Thousands of people protested on Sunday against safety deficiencies in Greece’s railway network nearly two weeks after 57 people were killed in the country’s deadliest train crash.
According to Greek police, over 8,000 people gathered outside Parliament in Athens on Sunday, demanding punishment for those responsible for the train crash.
The protesters later marched to the offices of privatised train operator Hellenic Train. The company isn’t responsible for the maintenance of the railway network. State-owned Hellenic Railways is in charge of upkeep.
In Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city, about 5,000 people demonstrated, listened to speeches and shouted slogans such as “we will be the voice for all the dead.”
These protests come as the Greek government announced on Friday that the immediate relatives of people killed in the Tempi train crash will receive a special pension.
According to Ekathimerini, the special pension will be paid to the spouse and children of the deceased or, in the absence of a spouse and children, to the parents of the deceased.
The tax-free allowance will be paid retroactively from March 1, regardless of other income or pension being received by the beneficiary. The special pension will amount to four times the national pension.
In addition, all tax and social insurance debts of the immediate relatives of the deceased (parents, spouses or children), as well as those of people left with a 50% disability as a result of the disaster, are being written off.
Source: AP News.
