Greece: Government under pressure due to train accident investigation

The train accident in March 2023 with 57 deaths continues to concern Greece to this day: criticism of the accident investigation continues, the government has to face accusations of a cover-up – and now a vote of no confidence.

The station master who says via radio to a train driver: “You can drive, you can drive” and thus sends two trains onto a track – which then collide head-on. This audio recording was released a few hours after the train accident on March 1, 2023 – a piece of evidence that is apparently not evidence at all.

Since then, the Greek government has repeatedly referred to “human error” on the part of railway staff. But maybe everything was completely different? Journalist Vasilis Lambropoulos from the daily newspaper “To Vima” now reports that the audio recording was fake. Because it’s supposed to be a compilation in which the station master talks to a train that wasn’t involved in the accident.

Now there is an accusation that someone intentionally changed the sound file. “This audio montage apparently served to cover up political responsibility by further underscoring the stationmaster’s failure,” says Lambropoulos.

Relatives believe there is a cover-up

For parts of the opposition in the Greek parliament, this is reason enough to now raise a vote of no confidence in the government. And relatives like Maria Karistianou, who lost her daughter in the accident, believe in a system. For them, it is no coincidence that the accident site was quickly paved over before DNA traces could be secured from all the victims. “The crime should be covered up in an organized manner. Only professionals are capable of this,” says Karistianou. It’s terrible for the relatives. “The thing about the audio file speaks even more that the whole truth has to come to light. That everyone, from the top to the bottom, must be punished for this crime.”

Greece’s government describes the new allegations as “groundless.” Most recently, on the first anniversary of the accident, Mitsotakis underlined his desire to investigate: A parliamentary committee of inquiry had questioned dozens of witnesses, with hundreds of pieces of evidence.

“The justice system will bring light into the darkness, just as we all want,” he promised. “Progress is already progressing quickly and comprehensively. The first people will soon be held accountable. I have every confidence that the justice system will do justice to the case.”

EUPublic prosecutor determined

Several railway and government employees are accused and some are in custody. However, relatives and experts see complicity in those responsible for politics: EU funds for security technology were officially invested. But at the time of the accident, the digital control had apparently stopped working for a long time.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office headed by Laura Kövesi has intervened and is investigating embezzlement. However, it cannot investigate politicians directly – such as former transport ministers. This is entirely a matter for Greece.

“The accident would never have happened if the projects had been implemented. But we are literally blocked in our investigation,” says Kövesi. “And that’s why we can’t find out the truth. To do this, the Greek constitution would have to be changed.”

In an online petition, 1.4 million Greeks are now demanding that the immunity of ministers and ex-ministers be lifted. So far, this has failed in parliament, in which Mitsotakis’ party holds an absolute majority. The vote of no confidence will probably have little effect on him.