EU Parliament VP Kaili charged with corruption in Qatar scandal probe

 

EU Parliament VP Kaili charged with corruption in Qatar scandal probe

 

Former Italian MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri and Francesco Giorgi also charged in the investigation into alleged illicit lobbying, according to Belgian media.

 

BY HANNAH BRENTON

DECEMBER 11, 2022 2:32 PM CET

https://www.politico.eu/article/mep-kaili-charged-with-corruption-by-belgian-prosecutors-reports/

 

Belgian prosecutors charged European Parliament Vice President Eva Kaili and three others with corruption on Sunday in a major investigation into an alleged illicit influence campaign by Qatar.

 

Kaili, a Greek MEP, was arrested on Friday as part of the corruption probe by Belgian authorities into alleged illicit lobbying by the Persian Gulf country, the host of the ongoing World Cup football tournament.

 

“It is suspected that third parties in political and/or strategic positions within the European Parliament were paid large sums of money or offered substantial gifts to influence Parliament’s decisions,” the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office said in a statement on Sunday.

 

The prosecutor, without naming any individuals, said four of six people detained on Friday have been charged with “participation in a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption.” The other two have been released, it said.

 

Belgian newspaper L’Echo and other media reported that the individuals charged include Kaili.

 

Also among the four people charged is Kaili’s partner, Francesco Giorgi, Le Soir reported. Giorgi is a parliamentary assistant to another MEP and a founder of the NGO Fight Impunity.

 

The president of Fight Impunity, former Italian MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, also was charged in the case, according to Le Soir. An unnamed lobbyist also was charged, it said. The four will remain in custody.

 

Kaili’s father, who was also detained in the probe, was released, as was trade union leader Luca Visentini, according to the newspaper.

 

Kaili was suspended from her role as vice president of the European Parliament after she was arrested in the probe, a spokesperson for Parliament President Roberta Metsola said on Saturday.

 

A member of the center-left Socialist & Democrat party, Kaili is one of 14 vice presidents at the European Parliament and so is a powerful player in the assembly. She has emerged as one of the most vocal defenders of Qatar, recently calling the country a “frontrunner in labor rights” after meeting with the country’s labor minister, despite profound international concerns about conditions for stadium construction workers. Her responsibilities as a vice president include the Middle East.

 

Panzeri also was a member of the S&D group in the assembly, serving until 2019. The group has been criticized for its soft stance on Qatar in the run-up to its hosting of the World Cup. Panzeri’s wife and daughter were arrested by Italian police on Friday in the investigation, according to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera and confirmed by POLITICO.

 

As part of the investigation, the home of Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella was raided on Saturday evening. Tarabella, who was not arrested, is vice chair of the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with the Arab Peninsula and co-chair of the institution’s sports group.

 

The suspicion of the investigators in Brussels is that Qatar used money and gifts to influence economic and political decisions in the Parliament.

 

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola and the assembly stand “firmly against corruption, are actively and fully cooperating with law enforcement and judicial authorities to assist the course of justice,” Metsola’s spokesperson said Sunday.