Athens, Aug 22: After turning a blind eye for two decades to one of Europe's biggest sex and alcohol binges, Greece is getting tough on wild behaviour by ''degenerate'' young British tourists. Alarmed by the drink related deaths of two Britons and outraged by a video showing an oral sex contest on the beach, the authorities launched a clamp down this week on indecent behaviour by foreigners in some of its top resorts.
''The buck stops here, we won't go any further,'' Greek National Tourism Organisation chief Yannis Patellis said on Thursday. "These incidents show the degeneration of some British tourists,'' he added. He said the islands of Rhodes, Corfu and Kos, popular among the three million British tourists who visit Greece every year, were determined to throw off their ''anything goes'' label, particularly with Greece hosting the Olympic Games next year.
The tourism board has already received written apologies from both the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) and the Club 18-30 tour group for raucous behaviour by club representatives and tourists in the past weeks. Greeks were shocked last month after a television station showed a daytime beach party on Corfu with three couples, including Club 18-30 reps, performing oral sex surrounded by dozens of cheering bystanders.
The reps fled the island the next day and ABTA was left apologising for the ''lewd and inappropriate behaviour''.
But only days later a drunk British tourist died in Rhodes when he jumped in front of a garbage truck as part of a bet.
Another British youth was stabbed to death after an all-British pub brawl on the island. ?
Many locals have long complained about the behaviour of the mainly British tourists who flood the bars and clubs of Rhodes' faliraki resort for week-long alcohol binge. Bureau Report