Greek court rules citizenship law unconstitutional

Athens - Greece's highest court has ruled that a citizenship law introduced in early 2010 is unconstitutional. The court said the law ignores a prerequisite of an existence of a genuine link between a foreigner and Greek society.

The Ragousis law allowed those "born to immigrant parents legally living in Greece for at least five years to be granted Greek citizenship provided they had studied at a Greek school for a minimum of six years." (Ekathimerini) The Council of State has now revoked the law, further adding that only Greeks may stand for public office. In the future all applications for Greek citizenship must be considered on an individual basis Ta Nea reported, with the applicant showing a bond has been formed with Greek society. The Ragusis law was based on length of stay in the country which is no indication of integration and assimilation. According to Xryshaygh the ultra-nationalist party Golden Dawn had tabled a motion to repeal what they described as "this monstrosity posing as law of the Greek State."