On the occasion of the tragic crime that took place in Pylos with hundreds of refugees as its victims, the Union of Salaried Lawyers organized a solidarity fight, which was happily supported by the Greek Forum of Refugees through participating alongside the team CHEERING FC, made up of refugee players from various camps (Malacca, Ritsona, Thebes, etc.).
It is important and noteworthy to actively support such initiatives and we sincerely thank the USL for the substantial interest it systematically shows in the refugee issue and the defense of human rights. The mobilization does not go unnoticed by them, on the contrary, it is highly valued by the social fabric as a whole and by refugee communities as well.
The GFR believes that football, and sports in general, are important tools that can be used to bridge cultural gaps between different populations, for the acquaintance between the people, and for their unification. Having this in mind, GFR’s football team, “GFR FC” embraced USL’s initiative, and as a result, this important match was held.
The day the match was held coincided with the tragic events of the fires which took over Greece, almost entirely. For another year, our country is surrounded by dangerous fiery conflagrations, and the provision and prompt supply of necessary equipment to deal with fires as well as prevention in general seems to be of secondary importance to the authorities. It is worth mentioning that as a union we are extremely sorry for this disaster, which unfortunately happened many times in the past, we do hope that this time was the last one and similar occasions will not be repeated. We consider the burning of terrifyingly large areas unacceptable, as they’re leading people to take the risk of possibly sacrificing themselves to the fire to save their homes, that is if they can even do so.
Our thoughts and solidarity are with them as we strongly comprehend the suffering related to losing one’s home. We hope our country and society will not experience such situations again.
