Greek nationals in Cardiff and across the UK have taken to the streets, joining Greek communities around the world to demand justice and accountability on the second anniversary of a railway disaster that claimed 57 lives and injured dozens.
The protest in Athens, Greece was the largest as hundreds of thousands of protestors gathered to commemorate one of the deadliest railway accidents in Europe.
Two years ago, a passenger train carrying 352 people collided with a freight train in the south of the Tempe Valleys in Greece. A massive explosion followed which has raised concerns about the cargo in the freight train.
Panoraia Kalapostarakou, 40, one of the organisers of the protest in Cardiff said the train was carrying illegal cargo. “There was a huge explosion that didn’t make sense when trains collide”.
She also expressed concerns about a potential cover-up by the Greek government. “There has been an attempt by the government allegedly to cover up the crime. It (the collision) hasn’t been served any justice. The families of the victims are trying to find out, but they can’t find anything.”
The Greek Solidarity Network UK is the organisation responsible for organising the protests throughout the UK. In a memorandum provided at the demonstration, the network accuses the investigators of altering the crash site, throwing away blood samples of the victims, and they question the deaths of two key witnesses. The organisations is demanding the Greek government and others implicated be held accountable.
Kalapostarakou had a strong message for the Greek government saying they would not be silenced. “We are not afraid of them. They should lose their sleep not us.”
A list of the 57 people who lost their lives in the collision was read out loud to the sombre Cardiff crowd, who responded with “I am here” after each name – a gesture to show solidarity with the families and victims of the collision.
Gerasimos Spyratos, 18, a student at Cardiff University called out the Greek government for its failure to protect its people. “We like to believe that we live in the 21 century an era of freedom, progress and justice. But what good is this progress if it does not extend to the most fundamental duty of governance, ensuring the safety of citizens.”
The Greek Solidarity Network UK blames the train crash on governmental failings such as corruption and privatisation. In 2017 the Greek government sold off the state-owned railway system to a private owner, Hellenic Train.
The protestors and supporters say this tragedy exposes a system that prioritizes profit over people something the Greek government denies. Joao Felix, a member of the National Teachers Union who attended the protest in solidary with the Greek community said, “the way that they protect their profits is harmful to us the working class.”
“We cannot stand by when people are dying just to increase the profits and cover up the malfeasance of companies and governments.” he added.
Hellenic Train is still under investigation two years after the accident. In response to mounting pressure, the company issued an official statement stating that they had provided all required data to the relevant authorities and had responded to every related inquiry.
The mass protests have also intensified pressure on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, whose government faced and survived a vote of no confidence on Friday.
The judicial investigation into the train crash is still in progress. Mitsotakis has urged the public to trust the judicial investigation in a social media post in response to the ongoing protests.