“We want Athens to rediscover its soul”

PM Giorgos Papandreou spoke today at the special cabinet meeting on the situation in the centre of Athens, which was also attended by Attica prefect Giorgos Sgouros and Athens mayor Giorgos Kaminis.

Papandreou spoke of “unjustifiable delays” and added that everybody’s main concern is for Athens to rediscover its soul. Theodoros Pangalos will be supervising the cabinet’s decisions.

Strong police presence on a weekly basis and frequent patrols in the historic center of Athens are some of the key measures to be taken. Furthermore, it was decided to provide incentives for the return of residents to the city center, such as a tax reduction for young residents and the reduction of objective values in the residential areas of Votanikos and Metaxourghio.

According to a suggestion by Anna Dalara, the required stamps for issuing residence permits will be reduced, there will be sanctions against employers of illegal immigrants, new programs will be drafted to support permanent immigrants, while cooperation with the church will be expanded.

Furthermore, Dalara will propose the creation of flea markets where taxed immigrants and non-immigrants will be able to trade goods in a controlled manner, the structured development of real estate, the intensification of efforts to revise the “Dublin II” program and the investigation of the cases of the 15.000 migrants who wish to return to their home countries.