Transport, Communications and Works Minister Evanthia Tsolaki said that safety in transport, and particularly in aviation, is not a technical detail but the state's “first and non-negotiable obligation” during a memorial service for the victims of the Helios air disaster of 14 August 2005.
The annual memorial was held at the Metropolitan Church of Saint George in Paralimni, hometown of many of the disaster's 121 victims, and was led by Metropolitan Vasileios of Constantia and Famagusta.
Tsolaki delivered the memorial address and laid a wreath on behalf of President Nikos Christodoulides.
In her speech, she described 14 August 2005 as one of the darkest days in Cyprus' modern history, noting that what began as an ordinary flight turned into an unspeakable tragedy.
She made special reference to the victims' families, saying that for those who lost loved ones, the passing of time is not measured in dates.
Rather, she said, it is measured by the empty seats at the table, the voices that are missing, celebrations that are never the same, and the moments their loved ones should have lived but never did.
The minister stressed that the state's presence at the memorial was not merely ceremonial but a duty owed to the victims' families.
Their pain, she said, is neither private nor forgotten, but forms part of Cyprus' collective memory.
Tsolaki also highlighted the need to link remembrance of the tragedy with the state's responsibility for aviation safety.
“In the field of transport, and especially in aviation, safety is not a technical detail but the first and non-negotiable obligation.”
