Sending the wrong signal
Although a week has passed since former conservative minister Costis Hatzidakis was set upon by a mob during a protest rally in central Athens against reforms mandated by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, the police have so far failed to track down any of the culprits. The attack on Hatzidakis, a development minister when New Democracy was in power, has been captured on tape by television crews, which means that there should be no major problems in recognizing the attackers. That is unless the state wishes to vindicate those irresponsible voices that claim violent incidents of this kind are in fact justified expressions of anger and protest at the crisis dogging the country. The police must track down the wrongdoers or, once again, the wrong message that lawbreaking goes unpunished in Greek society will be sent out. Sending such a signal is the surest way to transform an organized society into a lawless jungle.
