ATHENS – The Plenary Session of the Council of State ruled on Wednesday that a university police force (university protection groups), which is (also) composed of special guards, does not violate the principles of academic freedom and full self-governance of higher education institutions.

According to the announcement, it was unanimously ruled that “no provision of Law 4777/2021 shows that individual freedoms are endangered”.

Moreover, the Plenary referred to the public interest, noting that “the legislator considers that the public interest, which consists in guaranteeing public order and security but also in ensuring the unimpeded exercise of academic freedom, imposes policing on the premises of universities, following a series of milder measures of safety and protection of the staff and property of the universities, which were deemed inexpedient by the legislator to serve these purposes.”