Greece farewells former Prime Minister, Constantinos Mitsotakis

Thousands of people were present at the funeral service of Constantinos Mitsotakis in Wednesday to pay their respects to the former Greek statesman.

The President of the Hellenic Republic Prokopis Pavlopoulos read out a funeral oration praising his dedication to democracy and especially parliamentary democracy above all.

"He was a true European leader," Pavlopoulos said, noting that the certainty of Greece's European course was among the legacies that he had left, as well as that of unity and harmony in the country.

His son Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the current leader of the New Democracy party said his father had chosen to return to his beloved Crete as his final resting place "in a small cemetery at Agoulide, where anyone passing by chance would never imagine that a great politician is going to be there."

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades who also attended said that Greeks were mourning the passing of a great politician that had left his mark on Greek history, known for his bravery and his smile. Mitsotakis had stood up against populism and led efforts for reconciliation, he said, overlooking political cost for the good of Greece.

Mitsotakis was given a funeral with all the honours of a serving prime minister at the Athens Metropolitican Cathedral, where his body had lain in state throughout the morning with members of his family the first to arrive.

Attending the funeral also were Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades and several former Greek premiers, Parliament President Nikos Voutsis and Government Vice-President Yiannis Dragasakis, as well as government ministers, the leaders of Greek political parties, main opposition New Democracy's Parliamentary group and former ministers and MPs in his cabinet.