Pupils at Vergina Lyceum in Larnaca face penalties after the Ministry of Education launched an investigation into disturbing photos showing them performing Nazi salutes and drawing swastikas in their school environment.
According to Giorgos Koutsides, deputy director of Secondary Education, the ministry was informed of the situation yesterday, and steps are being taken to address it. “It was a reckless action by the pupils. The director said he knows who they are and will call them to his office to impose penalties,” Koutsides stated.
These actions, including the posting of images on social media, have raised serious concerns among the community. The final-year students reportedly created social media accounts to disseminate Nazi ideology, including an Instagram account named “Verginazi,” which has drawn attention for its troubling content.
Complaints from various sources indicate that the pupils not only performed Nazi salutes but also defaced school property with swastikas. In one alarming incident, they altered a sign placed by activists, originally aimed at honouring a Jewish tree-planting event, by erasing the word “children” and replacing it with a Nazi symbol.
Koutsides confirmed that the posts reflect personal publications by the pupils made on different occasions. When asked whether the Ministry of Education would intervene for educational purposes, he affirmed that the ministry’s provincial officer will visit the school to assess the situation. “We will see if it’s an isolated incident,” he added.
Kostas Kosta, president of the organised parents association in the Larnaca district, expressed his dismay at the behaviour of the pupils. “As parents, we are clear and consider these incidents unthinkable. Anything that refers to the Nazi past and particularly symbols connected to the murder of millions of people, we condemn,” Kosta said.
He further emphasised, “Ideologies of hatred have no place in schools,” urging the Ministry of Education to take decisive action. The parents’ association is keen to ensure that such ideologies do not find a foothold in educational environments.
The political party AKEL Larnaca also condemned the actions of the students, stating that these incidents cannot be dismissed as mere bravado. In a statement, they labelled the actions as manifestations of a dangerous intolerant ideology that has no place in schools or society. They called for an immediate and thorough investigation, insisting on substantial measures from the Ministry of Education and the school administration.
AKEL stressed the importance of teaching respect and denouncing hatred in schools, asserting, “Fascism and Nazism have no place in education, youth, and democracy.” The events at Vergina Lyceum have sparked a broader conversation about the responsibilities of educational institutions in countering extremist ideologies.