You know what we didn’t hear after the incidents at the state-of-the-art, camera-filled stadium in Limassol? Taking responsibility. Admitting mistakes. We didn’t hear it after the Salamina-APOEL interruption, nor weeks ago when the Apollonas fans caused trouble. No one came forward to say that those in charge failed miserably and allowed 50-100 hooligans to run riot. No one said that all the laws enacted and implemented so far, including the infamous Fan ID Card, have failed miserably and are largely responsible for treating the hooded person throwing flares with guns at families in the same way as a family man. No one explained to the citizens that every time there are incidents, we copy measures from other countries, just to avoid the stigma of inaction.
Not even the government spokesperson, who wouldn’t had been blamed by anyone, did not feel that what he was stating lacked logic and that it should not happen in a democracy: “According to the current data,” he said, “the Police could not cope with what was happening.” Fortunately, he admitted that he doesn’t have the solutions that the competent Authority will consider, without telling us who this “competent Authority” is. The hooligans, the clubs, the companies, the fan clubs, the stadium authorities, the Police, the Ministry of Justice, the Presidential Palace, the football federation, the sports organization? Unknown. However, additional measures were announced from the very beginning, in addition to those announced on Monday. They bothered us since January 16 to announce reinforcement of policing measures, thorough checks by the police, examination of the Fan Clubs’ operation, and, of course, the option for police authorities to reject or interrupt matches.
As in the Apollonas-AEL match, which, as the government spokesperson told us, the Minister, in consultation with the referee, decided that “the Police could not secure the area” at that moment. What are they saying? They decided not to take increased measures for that specific, high-risk match, and chaos prevailed. Not in dark streets outside the stadium but inside, in front of cameras and the helpless members of the police who are usually mere spectators, as if they are facing powerful armies and not a few hooded individuals bowing to pieces of cloth.
And so, the “Facebook court” will blame the 20-30 AEL fans who embarrassed an entire state, and the authorities (Police and Government) will “punish” hundreds of thousands of fans. Temporary measures will be taken, probably until the end of the year, and in the first incidents of August, the discussion will start from scratch, under the illusion that nothing really happened, as was the case with the coronavirus and the organized fans’ boycott. Back then, everyone praised themselves for eliminating violence in the stadiums.
The difficult part is for those who approved laws destined to fail, such as the Fan ID Card, to take responsibility and not repeat their mistakes. Once again, the party officials, whether the same ones or the descendants of those who had the brilliant idea to judge in advance those entering sports venues as guilty, do not take responsibility. But why should they? They have entrusted the fate of football to state-fed mobsters; they are not genuinely interested in violence in the stadiums. The problem will not be solved in a country where institutions are not independent, not allowing the Minister or the Police Chief to ignore the interests of the football federation and companies, creating a reliable plan. Until they understand how the privileged ancient elements, the appointed or elected fraudsters, the underworld, the gamblers, the professional hooligans and the drug traffickers coexist and converse, let them not take further measures, supposedly offended by hooliganism. Hooliganism is their creation.
