The Greek police chief has been sacked after clashes and increased violence between officers and protesters over a serious train accident on Feb. 28, the Greek government announced this Saturday.
According to the office of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Konstantinos Skumas was fired less than two months after he was confirmed in this position.
The removal came after police were criticized for their handling of protests that erupted after an accident in which two trains collided near the city of Larisa, killing 57 people.
“Let’s learn from our mistakes,” Mitsotakis said during a campaign trip to Athens on Saturday. “A mistake only becomes a mistake if it is repeated,” he added.
According to the Greek government, the appointment of a new police chief “aims to better implement the operational plans of the modern police in relation to the security of citizens.”
During the latest demonstration, which took place on Thursday, police riot police beat up peaceful demonstrators in Syntagma Square in central Athens.
A few hours later, a police tow truck drove up to a group of protesters who were trying to block the capital’s street with containers, knocking one of them to the ground.
The railroad disaster sparked weeks of protests, some of which were violent, putting pressure on Mitsotakis’ conservative government as elections are scheduled for May.
The transport minister resigned after the disaster. The stationmaster on duty at the time of the crash and three other railroad workers have been charged and face lengthy jail terms.
Unions have long warned of the shortcomings of Greek railways, describing a network that is underfunded, understaffed and accident-prone after a decade of cost cuts and funding.
Acting transport minister Georgios Gerapetritis said that rail traffic, suspended after the accident, will gradually resume from March 22, with full normalization by April 16.
He also suggested that by the end of September, automated security systems would be installed on the railway tracks.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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