Prosecutor tries to revoke penalty for sit-in pupils

Supreme Court prosecutor Xeni Dimitriou yesterday asked that a Rethymno court revoke a ruling ordering 80 days of community service for three schoolchildren who were found guilty of participating in the occupation of their schools last September.

According to Dimitriou, the decision by the court is not proportionate to the alleged actions of the pupils and disregards their young age.

Dimitriou’s move was welcomed by Education Minister Costas Gavroglou, who noted that the judiciary is “a living system.” Gavroglou noted that the ministry last year overturned a law that had been in effect since 2000 which had stipulated prison sentences for schoolchildren who take part in school sit-ins.

According to the ministry, such issues should be settled by school principles and associations representing teachers and pupils’ parents, not through legal action.

In his comments to 104.9 FM, Gavroglou indicated that authorities should be cautious about excessive discipline in education. “These days, one has to be very careful as young people have their own world and different values and the important thing is not to sever channels of communication,” he said.

In a statement, the Communist Party’s youth wing, known as KNE, said, “The attempt to criminalize the struggles of pupils will fail.”