the provisions of Article 8
para. 1 of Law 1700/1987 are contrary to the constitutionally
protected independence of the Orthodox Church of Greece (Article
3 para. 1 of the Constitution). This allegation is ill-founded,
since the above-mentioned provisions of Law 1700/1987 are not
related to the independence of the Orthodox Church of Greece
declared in Article 3 para. 1 of the Constitution.
It is further alleged that the provisions of Law
1700/1987 violate Article 4 para. 1 of the Constitution since
they introduce an unjustified discriminatory treatment of the
Orthodox Church of Greece in comparison to monasteries belonging
to the ÷cumenic Patriarchate and the ÷cumenic Patriarchate
itself, the Patriarchates of Alexandria, Jerusalem, the Holy
Sepulchre, the Holy Monastery of Sinai and monasteries of other
confessions or religions. This allegation is ill-founded since
the Orthodox Church of Greece, being an instrument and expression
of the prevailing religion, according to Article 3 para. 1 of the
Constitution, is not under the same conditions in relation to
the other Orthodox churches, confessions or religions.
Therefore the legislative stipulations concerned do not violate
the constitutional principle of equal treatment.
It is moreover submitted that the stipulations of the
Law 1700/1987 violate Article 5 para. 1 of the Constitution in
that orthodox citizens who desire to financially support
monasteries are hindered in the free development of their
personality since, against their will, the administration and
management of the donated property will not be entrusted to the
monasteries but to the ODEP. Furthermore, it is alleged that
these stipulations affect the individual right of religious
freedom of the members of monastic communities, as well as of the
persons desiring to found a monastery. The reasons invoked are
ill-founded since the individual right of free development of
personality, which is guaranteed in Article 5 para. 1 of the
Constitution is not absolute but is subject to the limitations
of the Constitution and the law. In this case the limitations
imposed by the above-mentioned provisions of Law 1700/1987
do not violate Article 5 para. 1 of the Constitution. As regards
its second aspect, the allegation is inadmissible since it
vaguely relates to eventual and future damage to the
applicants.
It is claimed that the provisions of Law 1700/1987
violate the constitutional principles of protected confidence,
proportionality and necessity. This allegation is ill-founded.
The principle of protected confidence is not directly protected
by the Constitution. The principles of necessity and
proportionality are not violated since the stipulations
concerned are adequately justified."
On 11 May 1988 The Permanent Holy Synod entered into an
agreement with the Greek State. According to the provisions of the
agreement a number of monasteries, among them the Holy Monasteries of
Assomaton Petraki (Application No. 13092/87) and Ossios Loucas
(Application No. 13984/88), conceded their agricultural land to the
State. The agreement was ratified by the Parliament (Law 1811/1988).
The applicants submit that parts of monastic property have
already been conceded to agricultural co-operatives.
They also submit judgments of first instance courts which
either annul proceedings (judgment 455/1987 of the Ioannina First
Instance Court) or declare inadmissible actions brought by other
monasteries (judgment 335/1987 of the Lassithi First Instance Court)
because of lack of the monasteries' locus standi.
COMPLAINTS
1. The applicants complain that the provisions of Law
1700/1987 deprive them unconditionally of their rights to manage and
dispose of their property. They submit that, as of the day of entry
into force of this law, the use of their property is transferred
to third parties and governmental institutions or agencies and that
within a six months' time-limit their property is automatically
transferred to the State.
They note that most of their rights derive from unregistered
legal titles since according to the provisions of Law TS/1856, only
acts of transfer of property subsequent to 1 January 1856 had to be
registered. Besides, since the property rights of the monasteries
have never been challenged by the Greek State, no court decisions
recognising the monasteries' property rights have been given. They
also note that they cannot, within the six months limit set by Law
1700/1978, register their titles, nor can they obtain a court's
decision confirming their property rights vis-à-vis the Greek State,
since the applicant monasteries are deprived, as from the publication
of the law, of their right of active or passive legal capacity.
Furthermore, in order to prove the existence of their rights,
the applicants refer to the governmental decrees by which their
property was classified as "property to be maintained" or "property to
be sold". Such decrees explicitly describe the land belonging to each
monastery, as well as its extent and boundary.
In these circumstances the applicants consider that their
property has been unconditionally expropriated. They submit that no
public interest can be found for this expropriation. They refer to
the Sporrong and Lönnroth case and denounce the extreme inflexibility
of Law 1700/1987, as well as the lack of a fair balance between the
legitimate aim eventually pursued by the law and their property
rights. Furthermore they submit that no full, prior compensation is
provided by law 1700/1987, which omission violates not only the Greek
Constitution but also the general principles of international law.
The applicants submit that the expropriation affects also the
movable property of the monasteries, since this will be managed and
possibly even sold by the ODEP. They note that the movable property
of the monasteries includes not only icons and objects destined for
the Holy Service, but also items of commercial value, be it money,
bonds, etc.
The applicants note, finally, that monks are entitled to
acquire property during their lifetime, but have the obligation to
transfer the property acquired, be it money, movables or immovables,
to the monastery.
The applicants allege a violation of Article 1 of Protocol
No. 1 to the Convention.
2. The applicants also allege a violation of Article 6 of the
Convention, since the monasteries are deprived of their right to
litigate before the Greek courts for the purpose of determining their
civil rights and obligations.
The applicants refer in particular to the Andorfer Tonwerke
case (No. 7987/77, Comm. Report 8.4.82, D.R. 32 p. 94) and submit that
the fixing of the compensation to which an expropriation gives rise is
a matter which concerns the determination of civil rights and
obligations. They note that the right to compensation following
expropriation is guaranteed by Article 17 of the Greek Constitution.
In this respect, the applicants consider that they have been
denied the right of access to court, with regard in particular to
their civil right to adequate compensation.
Moreover, the applicants complain of the annulment of pending
proceedings. They submit that the provisions of Article 3 of Law
1700/1978, according to which immovable assets are deemed to be the
property of the Greek State, unless they have been recognised to be
the property of the Holy Monasteries by irrevocable court decisions
against the Greek State, implies that civil proceedings, which are not
terminated within the six months time-limit set out by the same
Article, are annulled. This, they allege, constitutes a violation of
their right to a fair hearing guaranteed by Article 6 para. 1 of the
Convention.
3. The applicants submit that they are deprived of the means
needed to preserve the monastic communities and thus hindered in the
exercise of the practice of their religious convictions of asceticism.
They allege a violation of Article 9 of the Convention.
4. The applicants note that, pursuant to Article 3 para. 3 of the
Law 1700/1987, areas belonging to the Holy Monasteries and used
exclusively for cultivation by the monks themselves are not to be
transferred to the State. However, these areas are to be determined
for each monastery depending on the number of monks living therein.
Consequently the number of monks allowed to live in each monastery
will be fixed and cannot be increased.
The applicants allege further that Law 1700/1987
essentially prohibits the creation of new monasteries since newly
created monasteries solely depend on donations and the prospective
donors will be discouraged by the fact that their donations will be
administered by the ODEP.
They accordingly allege a violation of Article 11 of the
Convention.
5. The applicants claim furthermore that they are victims of
discrimination. They submit that only monasteries belonging to the
Greek Orthodox Church are affected by Law 1700/1987, whereas the
rights of monasteries of other churches remain intact. They allege a
violation of Article 14 in conjunction with Articles 6, 9 and 11 of
the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 1.
6. Finally, the applicants complain that they have no effective
remedy before a national authority in order to assert their rights
guaranteed by the Convention. They invoke Article 13 in conjunction
with Articles 6, 9 and 11 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol
No. 1.
PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE COMMISSION
The application No. 13092/87 was introduced on 16 July 1978
and registered on 21 July 1987. The Commission decided on 5 May 1988
to bring the application to the notice of the respondent Government,
inviting them to submit written observations on the admissibility and
merits of the case.
The Government submitted their written observations on
22 September 1988 after an extension of the fixed time-limit for the
submission had been granted by the President of the Commission. The
applicants submitted their observations in reply on 9 January 1989
after having been granted an extension of the time-limit for the
submissions.
The application No. 13984/88 was introduced on 15 May 1988 and
registered on 28 June 1988. The Commission decided on 10 March 1989
to bring the application to the notice of the respondent Government
and to invite them to submit written observations on the admissibility
and merits of the case.
The Government submitted their observations on 26 June 1989.
The applicants presented their observations in reply on 22 September
1989 after an extension of the time-limit for the submissions had been
granted by the President.
On 4 December 1989 the Commission decided to join the
applications and to invite the parties to a hearing on the
admissibility and merits of the applications.
The hearing was held on 5 June 1990. The parties were
represented as follows:
For the Government:
- Mr. Konstantinos Economides, Head of Special Legal Department
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Agent
- Mrs. Maria Vondikaki-Telalian, Legal Adviser, of the Special
Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affaiars; Counsel
- Mrs. Artemis Papathanassiou, Secretary to the Special
Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Counsel
- Mr. Charalambos Chrissanthakis, barrister; Counsel
For the applicants:
- Mr. Panayiotis Bernitsas, barrister at the Athens bar
- Mrs. Domniki Mirasyesi, barrister at the Athens bar
Two of the applicants, Priest-Friar Konstantinos Ramiotis and
Priest-Friar Athanasios Athanasiou, were present at the hearing.
THE LAW
The applicants complain of Law 1700/1987 modifying the rules
of administration of monastic property and providing for the transfer
of a part of it to the State. The applicants allege a violation of
Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 (P1-1). In their view the provisions of Law
1700/1987 entrusting the ODEP with the administration of their
property constitute an unjustified interference with their right to
peaceful enjoyment of their possessions. They also allege that the
transfer of parts of their property to the State amounts to an
expropriation contrary to Article 1 para. 1 second sentence of
Protocol No. 1 (P1-1). The applicants also complain that according to
the provisions of Law 1700/1987 they no longer have legal competence
to act before courts and that, consequently, any pending proceedings
concerning their property rights are annulled. They allege a
violation of Articles 6 para. 1 (Art. 6-1) and 13 (Art. 13) of the
Convention. Moreover, the applicants allege that the restrictions of
their right to manage their property and the taking of it pursuant to
the provisions of Law 1700/1987 constitute an unjustified interference
with their right to freedom of religion and to freedom of association
and invoke Articles 9 (art. 9) and 11 (Art. 11) of the Convention.
Finally, they allege that they are victims of discrimination and
invoke Article 14 (Art. 14) of the Convention.
The respondent Government first note that the applicant
monasteries cannot be regarded as "non-governmental organisations"
within the meaning of Article 25 (Art. 25) of the Convention and cannot
therefore exercise the right of individual petition to the Commission.
They also contend that the applicants have not exhausted the domestic
remedies at their disposal according to the generally recognised rules
of international law. Finally, the Government argue that no concrete
means of implementation of the provisions of Law 1700/1987 have been
taken and that therefore the applications are manifestly ill-founded.
A. As to the requirements of Article 25 (Art. 25) of
the Convention
Article 25 (Art. 25) of the Convention reads as follows:
"The Commission may receive petitions addressed to the Secretary-
General of the Council of Europe from any person,
non-governmental organisation or group of individuals claiming
to be the victim of a violation by one of the High Contracting
Parties of the rights set forth in this Convention, provided that
the High Contracting Party against which the complaint has been
lodged has declared that it recognises the competence of the
Commission to receive such petitions. Those of the High
Contracting Parties who have made such a declaration undertake
not to hinder in any way the effective exercise of this right."
i) With regard to the applicant Holy Monasteries:
---------------------------------------------
The Government submit that the requirements of Article 25
(Art. 25) are not met in the present case as far as the applicant
Monasteries are concerned since these bodies are not "non-governmental
organisations" within the meaning of the above provision.
The Government first note the particular relation between the
Greek State and the Greek Orthodox Church and refer in this respect to
Article 3 (Art. 3) of the Greek Constitution. A particular aspect of this
relation is that the development of the religious conscience of Greek
citizens is not only an aim pursued by church institutions but also,
according to Article 16 para. 2 of the Greek Constitution,
one of the missions of the State. Moreover, the existence of the
Greek Orthodox Church is provided by the Constitution and its nature
as a body occupying an important place in the framework of the
organisation of the State cannot be challenged. The Greek Orthodox
Church has an important educational mission which contributes to the
achievement of the constitutional aims of the State. Church
institutions, despite their degree of autonomy or independence
vis-à-vis the Greek Orthodox Church, inevitably contribute to the
educational functions of the State as defined in Article 16 para. 2
of the Constitution and can therefore be regarded as State organs lato
sensu. The Monasteries, as institutions of the Greek Orthodox Church,
are to be regarded as bodies exercising one of the main functions of
the State, that is the development of religious conscience, and are,
thus, governmental organisations.
The Government also observe that it is for the national law to
determine what the State aims are and that reference to domestsic law
must be made when it comes to determining whether an organisation
pursues such aims or not.
In this respect the Government refer to national
administrative law and point out that the Monasteries are legal
entities of public law. The establishment and liquidation of
monasteries can be made only by Presidential Decree after approval by
the competent ecclesiastical authority and after proposal by the
Minister of National Education and Religion. The establishment of a
monastic community is not only a spiritual issue but also a matter
which necessitates regulation in the context of domestic legal order
since the proper functioning of the Holy Monasteries is an important
matter to the State.
The applicants contend that the Holy Monasteries are not
governmental organisations. The State aims referred to in Article 16
of the Constitution are certainly the aims pursued by the State but
not necessarily those pursued by the Greek Orthodox Church and
obviously not those pursued by the Holy Monasteries. The applicants
note in this respect that the development of the religious conscience
of Greek citizens does not coincide with the promotion of the Greek
orthodox religion, since, under Article 13 of the Constitution, this
religion is placed on an equal footing with all other religions. They
argue that under the Greek Constitution of 1975 the Greek Orthodox
Church is no longer a State Church and emphasise the status of
separation between Church and State under this Constitution.
Moreover, the applicants submit that the fact that the Holy
Monasteries are legal entities of public law is irrelevant for the
question at issue. In their view a governmental organisation is a
body belonging to the the so-called public administration. They
observe that public administration bodies are often governed by
private law, in particular when entrusted with implementation of
specific aims such as housing, transport, health etc. On the other
hand not all public law entities are State organs. In particular, as
far as the Greek Orthodox Church and its institutions are concerned,
their character of public law entities has the sole purpose of
guaranteeing a special protection to these corporations because of the
long and specific ties between the Greek Orthodox Church and the Greek
nation. However the only power granted by the legislator to the Holy
Monasteries is the issuing by its governing organ of regulations
concerning the promotion of spiritual life.
The applicants conclude that the ecclesiastical bodies cannot
be considered to be governmental organisations, since they do not belong
to the public administration. Especially the Holy Monasteries and
their governing organs have no power whatsoever which could lead to
their qualification as governmental organisations.
The Commission first observes that it does not have to examine
whether the Greek Orthodox Church can be regarded as a
"non-governmental organisation" within the meaning of Article 25
para. 1 (Art. 25-1) of the Convention. It notes that the applications
have been introduced by the applicant Holy Monasteries which, under
domestic law, are separate legal entities and can be distinguished
from the Greek Orthodox Church as such.
The Commission further observes that a corporation pursuing
social, educational or cultural aims does not by the mere fact that
such aims are also pursued by the State become a governmental
organisation. Moreover, the private or public law nature of a
corporation, although an important indication, is not decisive for the
determination of the governmental or non-governmental character of an
organisation under the Convention. As the Commission has previously
held, governmental organisations which are precluded from exercising
the right of individual petition under Article 25 (Art. 25) of the
Convention are those which normally exercise public functions
(cf. Nos. 5767/72, 5922/72, 5929-5931/72, 5953-5957/72, Dec. 31.5.74,
Coll. 46 p. 118, Yearbook 17 p. 338).
The Commission notes that, according to Article 19 of the
Statutory Charter of the Church of Greece, the Holy Monasteries are
religious institutions for the asceticism of men and women living in
them pursuing the monastic principles, the holy rules of asceticism
and the tradition of the Orthodox Church of Christ. It finds that the
above-mentioned activities cannot be regarded as public functions
since they are not related either to the exercise of public power or
to State controlled activities in the field of public services.
Therefore the Commission concludes that the applicant Holy Monasteries
are "non-governmental organisations" within the meaning of Article 25
para. 1 (Art. 25-1) of the Convention.
ii) With regard to the individual applicants
----------------------------------------
As regards the individual applicants, the Commission observes
that it may receive applications only from persons who claim
themselves to be victims of a violation of the rights set forth in the
Convention. However, in the present case the Commission finds that
the individual applicants complain of Law 1700/1987 and in particular
of the provisions concerning the administration and the alleged
expropriation of the property of the applicant Holy Monasteries, of
the monasteries' lack of access to court and of the resulting
interference therefrom by the State authorities with the monasteries'
right to freedom of religion and to freedom of association.
It finds that the individual applicants cannot themselves
claim to be victims of a violation resulting from the provisions of
Law 1700/1987 which affect only the Holy Monasteries as such.
It follows that as far as introduced by the individual
applicants the applications are incompatible ratione personae with the
provisions of the Convention within the meaning of Article 27 para. 2
(Art. 27-2).
B. As to the exhaustion of domestic remedies
The Government submit that the applicant monasteries have not
complied with the requirements of Article 26 (Art. 26) of the
Convention as to the exhaustion of domestic remedies. They observe
that pursuant to Article 93 para. 4 of the Constitution, "the courts
shall be bound not to apply laws, the contents of which are contrary
to the Constitution" and that Article 20 para. 1 of the Constitution
guarantees to everyone a right "to receive legal protection by the
courts" and "to plead before them his views concerning his rights or
interests, as specified by law." Moreover, all courts are independent
and are not bound to follow the views of superior courts.
The Government submit that it was open to the applicants to
lodge with the civil courts actions for declaratory judgments
(anagnoristiki agogi) and request the courts to recognise that they
are the owners of the property affected by the provisions of Law
1700/1987. They note in particular that civil courts are the natural
judge of any dispute concerning monastic property. In the context of
such litigation the civil courts should examine the constitutionality
of Law 1700/1987 without being bound by the opinion expressed by
the Council of State in its decision 5057/1987.
The Government admit that such actions have been introduced by
other monasteries before civil courts of first instance and that
these courts have actually followed the opinion of the Council of
State. However, in the Government's view, the exhaustion of domestic
remedies requirement is not complied with in so far as the Court of
Cassation (Areios Pagos) has not reached a decision in the matter. The
Government emphasise that the Court of Cassation can take and has
indeed on several occasions taken a different view from that of the
Council of State on constitutionality issues. In such cases the
Special Highest Court (Anotato Eidiko Dikastirio) has competence to
settle the controversy according to Article 100 para. 1 e) of the
Constitution.
Furthermore, every specific act by the ODEP concerning the
management of the monastic property and any act concerning the
transfer of monastic property to the State can be challenged before the
competent administrative courts.
In conclusion the Government submit that the applicants have
not exhausted the domestic remedies and that their argument to the
contrary is inconsistent with the domestic legal order.
The applicants first observe that Greek law does not provide
for a direct remedy permitting the annulment of legislative
provisions. They submit that in cases of an alleged ex lege violation
an applicant is not required to pursue remedies which concern only
incidentally the matter in dispute. Moreover they note that the
Council of State found incidentally that all provisions of Law 1700/1987
were in conformity with the Constitution. In these circumstances any
further remedy before either the civil or administrative courts would
be futile.
The Commission recalls that the remedies which are to be taken
into account in applying the general rules of international law
concerning the exhaustion of domestic remedies are those which are
capable of providing an effective and sufficient means of redressing
the wrongs which are the subject of the international claim (cf. No.
214/56, Dec. 9.6.58, Yearbook I p. 412 ; No. 712/60, Yearbook IV
p. 384 ; No. 5964/72, Dec. 29.9.75, D.R. 3 p. 57).
The Commission observes that in the present case the Holy
Monasteries of Chryssoleontissa Eginis, Phlamourion Volou and
Mega Spileo challenged the ministerial decision by which the central
administrative board of the ODEP was constituted and that the Council
of State has incidentally examined the compatibility of the provisions
of Law 1700/1987 with the Greek Constitution and the Convention. The
Council of State found that these provisions do not infringe either
the Constitution or the Convention. The Commission finds that the
remedy pursued by the above-mentioned monasteries can be regarded as
effective according to the general principles of international law.
It observes in this respect that a decision of that court concluding
that legislative provisions are contrary to the Constitution leads to
the non-implementation of these provisions, although under Greek law
a court has no power to annul legislative provisions.
Moreover, the Commission considers that the decisions given by
the Council of State on the recourse of the above mentioned
monasteries absolve the remaining applicant monasteries, which are in
an identical situation, from the obligation to pursue that remedy (cf.
mutatis mutandis No. 7819/77, Dec. 12.7.78, D.R. 14 p. 186).
The Commission examined the Government's argument according to
which the domestic remedies are not exhausted in the present case
since the civil courts and in particular the Court of Cassation have
not given a decision on the issue of compatibility of Law 1700/1987
with the Greek Constitution and the Convention. The Government note on
this point that civil courts may take a different position from the
Council of State as to the constitutionality issues.
The Commission recalls that the basis of the rule of
exhaustion of domestic remedies is that before proceedings are brought
in an international judicial organ the State made answerable must have
an opportunity of redressing the alleged damage by domestic means. In
interpreting this rule, the Commission always has regard to what
remedies an applicant can be expected to use in order to obtain
redress of an alleged violation. The Commission considers that the
applicants' recourse to the Council of State is sufficient in this
respect. In the present case, the availability and effectiveness of
an action before the civil courts may be in doubt. In this respect
the Commission has regard to the decision of the Council of State and
to the provision of Article 1 para. 1 of Law 1700/1987 according to
which the applicant monasteries have no competence to act before
courts in relation to matters concerning their property. It moreover
considers that a decision by a supreme court expressly stating that
legislative provisions are in accordance with the Constitution has the
effect of significantly reducing the prospects of success of any
further remedy.
The Commission recalls that an applicant who has exhausted a
remedy which is apparently effective and sufficient cannot be required
to have recourse to other remedies which exist but whose availability
and effectiveness may be in doubt (No. 9248/81, Dec. 10.10.83, D.R. 34
p. 78).
Therefore, the Commission finds that the applicants have
exhausted the domestic remedies according to the general principles of
international law and that the Government's objection must be rejected.
C. As to the merits of the complaints made by the
Holy Monasteries
The Government first submitted that the provisions of Articles
2 and 3 Law 1700/1987 have not been implemented. Therefore no
expropriation has taken place and no interference with the
applicant's rights to freedom of religion or to freedom of association
can be found in the present case. Moreover, the administration of
monastic property by the ODEP does not affect the monasteries' right
to peaceful enjoyment of their possessions.
Finally, the Government submit that specific legislative
regulation of matters concerning the property of monasteries depending
on the Greek Orthodox Church is necessary because of the specific
relation between the Greek Orthodox Church and the Greek State. The
Government conclude that the application is manifestly ill-founded.
The applicant monasteries submit that the provisions of
Law 1700/1987 are in force and have actually been implemented. The
taking of monastic property results directly from the law provisions
and no specific acts of property transfer are necessary. Moreover,
the courts apply the new law in all proceedings concerning monastic
property. The applicants insist that Articles 6, 9, 11, 13 and 14
(Art. 6, 9, 11, 13, 14) of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol
No. 1 (P1-1) are violated by the provisions of Law 1700/1987.
The Commission considers that the applications, as far as
introduced by the Holy Monasteries, raise complex issues of fact and
law which call for an examination of the merits. They cannot
therefore be regarded as manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of
Article 27 para. 2 (Art. 27-2) of the Convention and must be declared
admissible, no other ground for declaring them inadmissible having
been established.
For these reasons, the Commission
DECLARES THE APPLICATIONS ADMISSIBLE without prejudging
the merits, as far as introduced by the applicant Holy
Monasteries (cf. p. 3, applicants 1 to 5 in Application
No. 13092/87 and 1 to 3 in Application No. 13984/88);
DECLARES THE APPLICATIONS INADMISSIBLE as far as
introduced by the individual applicants (cf. pp. 3 and 4,
applicants 6 to 11 in Application No. 13092/87 and
4 to 7 in Application No. 13984/88)
Secretary to the Commission President of the Commission
H.C. KRÜGER C.A. NØRGAARD