Police will enter campus if requested
If the rector’s office requests it, police will send forces to the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki to ensure that the works for the construction of the library are completed without any problems, a senior ranking officer told Kathimerini on Monday.
Early on Sunday, unknown vandals wreaked havoc in an area where a library and classrooms are to be built. In response, the leadership of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki has declared its determination to complete the project without delay, within the contractual obligations undertaken by the institution.
A senior Hellenic Police official clarified that until the afternoon hours of Monday, there had been no relevant request from the university’s administration.
“However,” he added, “care must be taken to ensure that access to the space at night is completely controlled.”
For his part, Civil Protection Minister Takis Theodorikakos stressed to Skai Radio on Monday that “the police will enter with the contractor and will remain there until the construction of the library is completed.” At the same time an investigation is under way to find the perpetrators of the vandalism.
Tension and incidents at the university started before the Easter holidays, after the decision of the senate to build a library in a space inside the university that had been under occupation for a number of years.
The first phase of the work was completed in the presence of riot police units due to the reaction of a portion of students who opposed the conversion of a space which had operated for more than 30 years as a “self-managed hangout.”
During Easter Week, two students, aged 23 and 25, were arrested for disturbing the peace and damaging property during altercations with the police. Tension also prevailed after the Easter holidays, with riot units blocking students’ access to the School of Physical Sciences.
