Athens: Thousands of students and teachers marched through the streets of the Greek capital of Athens on Wednesday, calling for affordable student housing and greater government investment in education, as protests over the cost of living and public services continued across Europe.
Students gathered outside Athens University and marched towards the nearby parliament building. Similar demonstrations were held in several Greek cities, including Thessaloniki in the north and the western port city of Patras.
University students demanded more government aid and free student housing to cope with rising rents and the cost of educational supplies, while high school students called for better school facilities. Teachers also pressed for higher pay. Teachers declared a strike for Wednesday, although some schools remained open.
Also Read:
The rising cost of living, including increased fuel costs, and concerns over school conditions and a lack of affordable student housing have fuelled protests across Europe. Demonstrations in France, Italy and Albania have also taken place, with violence, looting and vandalism reported in France over the weekend.
“From Greece to France, give money to education,” one banner read at the Athens protest. Others held up cardboard signs in French reading: “To study or to survive.”
Engineering student Panagiotis Moschonas, 20, criticised the conservative government for failing to adequately help students cope with the high cost of living.
“It says that it is allegedly helping students, with a rent subsidy of €120 ($135) per month. That isn't even enough for half a rent, and it's also given at the end of the year,” he said.
Police were deployed to monitor the march, with around 3,000 officers expected to oversee the demonstration. Subway stations along the route were closed, while officers conducted spot checks and searched the bags of people heading towards the protest. Shops and cafes along the route lowered their steel shutters amid concerns about possible damage.
“Today we are striking because this situation can't continue for our families, with the high costs, with us struggling to make it to the end of the month, with the situation in schools which is deteriorating exponentially year after year,” teacher Ioannis Rompas said.
(With inputs from AP via PTI & Reuters)
