Elliniko mayor goes on hunger strike again

The mayor of the southern Athens suburb of Elliniko, Christos Kortzidis, who went on a lengthy hunger strike in 2007 to protect free access to the area’s beaches, yesterday launched a new fasting protest, this time at the government’s plans to overhaul local administration. Kortzidis, who went more than three weeks without food three years ago, said that he was opposed to the «Kallikratis» plan, which would lead to hundreds of municipalities around Greece being merged as part of an effort to slash red tape and costs. «I think that Kallikratis will impoverish local government, distancing it from citizens and leading to employees losing their livelihoods,» said Kortzidis, whose municipality would be merged with nearby Argyroupoli under the government’s plans. A number of mayors are unhappy at not being consulted about the plans.