The case of Maria, the young girl found living in a Roma camp in central Greece with a couple who are accused of abducting her; Stournaras says no more austerity measures will be accepted; children participate in reclaiming a square from neonazism
MARIA Maria, the little girl at the centre of an alleged abduction case in central Greece, is in a hospital where she is playing with her toys and 'feeling much better', a spokesman for the charity that is looking after her said over the weekend. The girl, who is estimated to be 4-5 years old, was taken into the care of the Smile of the Child after a police raid on a Roma settlement at Farsala in Thessaly into arms and drugs offences. The girl was noticed in a home in the settlement by a prosecutor, who became suspicious after noting that she bore no similarities to the couple claiming to be her parents. After the couple were taken into custody and the girl into care, a DNA test revealed that she was not their offspring.
COURT Meanwhile, the two people who Maria knew as her parents - a 39-year-old man and 40-year-old woman - are expected to appear before an investigating magistrate today on charges of abducting a minor and obtaining official documents on false pretences. It is likely that the court will order the release of their photographs in order to facilitate the investigation. Police say that during initial questioning, the pair provided a number of conflicting stories about how they came to have the child, for which they had official birth certificates issued by the Athens municipality.
LAWYER The lawyer for the Roma couple, Kostas Katsavos, contents that they adopted the child with the permission of her biological mother, a Bulgarian Roma, who could not care for her. While he conceded that the adoption was 'non-legal', he said he believes the biological mother will be located soon and will verify the couple's claims. 'They love her and they took care as their own child,' Katsavos said.
STIGMATISATION A president of the Farsala Roma community has said that he fears Maria's case will lead to the entire community being stigmatized as child traffickers. Speaking to AP, Babis Dimitriou said he hoped there will be no backlash against the 2,000 Roma living in the community. The case 'doesn't reflect on all of us,' he said. What the local Roma seem keen to convey is that their community is not involved in either child abductions or trafficking. But regional police chief Lt Gen Vasilis Halatsis said authorities have found 'dozens' of child trafficking cases involving Bulgarian Roma in Greece. 'We know these cases exist, but they involve Bulgarians, not Greeks like us. There are no transactions involving children here,' Dimitriou insists, adding that the 40-year-old woman, who had registered Maria as her own child, 'cared for her even better than for her own children.'
INTEREST Maria has attracted worldwide attention, with the Smile of the Child organisation receiving 8,000 inquiries about the girl. Interest is particularly high in the UK where the family of Ben Needham, a 21-month-old toddler who went missing from his grandparents' home on the island of Kos in 1991, say her case gives them hope that Ben may someday be found. Ben's mother Kerry told ITV: 'We have always believed that Ben's abduction was [Roma]-related and ... we hope that the investigation into Ben's disappearance will now be looked at again.' The family have said that someone matching Ben's description was seen at the Farsala settlement a number of years ago.
STOURNARAS The government would only agree to a new loan bailout agreement with the troika if this did not involve new austerity measures, the finance minister has told a Sunday newspaper. On the other hand, Yannis Stournaras told Kathimerini that he would be positive about accepting to implement new 'structural measures.' He called on the country to demonstrate 'realism and calm', as 'illogical demands' could only harm the country, especially at a time when financial markets are starting to trust Greece again. In another interview, with Sunday's To Vima, Stournaras said that 'it will be hell until June, all issues are open and on the negotiating table' with the troika.
RECLAIMING THE SQUARE Hundreds of children of all backgrounds participated in a reclaiming of a square in central Athens long associated with Golden Dawn thuggery. A number of years ago, Golden Dawn activists forced the closure of the children's playground on Agios Panteleimonas square, claiming drug dealing was taking place on it. Other residents say the real reason was because the playground was being used by non-Greek children. On Sunday, 500 children turned up to see a performance of a play. 'Brillis' big broom'. A crowd of 30 Golden Dawn supporters attempted to disrupt the event. The playground remains closed.
Posted by Unknown on Monday, October 21, 2013 - Rating: 4.5
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