Amid cries of “murderers”, more than 5,000 angry Greeks demonstrated outside the railway headquarters in Athens on Friday in memory of the 57 people killed in Tuesday’s train collision, with other cities across the country – which have been mourning for three days – being the scene of were demonstrations.
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The invective was painted in red letters on the windows of Greek railway company Hellenic Train, which has been blamed for numerous neglects and shortcomings that led to the disaster, which authorities have labeled a “national tragedy” and angering Greece, an AFP noted -Journalist.
Demonstrations of 700 and 500 people respectively gathered in Larissa, the city in the center of the country closest to the scene of the accident, and in Patras, a university town in the Peloponnese (southwest), police said.
In the Greek capital, demonstrators, who also unfurled a huge black banner, had previously held a minute’s silence in front of the parliament.
The gatherings were held under the motto “We mourn our dead, we ask for the truth”.
Most universities remained closed on Friday, while protesters in Athens waved black balloons to commemorate those killed, according to student union president Angelos Thomopoulos.
“This crime must not be hidden under the carpet” or even “message me when you arrive” proclaim signs in the procession outside Parliament, echoing the testimony of a mother whose child was killed.
Greeks, upset by the disaster, are demanding accountability for the “chronic” rail network failures that led to the accident, despite the government’s mea culpa.
On Friday morning, the Greek police searched the Larissa station to look for the causes of the tragedy.
“What happened is shameful,” Maria Psachelis let herself be carried away in the procession with tears in her eyes. “I am very moved (…) I also have a student child who has made this journey,” she added.
“We are filled with anger and cannot accept that such a tragic event could occur in 2023 that would result in the deaths of dozens of people, including many fellow students,” said Angelos Thomopoulos.
“We are taking to the streets today (…) to demand that we take responsibility so that nothing is covered up or covered up in this tragedy,” he added.
Two new demonstrations are also planned for Friday evening in Athens and Thessaloniki, the country’s second largest city, where many of the victims were studying.
The railway workers have also been called to strike for the second day in a row. The federation of railway unions denounces “the lack of respect that governments have shown towards Greek railways over time that has led to this drama”.
According to a legal source, the ongoing investigation aims to “possibly initiate criminal proceedings against members of the management of the Hellenic Train company”.
She confirmed that at the Larissa station, “audio files, documents and other evidence that could help clarify the case and assign criminal responsibility” were seized.
“Indescribable Tragedy”
The judiciary and the population want to understand why a train with 342 passengers and ten railway workers has received permission to use the same single-track track as a freight convoy.
The trains traveled several kilometers on the same track connecting Athens with Thessaloniki (north), the country’s two largest cities, before colliding head-on just before midnight on Tuesday.
“Why does Greece only learn from the tragedies?” asks the front page of the left-leaning newspaper Ta Nea on Friday.
In Thessaloniki, the country’s second largest city, around 2,000 demonstrators protested on Thursday, venting their anger with stone-throwing and Molotov cocktails.
In court, the station manager, 59, accused of “negligent manslaughter” and “bodily harm” admitted his “error”. He faces a life sentence if proven guilty.
Media outlets, including public broadcaster ERT, have highlighted his inexperience, saying he was appointed to the post just 40 days ago after a stint at the Ministry of Education and three months of training.
alarm bell
The trains did not run on Thursday after the railway unions called for a strike.
“Unfortunately, our constant demands for more permanent staff, better training, but above all for the introduction of modern security technologies have finally been thrown in the trash,” complained these organizations.
The President of the Train Drivers’ Union OSE, Kostas Genidounias, highlighted the safety violations on the line in question.
“Everything (signalling) is done manually. The systems haven’t worked since the year 2000,” he said.
Union representatives at the Hellenic Train railway company sounded the alarm three weeks ago.
“We will not wait for the accident to happen to see those responsible shed crocodile tears,” they warned.
Hellenic Train was bought by Italian public group Ferrovie Dello Stato Italiane (FS) in 2017 as part of the privatization program demanded by Greece’s creditors during the economic crisis (2009-2018).