Greek Minister of Education Niki Kerameus announced on Thursday that the best student in each school across the nation will be chosen as flag-bearer from now on during Greece’s student parades, which are a part of major national celebrations.
Speaking in an interview the official conducted with the Alpha radio station, Kerameus said that the long-standing Greek tradition will be reintroduced once more and become standard policy.
A few years ago, the previous government of the left-wing SYRIZA party changed the rule for elementary schools, abolishing the tradition which dictated that the student with the highest grades is chosen to carry the Greek flag during parades.
According to the previous government’s decision, elementary schools had to hold a drawing in order to decide which student would carry the national flag in the upcoming parade, and all students would be equally eligible for the honor regardless of their grades or efforts.
Traditionally, the flag-bearing duty in parades in Greece has been regarded as a privilege and honor for every student, since it shows their family, friends and the local community that he or she was the best student of that school.
The re-introduced rule of the best student becoming the flag-bearer will come into effect starting with the parades on ”OXI Day,” this October 28, when Greeks celebrate their rejection of Mussolini’s ultimatum in 1940, and the entering of World War II on the side of the allies.
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