Three years have passed today since the railway disaster that occurred in 2023 at Tempi, resulting in 57 people losing their lives, with over 100 gatherings taking place in Greece and abroad. Strikes, marches and rallies “paralyzed” the country, as massive demonstrations took place at Syntagma Square and central Thessaloniki, while gatherings were organized by associations, citizens and students in every corner of Greece. Changes were implemented in public transportation schedules, with modifications to Metro, tram and bus routes.
In Athens and Thessaloniki, the gatherings were scheduled for 12:00, with thousands of people of all ages arriving to honor the memory of the 57 victims. Pre-gatherings took place an hour earlier at Omonia and Propylaea squares.
Tempi: Tens of thousands honor victims of the disaster – parapolitika.gr cameras at Syntagma Square
The parapolitika.gr camera was present early at Syntagma Square. “We need to realize that we could have been on that train and perhaps such an incident could happen again, and we must not allow it to occur,” a young person from “Until the End” is heard saying to the parapolitika.gr camera. “It’s really sad that anyone of us could have been on that train, as we all keep saying – me, you, your parent, your friend, your relative,” emphasizes a demonstrator.
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Early in the morning, Panos Routsi, father of young Denis who lost his life at Tempi, arrived at Syntagma Square, along with Ilias Papangelis, Pavlos Aslanidis, and Maria Karystianos, accompanied by her lawyer, Maria Gratsia.
Routsi: “We are here after three years of pain, exhumations will reveal what they are hiding”
Arriving at the gathering site, Panos Routsi said: “We are here again after three years. After three years of pain, anger, and today once again we will prove that we are united, that we will not give up until we find justice for our children, our people. The exhumation issue is the most crucial part that will reveal everything they have been hiding for three years now. That’s why they don’t want exhumations to happen. We will insist and in the end we will prove that the state kills. I constantly see obstacles and this will be shown today too, whether they will let us peacefully hold our gathering.”
Mirela Routsi: “They declared war on us, they mock us, we will all fight to put them in prison”
A particularly charged statement was made by Mirela Routsi, mother of the tragically lost Denis. “Three years for us feel like three hours, three minutes, as if it was yesterday. Every day now we don’t have a struggle, we have an open war. A war they declared with their attitude, their behavior. They treat us like nothing. They mock us before our eyes,” she initially stated and added: “We will be here, every day, all of us, and we will fight for our children. All of us have strength, the struggle now begins, because the trials are now ahead of us. We are ready, because they are not just trials, they are rigged trials. The proper charges don’t exist. […] We will all fight to put them in prison. It’s unacceptable that here, three years now, everyone is living their lives freely, unaffected, and they continue as if nothing happened. The message I want to send is that we need to be strong as a society. Because it’s not just Tempi, it’s how they manage us as a society, as people. We need to be strong, upright and fight for our rights.”
Pavlos Aslanidis: “We demand justice”
“We demand justice, because there is no future, democracy, homeland without justice. We demand that full light be shed on the crime that cost so many innocent lives,” emphasized the president of the Tempi Association, Pavlos Aslanidis, in his speech to the gathered crowd.
