“A crime against the environment and historical heritage is fomented on the island of Zante”, notes, exasperated, Spiros Xenos, sociologist and one of the most fervent defenders of the area around one of the most famous beaches in Greece, the Bay of the Shipwreck (“Navagio” in Greek). The paradisiacal cove, which owes its name to a cigarette smuggling boat that ran aground in 1983 at the foot of two white cliffs and attracts thousands of tourists a year, stirs up envy.
In May 2014, a resident sold land with an area of 14.5 km2 located above the bay for 9 million euros to a Lebanese company named Pimana. Very quickly, the diocese of Zante, which owns many monasteries in the region, contested this transaction and brought the case to court. After years of legal proceedings, the Athens Criminal Court concluded in the summer of 2020 that the land did not belong to the seller. This one was in possession of titles dating from before the unification of the island with Greece (1864) conferring only the management of the places to him.
In fact, according to the court order, the majority of the site belongs to the Church which owns in this space the monasteries of Saint-George Kremnon and Anafonitria since the XVe century, while the rest is owned by nearly 200 farming families from Zakynthos and the municipality. The case has been examined since December 2020 by a prosecutor specializing in corruption, who is studying the complicity of the forest ranger, the notary and other actors who participated in this sale.
Rich biodiversity of the site
The lack of cadastre until recently in Greece has always created problems. A cadastral regularization law was passed in 2011 under pressure from the country’s creditors (European Central Bank, European Union, International Monetary Fund). But the work is colossal and the cadastre, currently in the final phase, does not yet cover all of Greece.
“While we thought we could claim victory with the last judicial decision, we learned this fall that the ministry is studying a bill to promote this area and create a public limited company …”, explains Spiros Xenos. According to this document, which has not yet been voted on by Parliament, the tourism ministry wants to set up a public limited company with a 99-year lease. “The aim of this limited company is the administration, management and enhancement of the shore area”, specifies the text.
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