Athens Mayor Haris Doukas announced the municipality’s intention to take legal action following the passage of an amendment transferring responsibility for the maintenance and cleaning of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to the Ministry of National Defense, which will be able to assign related services to private contractors.

“Mr. Marinakis confirmed that, under the well-known amendment, the responsibility for cleaning the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier now belongs to the Ministry of National Defense and will be assigned to private companies. Naturally, the City of Athens will appeal to the competent courts, based on Article 102 of the Constitution,” stated Mayor Doukas.

Doukas’s statement comes amid an ongoing public dispute with government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis, who accused the mayor of “not behaving as a mayor” regarding the monument. Doukas responded yesterday with a post featuring a photo alongside relatives of the Tempi train crash victims, emphasizing that “the fight for justice continues.”

Speaking Friday morning on Action 24, Marinakis remarked that “the key point lies in the Ministry of Defense’s latest statement on how it will oversee the cleaning and enhancement of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. In the short term, the Hellenic Police must ensure the enforcement of order and prevent any so-called ‘activist’ from attempting to obstruct its implementation,” he added.

Ministry of Defense: No degradation of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier will be allowed

Shortly afterward, the Ministry of National Defense issued its own statement, stressing that it will not allow any diminishment of the monument’s dignity:

“Following recent public discussion, the Ministry of National Defense emphasizes that it will not allow any form of degradation of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It will take all necessary measures to ensure this and will not revisit the matter.”

A barrage of statements over the monument’s cleaning responsibilities

In recent hours, the implementation of the new law regarding the monument’s cleaning has sparked a flurry of announcements between Defense Minister Nikos Dendias and Athens Mayor Haris Doukas.

Yesterday morning (October 23), the two officials met at the Ministry of Defense—along with Minister of Citizen Protection Michalis Chrysochoidis—following an invitation from Dendias to discuss coordination between the relevant authorities after the amendment’s passage.

“The purpose of the meeting was to coordinate the legal responsibilities of the City of Athens and the Ministry of Citizen Protection concerning the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier,” the Ministry of Defense initially stated.

Following the meeting, Doukas posted online wishing the government “good luck,” reiterating his stance that, based on the Prime Minister’s statements in Parliament and the recently passed amendment, the responsibility for the monument and its surroundings now lies solely with the government.

A few hours later, as the “war of statements” between the two sides continued, the Ministry of Defense announced that it “will proceed with outsourcing the cleaning of the area to a private contractor (i.e., a cleaning company) for as long as necessary.”

This decision was based on the acknowledgment that, under Article 102 of the Constitution and by law, the exclusive responsibility for cleaning lies with Local Government, and in this specific case, with the Municipality of Athens, which is responsible for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

“Following the public statement of the Mayor of Athens that, in his view, ‘responsibility for the Monument lies exclusively with the Government,’ the Ministry of National Defense cannot allow the degradation of this site of memory and honor for those who fought for the Nation and the Homeland,” the Pentagon stated, adding:
“Therefore, it will proceed with outsourcing the cleaning of the area to a third party, for as long as necessary.”

As Defense Minister Nikos Dendias had recently stressed,

“Respect for the fallen of the National Struggles and for our History is a collective duty and responsibility shared by all of us.”

However, Haris Doukas maintains a different view on the matter, pointing out that the outcome of this “paper war” shows there is now a new law in force. He argues that the word “care” (φροντίδα) in the amendment — co-signed by seven ministers, including Dendias — refers to the monument’s cleaning.

“Yesterday, the government introduced and passed an amendment assigning the care — and therefore the cleaning — of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier’s area to the Ministry of National Defense,”
Doukas insisted in his late-night statement, adding:
“Today, the Ministry of Defense informs us that, under Article 102 of the Constitution, the exclusive responsibility for cleaning belongs to the Municipality of Athens. You can draw your own conclusions. Unfortunately, the respect due to the Monument is still being sought…”

In a separate statement, the Ministry of Defense responded sharply to the mayor, opening with the ironic remark:

“Heaven forbid that cleaning should fall within the constitutional mission of the Armed Forces!”

Referring to the municipality’s announcement, the ministry emphasized what it described as the obvious:

“By law, the Ministry’s responsibility for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier consists of ensuring that it fulfills the purpose for which it was established. Cleaning, according to Article 102 of the Constitution, is a local matter and lies exclusively within the competence of the municipal authority. Heaven forbid that cleaning should fall within the constitutional mission of the Armed Forces! Their mission is entirely different.”