Second-class neighborhoods

The fact that the events of the past couple of weeks with the disgraced charity for children – a case that has exposed the failings of the welfare state – are centered on one of the most neglected neighborhoods of central Athens cannot be dismissed entirely as a coincidence.

It appears that services for protecting the most vulnerable members of our society are either not getting where they need to be or have yet to surmount the bureaucratic obstacles and mentalities of the past.

It is also apparent that the central state and local administration do not have an equal presence everywhere.