16/06/2020
Europe, shame on you!
Even though the Government of Greece confirmed to Serbian officials that Serbian tourists can cross the border freely from June 15, new information was published only yesterday that Serbian tourists are not allowed to enter Greece.
This happened because in the meantime, the original decision was changed and the new one was published that the free crossing of the Greek border applies only to the owners of European Union passports! However, someone seems to forget to inform the public about it!
By the way, Greek tourist workers have prepared impatiently and with all health care measures for the reception of tourists from Serbia, but someone from the EU, obviously, was not interested in allowing it, but most likely put pressure on the Greek authorities to change the earlier decision. This is a precedent never seen before and it is condemnation for everyone!
Although it was said earlier that the borders open on the 15th of June, it turned out that this applied only to citizens of the "higher" order, that is, to those who hold European Union passports, while everyone else will be able to enter Greece only after the first of July. However, this was not a decision of the Greek Government, but of the EU Commission, which ordered them to act according to this principle, which caused immeasurable damage to the friendly ties between Greece and Serbia and tourism in general.
At a time when world tourism is not only on a respirator but also on a vital infusion, such discriminatory behavior of the EU can be described as putting salt on the living wound of this already wounded branch of the economy. The division of tourists into "Schengen" and "non-Schengen" is more than shameful, especially since it is known that Serbia had much fewer patients with Kovid-19 than almost all Western European countries. So, a logical question arises: why is it more important what kind of passport people have than what the epidemiological situation of a certain country is?
Fortunately, this story got a positive twist this morning. Greek authorities have approved the entry of Serbian tourists into the country, but it remains uncertain who will compensate people, travel agencies, and carriers for that lost day (not only one day was lost, but also many organized departures and shifts were canceled, additional insecurity was introduced for all those who were thinking about booking trips “once when everything starts again”).
So, support the Greek Government on this decision and support all tourism workers!
