“At no time in more than two years was there any question of identifying the bodies of the victims in Tempi,” Justice Minister Giorgos Florides said Tuesday morning, explaining that hunger striker Panos Rouchi “did not submit a request earlier that had been rejected.”

“He sent the out-of-court letter with his demands, and at the same time, he started a hunger strike. No judicial body was seized that rejected his request,” Florides explained.

“There is an impression in the world that there is a refusal to have an exhumation. From where? By whom? Rutsi’s exhumation letter, which states what has been done, ends without a request for an exhumation for identification. They are asking for an exhumation to determine if there is a chemical, not if it is the child of the person on hunger strike. The Supreme Court prosecutor in his statement yesterday, said there is no request to determine if it is the child. But he says that two things can be done: either a request for exhumation or the appeals prosecutor can interpret,” Florides told SKAI radio.

“If such a clean request is submitte,d then we will see said the Supreme Court prosecutor, it means that possibly an exhumation can be ordered for identification. The impression has been created that a request has been made and someone is denying it. The prosecutor and the judges of the Supreme Court say that on the issue of allowing exhumation for chemical substance calibration because the interrogation has been closed and there is no longer an investigator and the prosecutor has forwarded the proposal to the president of the Larissa appeals court because at some point justice must be done through the judiciary, then the only competent person is the president of the Larissa appeals court”

“If the prosecutor finds that there is no request, he cannot rule because there is no request. If it is submitted, as the prosecutor of the Supreme Court says, it will be answered immediately. If a request is made to determine that it is indeed this child, then a separate proceeding is opened. This procedure does not impede the progress of the trial,” the Justice Minister explained

“A request that may be many afterwards to see if the bodies buried are their people, the satisfaction of this request is another process that does not affect the progress of the trial,” he added in this regard.

“The judiciary – the presiding judge of the appellate courts- will decide whether this request can be granted. Such requests to investigate whether there are chemicals have been made twice and have been rejected by both the investigating magistrate and the appellate council because exhumation is sought to do an investigative act, but based on the reports, there are no chemicals/illegal cargo. A request linked to these has no background because the xylolite scam funded by Greece and abroad was shot down,” Florides added.

In this context, he described it as “a lie that the government could do something, and now it has thrown up its stern. The government has no right to decide on these demands.” He reiterated that “the judiciary is waiting to see if there is a request for identification and will decide on it. The president of the appeals court of Larissa will decide on the request for chemicals.”

As he noted, “the announcement of the Supreme Court says that efforts have been made by circles not to close the inquiry and constantly submit unlikely things and provide political fuel to those who want to exploit the tragedy of Tempe politically. Assuming that the president of the Larissa Appeals Court accepts the request for an extraordinary to look at chemical substances, then this means that the interrogation is reopened.”

“The Supreme Court also points out that if delays continue, misdemeanors may be barred. It also says that there is a suggestive rumour that if some requests are not met, these are lost forever. The Supreme Court says that any complaints about deficiencies in the interrogation can be raised when the trial starts, and it can rule on everything, e.g., supplementary interrogation. Thus, no right is lost,” the Justice Minister added.

“Speaking from the side of society and relatives, everyone is saying that the case should be brought to justice and decided by the court. If by any chance we get new extensions as some are desperately trying to do, at some point society will explode and rightly so, and say this trial may be happening. While there was an inquest with 70,000 pages, expert reports from the best, autopsy reports, reports from the fire brigade and the police, statements from the defendants, in these years, there has not been a request that has not been considered.”