Marialena Tsirli: What Greek woman is the new Secretary General of the ECHR? How a newspaper ad changed his life



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Marialena Tsirli is sworn in as Secretary General of the European Court of Human Rights, in an empty room, with two associates and her husband, due to pandemic restrictions.

However, this cannot overshadow the immense joy and pride she feels, as she is the first woman and the first Greek in this position. A cinematic path to the top.

It was a Sunday, my parents had gone out for lunch, I was home alone, the newspaper was on the table, the wind was blowing, I was picking up the leaves, I went to close the newspaper so it wouldn’t completely disintegrate and when I closed it it fell off my eye on the ad, that is, I wasn’t looking for a job then, it happened exactly as I tell you, I declared participation and here I am now.

She took this advertisement to Strasbourg in 1994, where she initially worked as a lawyer at the Court of Justice of the European Communities. There she rose to various positions until 2010, when she became undersecretary of the European Court of Human Rights.

“I started working here and actually grew up here. I came to Strasbourg to work when I was between 25 and 26 years old and grew up in the courts. So it is a natural evolution, of course it is a wonderful evolution, I do not deny it.” But it is really moving because it’s what my soul has always longed for, not to take this position, but to work in this field, “he says.

“So when I came here to do a master’s degree and it happened that a course topic was about human rights, then it was like a door that opened, everything seemed to light up and I realized that I had found what I was looking for, that is, here it was born my love for human rights. “Strasbourg,” he adds.

According to her, her family is very proud.

“They are very excited.” My goal was to do my job well and get a good name, “he said, adding:” I want to believe and hope that they have been chosen because of the work they have shown so far. “Not because they said that now we need a Greek woman and we also need a woman.”

The new Secretary General of the Court of Justice of the European Communities had to break many stereotypes in her career.

“Now I don’t aim small anymore, but the truth is that when I was younger I aimed too much and that was probably the biggest problem I faced. That is to say, I was 35 years old and seemed 25 and of course I had taken positions that required prestige to be respected by your interlocutors. “I always tried not to be seen as a girl, not as a woman, as a girl,” she says with great emotion, sending her own message to the youth of Greece.

“Each of us should pursue this, become the best version of ourselves.” I tried that, I keep trying and if I have a message to convey, this is it.

Marialena Tsirli, 53, will remain in the position of general secretary for five years.

Source: skai.gr

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