A Tale of Four Cities & Two Statesmen (double bill of lectures)

The Netherlands Institute at Athens is pleased to announce a double bill of lectures:

“A Tale of Four Cities and Two Statesmen:
Max van der Stoel, Joseph Luns and Dutch Politics towards the 1967-1974 Greek Junta”.

Speakers:
Anet Bleich: 'Max van der Stoel, an Unglamorous Champion for Democracy in Greece and Europe'
Albert Kersten: 'The Other Dutchman: Joseph Luns and his Policies as Foreign Minister and NATO Secretary-General'

(For more information and abstracts visit: http://www.nia.gr/el/nea-ekdiloseis/nea/534-a-tale-of-four-cities-and-two-statesmen)

During the period of the military dictatorship in Greece (1967–1974), Dutch politician Max van der Stoel became one of the most renowned supporters of the struggle of the Greek people for freedom and democracy. His Reports on the Situation in Greece played a decisive role in the mounting pressure on the member states of the Council of Europe to expel Greece from its ranks. In December 1969 this pressure would result in Greece leaving the Council in order to avoid expulsion.
Within the political landscape in the Netherlands, the strategy of the Social-Democrat van der Stoel was not left unchallenged. His main adversary was conservative politician Joseph Luns (Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs το become Secretary-General of NATO in 1971), a dedicated Atlanticist advocating a less confrontational approach.
The story of how van der Stoel and Luns shaped Dutch policies towards the Greek regime in The Hague, Athens, Strasburg and Brussels will be at the heart of this double bill of lectures (in English) by the two biographers of both statesmen. At the end of the evening, there will be time for questions and discussion.

This event is the second in a series hosted by the Netherlands Institute, the Danish Institute, the Swedish Institute and the Norwegian Institute at Athens in the context of the conference The ‘Greek Case’ in the Council of Europe: A Game Changer for International Law and Human Rights? (Athens, 12–14 December 2019). Perceived as a prequel to the conference that commemorates the 50th anniversary of Greece’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe, the lectures engage with the broader issues involved, concerning human rights, European institutions and international law in the past and contemporary times. They will feature leading scholars, journalists, writers and human rights practitioners, among others. All lectures will take place at the Danish Institute at Athens from April to November 2019.

• Τετάρτη, 19 Ιουνίου 2019 στις 7 μ.μ. – 10 μ.μ.

• pin	Danish Institute at Athens Herefondos 14, 10558 Αθήνα

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