by ATHENS – Just last Monday, MEP Eva Kaili launched a new research center on promoting blockchain technology in the EU.
The main experts and policy makers of the EU institutions and the Greek government were present, including the president of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola.
“The attendance was overwhelming,” Kaili tweeted proudly along with several photos from the event.
Fast forward to this Monday, when the 44-year-old – who is one of 14 vice presidents of the European Parliament – was accused of corruption in the Qatar scandal probe, her responsibilities as vice president were suspended and she was expelled from both the party Social Democrat PASOK in Greece and the Group of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament.
The MEP was “caught in the act”, the only circumstance that can trigger the immediate waiver of parliamentary immunity.
Her 35-year-old partner Francesco Giorgi, an assistant to an Italian MEP and founder of the non-governmental organization Fight Impunity, was also jailed on corruption charges. The couple’s assets and properties, along with those of Kaili’s family in Greece, have been frozen.
No one could have predicted this fall for perhaps one of the most glamorous couples in the European Parliament, who were at the peak of their careers.
The rise of a seductive maverick
The blonde and blue-eyed Thessaloniki native got involved in politics very early on, joining PASOK youth at the tender age of 14. A decade later, in 2002, she became the youngest member of the Thessaloniki city council. She studied architecture and civil engineering before moving to the Greek capital and earning a master’s degree in European affairs.
In 2004, she bid unsuccessfully as the youngest candidate in the national election. Although she lost the vote, she gained a position as a news presenter on the Mega channel, where she worked for several years. She served in the Greek parliament from 2007 to 2012 before moving to the Belgian capital in 2014 to become an MEP with the S&D.
Kaili made a name for herself with several bold and outspoken acts that broke with her party colleagues, such as her initial refusal to back Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou in a crucial vote of confidence in the midst of Greece’s 2011 financial crisis Kaili changed his mind and Papandreou survived.
She was photographed regularly with Greek-Russian billionaire and media mogul Ivan Savvidis in Thessaloniki bouzoukiaor flashy nightclubs where Greek folk music is performed live, in a sea of carnations.
Kaili claimed that her grandfather was murdered by the communists which was later proved to be completely false. She never apologised, nor was she ever held accountable by the Greek media.
The Social Democrat MEP has been deeply involved in the EU’s increasingly compelling digital agenda, with its complex files including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and blockchain.
He worked closely with his sister Mantalena Kaili, executive director of ELONtech, a non-governmental organization that deals with the impact of laws on new technologies. Eva and Mantalena were close, with the two sisters regularly seen together at EU tech conferences or on long shopping sprees in central Athens.
As one of the few Greek women in a high-profile European post, Kaili enjoyed widespread support from the local media, which carried extensive profiles devoted to her glamorous lifestyle.
His Italian partner Giorgi also worked as a sailing instructor in addition to his day job as an assistant to an MEP. His glamorous life is documented on his Instagram profile, full of photos of sailing in Sardinia or skiing. He can also be seen in Doha on business in 2018.
Couple since 2020, they lived together with their little daughter Ariadni, who is one and a half years old.
From tantalizing to tainted
Shortly after her arrest on Friday, PASOK leader and MEP Nikos Androulakis ousted Kaili from the party, accusing her of acting as a “Trojan horse” for the ruling conservative New Democracy party.
He also said New Democracy was preparing to put Kaili on the ballot in the upcoming Greek national elections. Some reports in recent months had indicated that Kaili would run for mayor of Thessaloniki with the support of the conservatives.
Government spokesman Giannis Oikonomou rejected these claims.
Yet in recent years Kaili had approached the conservatives.
“A young woman and a very good friend, protagonist of European affairs, was nominated yesterday as Vice-President of the European Parliament! Congratulations,” tweeted Grigoris Dimitriadis, who recently resigned as chief of staff in the conservative government.
“Kaili maintains excellent relations and has managed to earn the esteem of the New Democracy party, including that of Kyriakos Mitsotakis,” wrote the Greek pro-government newspaper Proto Thema in a profile on her after her election victory. “The prime minister has been fighting for his election as vice president,” the paper reported.
In November, Kaili gave a speech in the European Parliament lauding Qatar, extolling how hosting the World Cup has caused a “historic transformation” in the Gulf country, making it a “frontrunner in workers’ rights”. Meanwhile, the plenary was preparing to pass a resolution condemning Doha’s treatment of migrant workers. PASOK quickly moved away from its position.
Also in November, European Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas published a photo with Kaili in Abu Dhabi. Schinas, the Greek commissioner, has been criticized by MEPs for his tweets about Qatar in recent months. In a recent tweet, he praised Qatar for “considerable and tangible progress in labor reform,” calling for such reforms to be supported. A spokesman for the European Commission defended Schinas’ position, noting that they “reflected exactly the reports of the ILO (International Labor Organisation).”
The Greek government, for its part, has said that Kaili’s case is an example of why eavesdropping on politicians is justified. “Those who have expressed outright positions on whether or not law enforcement agencies should keep tabs on political figures may have to approach them with greater skepticism,” government spokesman Giannis Oikonomou told local media on Saturday.
Sophie in ‘t Veld, the liberal Dutch MEP who is the lead author of the report on the European Parliament’s spyware inquiry, rejected the claims. “It’s nonsense,” she said.
Although Kaili was reportedly one of the politicians under the Greek state’s watch, she herself said the parliamentary committee she was on should not visit Greece as part of its spyware investigation. “This problem solved itself,” she commented in ‘t Veld.
Several socialist leaders have asked her to give up her seat in the European Parliament. “She has distanced herself for months and her positions and her values are incompatible with PASOK,” said the party’s press representative Dimitris Manzos.
Vincent Manancourt contributed to the chronicle.
