| Christos Sartzetakis | |
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| In office March 29, 1985 – May 4, 1990 |
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| Preceded by | Ioannis Alevras |
| Succeeded by | Constantine Karamanlis |
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| Born | April 6, 1929 Thessaloniki, Greece |
| Nationality | Greek |
| Political party | Independent |
Christos Sartzetakis (Greek: Χρήστος Σαρτζετάκης, born 6 April 1929, Thessaloniki) is a Greek jurist and elder statesman.
He entered the law faculty of the University of Thessaloniki in 1946, and received his degree in 1950, after which he practiced law in Thessaloniki. In 1954 he received his license to practice law after successfully completing the Bar examination. In November 1955, he was named Justice of the Peace. A year later, he became a magistrate of the Court of First Instance.
He was the unyielding prosecutor in the sensational case of the assassination of the left-wing member of parliament (and ‘doctor of the poor’) Gregoris Lambrakis, committed on 22 May 1963 in Thessaloniki by right-wing extremists. Lambrakis had called for Greece to disarm and withdraw from NATO. Over half a million people attended his funeral. In spite of sabotage by his superiors, Sartzetakis nevertheless doggedly pursued his investigation and succeeded in elucidating this shady affair. He succeeded in convicting the police officers involved in the murder; they were later rehabilitated by the military junta.
The circumstances of the Lambrakis investigation were described in the well-known 1966 novel Z, by Vassilis Vassilikos and portrayed in the 1969 film Z.
After the Lambrakis prosecution, Sartzetakis left for Paris on a state-sponsored educational leave to study comparative law at the Faculté de Droit et des Sciences Économiques de Paris and Centre Universitaire des Études des Communautés Européennes. Immediately following the coup d'état of 21 April 1967 by George Papadopoulos, he was called back to Athens by the military junta. Along with 29 other magistrates, he was discharged by a "Constitutional Act" from all his legal functions on 29 May 1968.
He was twice arrested, and imprisoned for almost a year. He was savagely tortured by the Greek military police.
On 19 November 1971 he was released, under mounting international pressure (mainly French). The junta had never dared to prosecute him before a court.
In September 1974, after the toppling of the dictatorship and the restoration of the democracy in Greece (metapolitefsi), he was completely rehabilitated.
In the following years he became chairman of the Court of Appeal and finally, in October 1982, Supreme Court Justice. He became a fellow of several international legal societies. He also wrote several legal and political studies. He was bestowed with the highest honors in many countries.
On 9 March 1985, on proposal of the PASOK, he was elected by parliament as President of the Hellenic Republic for one 5-year term, succeeding Konstantinos Karamanlis, although he was not affiliated with any political party. He was elected on 29 March 1985, and he fulfilled this function up to 4 May 1990. As President, he was often mocked for his intolerance of press criticism and his regal life-style.
Although Sartzetakis was viewed as a hero of the democracy, and was thought highly by the Greek Left, he was actually always a conservative Right Wing royalist. His zeal in finding out the truth about the Lambrakis case was not based on his political views, but on his professionalism. He still attends many ceremonial events in Greece, mostly right wing celebrations for the victims of the Civil War.[citation needed] He has been honored several times as doctor honoris causa and been given the highest decorations of many states. He is widely known and respected for his integrity as a judge and as a fighter for democracy.
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| Preceded by Ioannis Alevras |
President of Greece 1985 - 1990 |
Succeeded by Constantine Karamanlis |
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