Tempi Victim's Father on Hunger Strike for Justice - GreekReporter.com

By Tasos Kokkinidis

Tempi Victim's Father on Hunger Strike for Justice - GreekReporter.com

Panos Ruci, the father of a 22-year-old killed in the Tempi train disaster, is in the midst of a dry hunger strike outside the Greek parliament, now in its second week. He is demanding the exhumation of his son's body, which he believes is the only way to determine the true cause of death.

Ruci's protest has gained significant public support, with hundreds visiting him daily in Athens' Syntagma Square to express solidarity and sign books of support.

The government's position is that the exhumation of a body is not a political decision or a matter that they can directly authorize. Instead, it is a formal legal procedure that must be approved by the courts or a prosecutor. This is because an exhumation is a serious step with legal, ethical, and public health implications. A court must weigh the request against legal standards, such as whether there is a compelling need for new evidence that couldn't be obtained otherwise.

Over 50 cultural and professional groups, including the National Theatre's employees' union, have issued a joint statement condemning the investigation's rushed closure. They argue that crucial evidence has been overlooked and that those responsible are being protected.

Other victims' relatives, such as Maria Karystianou, have joined the protest, emphasizing the need for toxicology tests and warning that they will appeal to European institutions if necessary. A retired citizen, Dimitris Oikonomopoulos, has also joined the hunger strike in solidarity with the victims' families.

In a Saturday interview with MEGA TV, Panos Routsi made it clear he won't give up his fight for justice. "Something unique has happened," he said, describing the outpouring of public support. "People come from everywhere all day long to hug me, to give me courage, strength. It's something I can't describe."

When asked why he's requesting his son's body be exhumed, he replied: "Because I don't believe them anymore. We've been searching for the truth for two and a half years. I'm looking for justice, and all I see are closed doors and lies. I can no longer sit with my arms crossed. I've promised my child that I will find the murderers and put them in prison."

On the night of February 28, 2023, Greece experienced its deadliest rail disaster when a passenger train and a freight train collided head-on near the Tempi Valley. The crash, which resulted in the deaths of 57 people -- many of them university students -- and injured dozens more, exposed chronic and systemic failures within the Greek railway network.

While the initial official explanation focused on "human error" by an undertrained stationmaster, subsequent investigations by victims' families and independent experts have revealed a multitude of issues, including a lack of functioning safety and signaling systems, a rushed cleanup of the crash site that may have destroyed evidence, and a controversial explosion that has raised questions about undeclared cargo.

The public outrage that followed has been immense, with sustained protests and a growing demand for a full, transparent investigation and accountability from those responsible at all levels of government and administration.

Previous articleNext article

POPULAR CATEGORY

corporate

15012

entertainment

18244

research

9076

misc

17943

wellness

15016

athletics

19393