PM insists citizens’ security a priority despite lawlessness

In an apparent bid to show that his administration is not soft on crime, following a spate of lawlessness by self-styled anarchists in central Athens, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Wednesday underlined “the importance and priority which the government gives to the matter of citizens’ security.” 

Inaugurating the renovated building housing the police department for Western Attica, Tsipras referred to the “accumulated successes of the Greek Police in recent years.” 

Citizens’ Protection Minister Nikos Toskas, who last week blamed the police for failing to crack down on anarchist-related violence, yesterday praised the force for its efforts and resilience. 

Reacting to Tsipras’s statements on Wednesday, the main conservative opposition New Democracy accused him of “hypocrisy” and “audacity,” referring to almost daily instances of vandalism in the capital and claiming that entire neighborhoods have become “ghettos of lawlessness.”