Greece's Minister of Maritime Transport, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, announced on Monday his resignation following the scandal over the death of a passenger of a ship, who was pushed into the water by crew members in the largest port of Athens on September 5. The death of the Greek passenger, Antonis Karyotis, was recorded by security cameras and passengers of the vessel. The footage shows Karyotis trying to get into the boat as the crew was about to lift the ramp to leave for the island of Crete. Two workers dragged him to the dock. The passenger tried to enter again and was pushed as the ship departed, falling into the waters agitated by the propellers of the boat. Despite the alarm of several passengers, the crew made no effort to rescue Karyotis and continued sailing for an hour, until they were ordered to return back to port. The victim was rescued unconscious at the port but died minutes later. The autopsy revealed that the cause of death was drowning.

The Greek Prosecutor's Office has filed charges of "homicide" and "violating navigation regulations" against the captain of the boat and "complicity" against the crew who pushed the passenger, according to state broadcaster ERT. The ship's captain stated that he followed the regulations and that he alerted the Coast Guard when he learned of the incident. The crew members assumed during their testimony what happened, although they did not accept the charges against them.

Transport Minister Varvitsiotis expressed "shock, horror and sadness." However, his statement to the press, in which he equated the victim with the workers who did not help her, has caused a social scandal that has led to his resignation. "Today there are people who are mourning the unjust losses, but also the families of those who went to earn a wage and are now accused of murder," he said, referring to the crew members charged. Varvitsiotis will be replaced by Christo Stylianidis, who was Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection during the previous government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

The incident initially went unnoticed by the floods that the country has suffered since last week, in which 15 people have died and more than 4,000 have been evacuated. However, videos of the incident have circulated on social networks creating great social outrage, which has led to resignations and dismissals beyond the government. Two senior officials of the Piraeus port authority were dismissed on Thursday on the orders of the transport ministry, while the CEO of the Attica group, owner of the Blue Star Ferries chain of ships, has also resigned.

It is not the first time that Blue Star Ferries has been involved in a controversy for negligence. Last January, an investigation into push-backs of migrants revealed that the company had locked hundreds of migrants in metal boxes and tied up in the hold on tourist boats from Italy to Greece.

The incident at the port of Athens has also sparked outrage among shipworkers. The PNO union has organized a strike next Wednesday "on the occasion of the repulsive incident" and to demand better working and safety conditions. The union alleges that crew members are overworked and that sailing schedules are "unreasonable."

  • Greece