The Greeks have mass protests that demand justice after the Tempi train tragedy

The Greeks have celebrated their greatest protests in years and participated in a general strike to commemorate the second anniversary of a railway disaster that left 57 dead and dozens more injured.

In the center of Athens alone, the crowd was placed in hundreds of thousands, and large numbers were seen in tosaloniki, Larissa and Ioannina, as well as in many other cities.

“For those of us who had children on that train, a part of our soul remained there and we will never return,” said Maria Karystianou, director of the Association of Victims of Tempi, whose daughter Marthi was among those killed in the tragedy.

An investigation concluded on Thursday that the accident was caused by human error, poor maintenance and personnel.

In the afternoon, a group of hooded men began throwing rocks and gasoline bombs into the police, marrying the emotional atmosphere near Parliament.

The riot team police responded with tear gas and water cannon while the clashes continued for some time around the center of the capital, in Ermou, Omonia and Propilaia.

Dozens of people were arrested and the problem got up again when night fell.

Violence threw a shadow on the huge scale of protests in practically all the cities of Greece.

“I am here in memory of the people who were killed in the train accident. We demand justice,” said Dimitris, 13, who had come with his father Petros Polyzos to the greatest demonstration in Greece, in Syntagma Square in downtown Athens.

It was during the night of February 28, 2023 that a passenger train full of students crashed in front with a train of merchandise near Tempi Gorge in downtown Greece.

The report of the Air Accident and Railway Research Authority of Greece warned that the security failures exposed by the accident had not yet been addressed. “Those children were killed because the train was not safe,” said the chief of Christos Papadimitriou.

The Tempi rail disaster surprised the Greeks and many accused their conservative government of making very little to shed light on the causes of the tragedy. There is a widely sustained belief that the government has tried to cover up the role of high -ranking officials.

The entire center of Athens was full of people of all ages and all areas of life, and many said they attended a demonstration for the first time in their lives.

Dmitris and his father were among many protesters in Athens, with shirts that said “I have no oxygen, justice until the end”, referring to the 57 who died.

Manifestations were organized in 346 cities, in Greece in Tosaloniki, Ioannina, Patras and Larissa, as well as in cities in Europe, including Brussels, Rome and several cities of the United Kingdom.

The Passenger Service of Athens to Thessaloniki was full of students returning to the university after a vacation for Greek orthodox Lent when the train collided with a goods train on the same track outside Larisa.

Seconds later, a fireball almost completely destroyed the first two carriages of the train.

In Athens, the protesters held banners that read “My Child, call me when you arrive” and “There is no cover -up.”

Dina Gazi, 62, held white balloons with the names of those who died in the accident. “I firmly believe that the government is covering those responsible for the accident,” he told BBC. “We demand that the evidence come to light.”

The stores in the center had their blinds, many with messages of sympathy and support in their windows, and the common people did not go to work.

The schools were closed, the flights and the canceled trains, and the only public transport that was still operating was to take people to and from Syntagma Square.

The taxi drivers promised to take people to protest without charge.

In a publication on Facebook, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that everyone’s thoughts were with the families of the 57 victims who died, as well as with the injured and those who survived but who took the memory of that night.

“Nothing will be the same,” he added, speaking of “fatal human errors along with the chronic deficiencies of the State.”

In office for almost six years, this is the first time since Mitsotakis was chosen that he has been in such a difficult political position. He promised to move “more dynamic and quickly” to achieve modern and safe trains.

For the Greeks, this mass protest was unusual, since it was not related to the economy and their personal finances.

Thursday’s investigation discovered that millions of euros had been paid to cover the installation of security systems along the railroad, but that the project remained incomplete due to corruption and bureaucracy.

The relatives of those killed in the clash believe that the goods train may have brought contraband fuel in the name of a contraband ring.

“It is impossible to determine what caused exactly (the fireball), but the simulations and expert reports indicate the possible presence of a fuel so far unknown,” the report found.

“It lacked serious information because the accident site was not sealed,” experts say, increasing public anger and increasing the speculation of a cover -up.

Government spokesman, Pavloskis, denied that there was a cover -up and said the accusation was not supported by the report.

There have been more accusations that suggest that there were orders to clear the site of the accident and the “landfill” the days after the disaster, which meant that the evidence disappeared. But Marinakis said the research report concluded that no political direction was given to alter the scene.

While standing in the middle of Friday’s protest in Syntagma Square, Pavlos Aslanidis spoke about the death of his 26 -year -old Dimitris son in Tempi’s accident.

“I don’t know how I find the strength to endure,” he told BBC.

“My son gives me strength. Otherwise, I would not be here demanding justice.”