AKEL on the anniversary of the 1973 Athens Polytechnic uprising

AKEL C.C. Press Office, 16 November 2018, Nicosia

On the forty-fifth anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising, AKEL expresses its admiration and pays tribute to all those who participated in it. AKEL honors the heroic uprising of students and the people who, with the three-day occupation of the Athens Polytechnic and the unceasing mobilizations on the streets around it, showed the way of struggle for democracy, genuine independence and dignity. The Polytechnic uprising was no accident. It was the crowning moment of the Greek people’s resistance to the fascist Junta, but also an expression of assertions that went beyond the restoration of Democracy in Greece. This was the message of the slogans conveyed for “Bread-Education-Freedom” and “National Independence”.

The Polytechnic uprising, as it became known, was brutally suppressed by the Junta. The fascist colonels sent in the tanks against the struggling people. The dead of the uprising, whom the fascist apologists want to erase from the recording of the events, contributed to the beginning of the end of the seven-year junta; an end that unfortunately came about as a result of the completion of the betrayal committed against Cyprus and its people.

Forty-five years later, the Polytechnic’s messages continue to be relevant. The Polytechnic continues – today too – to express the need to struggle for freedom, peace, democracy and social justice.

At the same time, the memory of the Polytechnic is associated with the memory of the crimes committed by fascism against Cyprus. The betrayal of Cyprus by the Greek Junta and its representatives here, namely EOKA B and Grivas, will remain a monument of shame, but also vigilance. It will remain a monument demonstrating the decisive role NATO and imperialism played in the destruction of Cyprus.

AKEL honors the heroic dead of the Polytechnic uprising, who watered the tree of freedom, democracy and progress with the blood they shed. We address a warm greeting to the Greek people and express our support and solidarity with its struggles. May the heroic Polytechnic uprising and its ideals be a source of inspiration for the people of Cyprus and all the struggling peoples throughout the world.