“There was no reason for the government to bring such an amendment, we respect the Unknown Soldier memorial”, declared Ilias Papangelis, father of Anastasia, one of the victims of the Tempi train crash on Parapolitika 90.1. Speaking on the “First Morning” show with journalist Alexandros Klossa, he emphasized that the government doesn’t want to hear the protests about Tempi, it wants people to forget what happened with Tempi. When asked if they would maintain the victims’ names in Syntagma Square, he stressed that “if the process continues as it’s progressing now with shortcomings and with the government’s aim to make everything misdemeanors and minor offenses, of course we will go and maintain them even if they send us to prison”.
Unknown Soldier memorial: “Government had no reason to bring such amendment” says Tempi victim’s father on Parapolitika 90.1
Specifically, Ilias Papangelis, initially, regarding the amendment for protecting the Unknown Soldier memorial emphasized that: “There was no reason for the government to bring such an amendment, we respect and all the Greek people respect the Unknown Soldier memorial. There is no Greek family that hasn’t lost one of their own in the wars our country fought. My grandfather was a prisoner of war for four years in Asia Minor and my father was a soldier for four years, so we all absolutely respect the memorial. Where the ‘protest garden’ is located is not at the Unknown Soldier, it’s in Syntagma Square. Syntagma Square has served this role for many years, all our nation’s protests take place there to be heard by those in power. The current government doesn’t want to hear the protest about Tempi, a completely justified protest. The government wants people to forget what happened with Tempi”. He added that: “All protests by the Greek people since the Greek state was established take place at this location – I don’t understand why the Tempi case is bothering them now. Let them operate lawfully and justly and this will dissolve by itself the next day”.
“We will maintain them even if they send us to prison”
When asked if they would let the names of the Tempi victims fade and disappear from Syntagma Square, Mr. Papangelis said: “If the process continues as it’s progressing now with shortcomings and with the government’s targeting to make everything misdemeanors and minor offenses in a criminal tragedy of 57 young people who lost their lives unjustly, of course we will go and maintain them even if they send us to prison. Let them accept our demands, complete the investigation with everything that’s missing and then gradually we too will leave it to the flow of time to fade. But if they continue the tactics they’ve been operating with until today, we won’t leave it. People must remember, people must see the injustice that’s happening”. He added that: “We want the pre-trial procedure to be enriched with all our questions, with conclusions to go to a fair trial. They want to take us to a routine trial, fast track like Mandra, Mati were. Come on, 5-3 years each to finish, we won’t allow it. Our children don’t let us do that”.
Finally, when asked if he believes justice will be served from the trial, Mr. Papangelis said: “We already know who is responsible. The government doesn’t want to touch the big shots, the major political figures, the major businessmen of the railway construction companies. They delayed the projects, they blackmailed and urged the OSE and GAIAOSE acceptance committees to say that the projects are fine or when they’re not fine that it’s the state’s fault and not theirs, and the state paid compensation. These issues are not being touched in this trial that’s about to start, so what are we going to do there? My suggestion is that we don’t go at all if they continue like this”.
