In turn, these were accompanied by public outcries of arson and treason. Possibly because the fires were less disastrous than last year, and the forthcoming elections are municipal rather than national, the political reaction this summer was slightly less shrill. Nor was there, as in 1981, any gratuitous claim by a fanatical political group taking responsibility for the fires. Last year, an organization calling itself the “Blue Archers” not only answered for the fires, but the gutting of several Athens department stores as well, demanding, besides, that if the Junta leaders were not released at once from prison, all sorts of other dire consequences would follow. No one has heard from them since. Likewise, there was none of that pseudo-scientific maliciousness as evoked last year by a spokesman of the Right who took it upon himself to inform the public that the meltemi winds which spread the flames originate “in the Steppes of Russia”.
Nevertheless, the pattern of events was all too familiar. The area around Olympia was devastated again, and on August 1 several fires broke out almost simultaneously in several areas of Pendeli, including Ekali. Five thousand acres were consumed, twenty houses were destroyed and two campers were burned to death trying to retrieve their car. Due to the capriciousness of the winds, the fires this year spread eastward north of Pendeli and descended along the western side of the mountain, devastating less inhabited areas.
This year the unenviable task of trying to find out the causes for the fires fell to Deputy Minister of Defense, Andonis Drossoyiannis. Last year, it was former Defense Minister Averof, whose investigations were ascerbically criticized by Opposition leader Papandreou. Of course, Averof today is Opposition leader and Papandreou is Minister of Defense, and although the latter during the first week of August was attending to his pressing Prime Minister’s duties, as far as fire-watching was concerned, it was the same two pairs of feet wearing each other’s shoes, and it looked as if they had continued to pinch.
On August 5, police and forest rangers agreed that the fires had started on Pendeli at almost the same time. Although many persons were questioned, no one had been detained. Two days later, an investigation by experts came up with no evidence of arson.
In the days that followed, a small assortment of fire bugs were apprehended, detained and let off lightly (most of them were setting fires in fields near their homes), in the probably reasonable belief that so much publicity is highly suggestive to a few unstable members of society who have no deliberate criminal intent.
A number of more practical ways of dealing with fires and forest care in general, however, did receive much wider attention this year. It was noted that there were not enough roads leading into inaccessible areas; that fire-breaks had been allowed to grow over; that the mountains of Attica have been allowed to accumulate heaps of inflammable trash; that rubbish bins, where they exist, are not emptied, that the forest ranger service is under-staffed.
For years now, Athenians have been encouraged to love trees. This has led to an indiscriminate passion for cultivating scrub pine — the most inflammable of trees, albeit the easiest to grow. In areas perfectly suited to olive and fig, pinewoods flourish. Even the cypress, a once typical feature of Attica — and far more fire-resistant – seems confined to churchyards. In spite of recent fires, stands of pine still extend from inaccessible slopes into built-up suburbs without interruption, thus endangering human life as well.
The existence and implementation of laws banning construction on burned-over areas must, by now, be discouraging the belief that hordes of hungry land developers are purposely igniting woodlands. When a newspaper demands “dismantling the spiderweb of Fascist arsonists and their sinister conspiracy to undermine the health of the nation”, one is moving from the subject of forest care to that of mental care.
Like all Mediterranean countries, Greece is highly inflammable in summer. General heedlessness on the part of the public in extinguishing smoking materials, ever-increasing traffic on the nation’s roads, and a growing enjoyment in camping, must be combatted by a more effective public campaign as to, its hazards. Tourists should likewise be forewarned at points of entry, particularly those from damper or more humid climates who may be unaware of the consequences of negligence.
Reforestation programs must be designed with fire control in mind, and at present it would be wiser to cut swathes through existing forests than to plant still more pine trees — and, of course, more and improved forms of fire equipment are necessary.
These should be the major concerns of public figures and organizations, rather than shouts of “arson”, which, although they may be easier, cheaper and more dramatic, suggest a psycho-political approach more in keeping with the spirit of the former military dictatorship.
The Fruits of Profit
The steeply rising cost in foodstuffs began alarming the general public last spring with the result that the government became concerned. In early and mid-summer, prices of seasonal fruits and vegetables normally level off and drop. When costs, however, continued to soar, the government decided to act. Declaring that the middleman was taking far too great a percentage of the profits, the government began investigations and introduced a series of restrictions. As a result, wholesalers went on strike on August 5. To insure that shortages did not occur, emergency measures were introduced, allowing farmers and agricultural cooperatives to bring their produce and sell them freely to vendors and retailers in the central markets. Although the Minister of Commerce, George Moraitis, said the measures were transitional, awaiting government legislation, the results led to confusion, shortages, and initially there was no drop in price.
On August 10, a retailer, unable to find a parking space at his accustomed spot in the Central Market, became so annoyed that he drove to Kaningos Square in central Athens and dumped five hundred kilos of tomatoes at the entrance to the Ministry of Commerce. The driver was booked with impeding traffic.
Later in the month, the flow of produce into the markets had become more regulated, and prices had dropped somewhat. From the consumer’s point of view, however, the savings were small compared to the reportedly huge profits previously enjoyed by the middleman. It appeared that either the profits were not so great as claimed, or the fruits of profit had gone elsewhere.
