On Wednesday, around 10,000 protesters, including secondary school pupils and university students, gathered peacefully in central Athens and its suburbs, according to Greek police. Marches also took place in Thessaloniki, Patras, Larissa and other cities across the country.
In Athens, demonstrators gathered in front of the Parliament building and chanted: "From Greece to France, we want public, free education." Students had earlier held an overnight sit-in near the site.
The Greek protest comes as a youth-led wave of dissent spreads across Europe this month, including marches in France and Albania. In those countries, anger over rising living costs and corruption allegations led to clashes with police and significant property damage.
Observers say the marches, initially aimed at securing resources for education, have turned into sharp protests over escalating living costs.
Pressure from the cost-of-living crisis
In Greece, the protests add pressure on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his centre-right government ahead of elections expected in mid-2027, while the country's economy weakens.
Greece went through a severe debt crisis from 2009 to 2018. At the time, the government agreed to spending cuts in exchange for three bailout packages from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund worth about 290 billion euros ($326 billion).
Those measures hit Greek workers hard — among the poorest in Europe — with stagnating wages, high rents and rising energy costs.
The average monthly salary is now around 1,500 euros ($1,685), roughly the same as in 2009. Many young Greeks cannot afford to rent in the cities because rents have soared.
Georgia Foukidou, a 21-year-old student at the Athens protest, told Reuters: "Living here is very difficult; rents are really high, and the apartments are very small. Our parents can't afford to pay our rent, electricity and living expenses here."
Wednesday's protest also drew primary and secondary school teachers striking over low pay and staff shortages. Contract teachers are demanding permanent posts and smaller class sizes. Civil servants and other unions also joined the march.
Ahead of the protests, Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki said she was listening to students' demands and noted that the government is spending more than 733 million euros ($823 million) on new student dormitories and facility upgrades.
Mitsotakis's government has also pledged about 1 billion euros ($1.12 billion) in state subsidies and other benefits to offset higher energy costs for households and businesses, which are blamed on the war in Iran and inflation.
