President's message on 39th anniversary of democracy's restoration

President of the Republic Karolos Papoulias, commemorating the 39th anniversary of the restoration of democracy and the fall of the junta, on Wednesday laid a wreath at Eleftheria (Freedom) Park, the site of the former military police EAT-ESA headquarters where hundreds of people were being tortured during the seven-year dictatorship in Greece.

In a message for the anniversary, President Papoulias underlined that "the crisis makes the recognition of the value of democracy an imperative," adding that dmocracy "is a conquest that needs to be constantly defended".

The country's development was violently interrupted mainly because it was based on unstable foundations and now the crisis has taken up political, institutional and cultural characteristics, a “tornado that has swept up everything in its path”, he underlined.

“A battle is fought to ensure financial self sufficiency, which is a precondition for national dignity and social justice but, at the same time, it is also a battle to defend democracy,” President Papoulias said, noting that “hatred and violence are not a solution or a response, they are the darkest part of the problem”.

President Papoulias concluded that everybody's thoughts should be with Cyprus which remains divided 39 years after the invasion and now it is tested by another crisis which, under no circumstances, will affect the protection of national interests.

Source: Athens News Agency