Greece commemorates 49th anniversary of Polytechnic uprising against junta

By Ahmet Gencturk

ANKARA (AA) – Greece on Thursday commemorated the 49th anniversary of the Polytechnic uprising that started as a massive student demonstration and quickly evolved into an anti-junta revolt.

As reported by state-run news agency AMNA, Greeks of all ages, state officials, representatives of political parties, associations, and universities came to the historical site of the Polytechnic, to pay tribute to the heroes of the uprising.

Among them was President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, who drew attention to the importance of the uprising for Greece and the Greeks.

“It symbolizes political freedom and reminds us that the struggle for democracy is constant and demanding,” she said in a statement.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in his message for the anniversary underlined the non-partisan character of the uprising.

“The Polytechnic (uprising) was a crowning moment of national uplift. Too big to fit into the small partisan expediencies that followed,” he said.

Similarly, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias asserted on Twitter that the uprising united Greeks regardless of their ideological tendencies and became one of the leading symbols of the anti-junta struggle.

Nikos Voutsis, former parliamentary speaker and senior deputy with the main opposition SYRIZA-PS party, said in an interview to Radio Kokino that the uprising is still inspiring those who fight for bread, education and freedom.

Furthermore, Dimitris Koutsoubas, general secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), said in his statement: “The messages of the uprising are timeless, they are more relevant than ever, especially today, even though various people try every year to slander the struggle of the Polytechnic.”

MeRA25, another leftist opposition party led by former Finance Minister Yannis Varoufakis, said in a statement: “49 years since the uprising of students at the Polytechnic against the junta, the slogans of the youth who saved the honor of this people, remain relevant and alive.”

The uprising began on Nov. 14, 1973, and escalated to an open revolt against the military junta, which was ruling the country since 1967.

It ended in bloodshed in the early morning of Nov. 17, after a series of events starting with a tank crashing through the gates of the Polytechnic.

At least 24 civilians were killed during the uprising.