The massive demonstration for the victims of the Tempe tragedy in Thessaloniki has been completed. Hundreds of thousands filled the centre of the city from early in the morning gathering at the Venizelos statue, demanding justice for the 57 victims of the Tempe railway disaster.

“This is a day of remembrance and struggle for justice. Many survivors are traumatised. Our mourning is the mourning of the entire nation,” said Eleni Vassara, the mother of a victim, who called for a “full investigation and clarification of the circumstances and causes of the accident,” the attribution of responsibility “to both the direct and moral perpetrators,” as well as the “condemnation of the politicians who brought the railway to this state,” calling for “justice for the victims” and “a safe railway.”

“The crime at Tempe will not be forgotten,” stated Philippos Lazaridis, a representative of the Beta CAE Workers’ Union and colleague of a victim of the Tempe railway disaster.

“We will pursue this to the end. We will not stop until all the direct and moral perpetrators are held accountable. It’s not only individuals, but also the policies that brought the railway to this state,” he added.

“We lost eleven colleagues—railway workers from across the sector. Fifty-seven families shattered, loved ones vanished. And we, the workers, were left fewer,” said Nikos Tsaklidis, an employee of Hellenic Train and relative of a victim.

Demonstrators packed Aristotelous Square, Egnatia, and surrounding streets before marching towards the New Railway Station, where some staged a sit-in protest, while others moved towards Kamara, where minor clashes erupted.

Read the timeline of the Tempe case here

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