Editorial: Marfin Bank tragedy

It has been nine years since one of the most heinous crimes in recent Greek history.

Nine years ago, reckless murderers infiltrated a crowd of enraged citizens in a protest march and threw Molotov cocktails into a bank in central Athens, killing three young people and an unborn baby.

The anniversary of this horrible event is extremely sad not only because three people and an unborn baby lost their lives – 32-year-old Angeliki Papathanasopoulou who was pregnant,  35-year-old Paraskevi Zoulia,  and 36-year-old Epameinondas Tsakalis – but because the case has never been solved.

The crime has been perpetuated because the culprits are on the loose, because such a heinous crime has not been solved, and because there was no remorse for the chilling cry at the time of the crime: “Let them burn!”

The culprits and those who purposely prevented fire trucks from approaching the burning building hid in anonymity in the crowd and remain hidden.

There were politicians who tried to explain away the crime and others simply forgot it. “No one ever died because of a Molotov cocktail,” a ruling party MP declared a month ago.

The Marfin Bank crime must not be forgotten. It constituted a public lynching of innocent people and the perpetrators must be brought to justice.

Greek society owes that to the three young people and an unborn baby who lost their lives and to their families. But above all society owes this itself because such a horror must never ever be repeated.