On 27 March 1996 Hara Kalomiri, Director of the Greek Conservatory for Music, was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment by the court for “founding and operating a place of private worship for a Buddhist community in Chalkidiki without government permission”. This sentence not only violates the Greek Constitution, but also the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms which protects the right to freedom of religion. If Hara Kalomir’s conviction is confirmed at the appeal hearing and she is imprisoned, Amnesty International will consider her to be a prisoner of concience.
