LETTER FROM ATHENS

His name was Antonis Karyotis. He was 36 years old. His name is now known throughout Greece. On September 5, the young man arrived late to the port of Piraeus to board a ship, the Blue Horizon, bound for the island of Crete. When he reached the boarding ramp, he was pushed back by a crew member, lost his balance and fell into the water. The ship continued on its way without stopping. A few minutes later, Karyotis drowned. His death was pronounced much later, when his body was taken to the Nikaia hospital near Piraeus.

The shocking scene was filmed by several passengers, who posted it on social media. The video quickly went viral, sparking deep public outrage in Greece. Other passengers' cries can be heard in these clips: They ask the crew to stop the ferry but are ignored.

The center-right daily newspaper Kathimerini reported that, according to the Piraeus coast guard's logbook, the boat's captain told them at 9:13 pm that a man had fallen overboard, without mentioning the crew's involvement. Six minutes later, help arrived on the scene, but it was already too late. At around 9:40 pm, the Piraeus port police ordered the boat to stop. The coast guard took statements from at least three passengers who described the sequence of events, and at around 10 pm, the boat turned back toward Piraeus. The captain and three other crew members were arrested by the police. They were brought before the courts and charged with homicide and accessory to murder.

The affair, which stirred the emotions of a large part of the Greek population, triggered spontaneous demonstrations in several ports served by the Blue Horizon: "Let's not get used to death," read a protester's sign. On September 13, the sailors' union called for a 24-hour strike following Karyotis's "tragic death." However, they also pointed out that "all-out accusations against all Greek sailors" made no sense, and that difficult working conditions, including regular overtime, could lead to "passenger endangerment."

Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, Greece's merchant marine minister, announced his resignation on Monday, September 11, following the outcry over his comments in the wake of the tragedy. Speaking on Open, a television channel, he had said that "there are those who mourn the victim and those who mourn the people who work to earn a wage, to live decently, and who are now accused of murder," referring to the arrested crew members. Although he asked for "forgiveness" for these remarks, which could be interpreted poorly, Varvitsiotis simultaneously insisted, when he resigned, that "in no way did I question the responsibilities of the crew and the carrier." The managing director of the Attica Group shipping company, which owns the ferry, has also resigned.

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