Only 1 Attica police officer for every 1,000 residents
Police figures for the past year in Attica only confirm that the battle against petty crime has not been won. According to a report drafted by the Attica Security Department, it appears that the number of robberies, thefts and burglaries is only slightly less, remaining at the high levels of recent years. Insufficient presence People’s growing sense of insecurity appears to be well founded and is chiefly due to the high incidence of petty theft. In 2006, there were 34,602 burglaries and thefts reported, 1,934 robberies and 11,011 car thefts. There are mounting protests over insufficient policing and an inadequate police presence on the streets to deter crime and increase people’s feeling of safety. The heads of police stations that deal with the public every day say they cannot meet needs due to a lack of staff, particularly in key posts. A senior police officer told Kathimerini that soon 2,000 special guards would be hired. «Of course, this is not enough to solve the problem, but will ease the situation if they are assigned to posts where there is a real need and if existing forces are kept there,» he said. At the moment, the Attica General Police Department’s force numbers about 12,500, although 21,000 positions are provided for. On paper, the force is estimated at 16,500 but about 2,000 retired at the end of last year; consideration should also be given to those officers on leave or absent due to illness. VIP guards Frontline teams are unable to meet the requirements of the job due to a lack of manpower, although «luxury» posts, as the police themselves call them, are overstaffed. About 2,700 officers are on VIP guard duty, another 2,300 guard state officials, while 4,500 are guarding homes, embassies and ministries. Over 350 officers are on duty at Parliament House and 380 are assigned to the Internal Affairs Department. That makes about 9,850 officers at the service of the privileged, leaving 4,650 to meet the needs of Attica’s 4.5 million inhabitants, that is about one officer for every 1,000 inhabitants.
