Five years after she suffered serious injuries in an acid attack, Konstantina Kuneva vows to continue her struggle in the European Parliament

One of Greece’s new Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), has said she is “deeply moved” at being elected and vowed to use her time in the European Parliament to continue her “struggle at another level, from which I will be able to help more people”.

Originally from the northeaster Bulgarian city of Silistra, Konstantina (or Kostadinka) Kuneva was severely wounded in December 2008 after a man threw sulphuric acid in her face as she was returning home from work.

Kuneva, a history graduate, took up work in the cleaning sector in 2003, two years after moving to Greece with her child. The sulphuric acid attack was linked to her union activities in representing cleaning personnel as head of the Attica Union of Cleaners and Domestic Workers (Pekop). As a result of the attack, which occurred two days before Christmas, she lost her sight in one eye and has limited vision in the other. Her vocal chords and trachea were also seriously damaged.

In a message posted on her website, Kuneva, who received more than 166,000 votes in the election, said that she hopes to have her voters “beside me throughout my tenure in the European Parliament”.

“You can be my eyes and ears in the real world of work and survival. I, along with the other SYRIZA and European Left MEPs, are obliged to become your voice in the sparkling, complex and cold world of the European Parliament.”

Kuneva’s full message read:

I want to thank everyone who believed in my candidacy on SYRIZA’s European Parliament ticket and who supported my efforts to continue my struggle at another level, from which I will be able to help more people!

I am deeply moved!

It is one thing to suspect that you are loved, that they need you and believe you can contribute, and quite another to witness that. You helped me to see it in the best manner, with your love and trust.

You made the impossible possible!

I think that both all of you who supported me from the first moment and I myself offered a positive example to all of society, by conducting a campaign without spending a single euro!

I hope to have you beside me throughout my tenure in the European Parliament.

You can be my eyes and ears in the real world of work and survival. I, along with the other SYRIZA and European Left MEPs, are obliged to become your voice in the sparkling, complex and cold world of the European Parliament.

I wish the love that was created and expressed these days spreads and strengthens our society ever more!

Source: enetenglish