by Aggelos Skordas
“What would you do if it was your child”, the mother of one of the two Greek servicemen held in Turkey for 12 days after unintentionally entering the country asked Deputy Minister of National Defense Fotis Kouvelis. During a visit to the border town of Orestiada on Tuesday the Deputy Defense Minister met with the parents of the imprisoned sergeant and lieutenant who asked him to do the outmost in order to secure their sons’ release.
“We are working steadily and systematically and we will continue our efforts until our children return”, Kouvelis replied. The parents of both officers detained in high security prisons in Edirne had the second meeting with their children following their arrest on Thursday March 1. The father of the sergeant informed the Deputy Defense Minister that “the children are in good health”. Moreover, Kouvelis underlined that he completely shares the feelings of the parents and characteristically said that the situation is “hurting us all”. As he said the Greek government is doing everything in its power to secure the army officers’ immediate release.
Earlier on Tuesday, in an interview with state-run Athens Macedonian News Agency, the parents of the two servicemen said that “the prison can only restrict their movements, but it cannot diminish their dignity, their optimism, their dreams”. Moreover, they expressed their faith in justice and their belief that “the truth will be revealed. We are optimistic because the facts do not incriminate our children”.
“What matters is the immediate return of our children, who have been imprisoned for 12 days now. They know that they have done nothing wrong and that is why they are not worried, because they believe in justice and cannot be punished for something they did not do”, the parents of the officers pointed out sending a clear message to the Greek government: “We do not solicit manifestations of sympathy, but it is very important not to feel alone at this difficult time. It is important to feel that the whole country is at your side, that everyone understands our just demand that these two boys return to their families.”
