Zero tolerance
The shocking incident that took place on Crete last Friday when a family of tourists allegedly came under attack from a pair of locals shows us that before we can even talk about a tourism culture, we need to address some fundamental issues of mentality.
However, changing people’s mentality is a slow and arduous process. In the meantime, therefore, the authorities need to act swiftly and decisively, they need to have the reflexes to set an example, regardless of whether the victim of any such crime is a foreigner or a local.
Tolerating such incidents in the name of “tradition” or some arbitrary code of conduct is unconscionable. And when it comes from a state authority, it is tantamount to being indifferent towards or even condoning criminal behavior.
