One year after 28-year-old Kyriaki Griva was murdered by her ex-partner outside the Agioi Anargyroi Police Station, her family, friends, and women’s rights organizations gathered at the site to unveil a monument in her memory.
Last year Griva had gone to the police seeking protection from her ex-partner, only to be told “the patrol car is not a taxi” when she asked for an escort home. Moments later, she was fatally stabbed by the man she had repeatedly reported to authorities, on the threshold of the police station.
At the dedication of the monument on Tuesday her father, Thanasis Grivas, addressed the crowd: “No more murdered Kyriakis. Girls, lift up your heads—no so-called-man should lay a hand on you.”
At another gathering on Friday her mother, Despina Kalea, stood tearfully before the monument and sang “High Heels for Nails,” a song dedicated to victims of femicide.
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The monument, installed following a decision by the Agioi Anargyroi Kamatero Municipal Council, addresses the viewer in Kyriaki’s voice: “My name is Kyriaki Griva and I was murdered by my ex-partner Thanasis Kourelis at the Agioi Anargyroi Police Station, at 10:20 PM on April 1, 2024. At the age of 28… I worked and spent everything I earned on you and gave you everything to see you happy… and you killed me with 5 stab wounds in the back… Why Thanasis Kourelis??? What did I do to you???”
The case continues to act as a symbol of the lack of support for women facing gender-based violence in Greece.
