Recently we observed the second anniversary of the Tempe rail disaster in which 57 people lost their lives and 81 were seriously injured. Many of the passengers on that fateful trip were university students returning to Thessaloniki after a break. Such a tragic loss of lives.
Many, particularly families and friends, remain
angry and frustrated that no substantial progress in investigating causes has
been made. They want to know why the train was travelling on the wrong line,
thus causing a head-on collision with another oncoming train. There was also a
huge explosion – as yet unexplained - which meant some met with a horrific
death, being burned alive. Conspiracy theories abound and, sadly, the whole
issue has become horribly politicised. There is, understandably, a great loss of
trust in the official institutions.
Hundreds of
thousands, in Greece and globally, have congregated in major cities to express
their solidarity with the victims’ families, honour the victims’ memory and to
exert pressure on the authorities to deal with the issue, to come up with
substantial findings and to mete out the
appropriate punishment to those responsible.
As our
outgoing President of the Hellenic Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, said:
‘Two
years later, the demand for truth, accountability and justice is universal and
of fundamental importance for our state.’
I marked
the sad event and these emotions with the following poem:
Remembering
with Reverence
The day
dawned damp,
Mati
memories mingled with Tembi tears.
A pall
smothering the city
Expressing
its compound sorrow.
Tragedies
following inept operators,
Unaccountable
decision-making, inadequate systems –
They
should have returned
They
should have returned.
May they
be remembered with respect and dignity
Assemblies
unsullied by polemic,
Political point-scoring and syndicated
agendas.
We march
into the future
With
hopes for a brighter, safer future.
In quiet
contemplation for those who have gone
May
their souls rest in peace!
