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The new homeless are male, under 55, single or divorced

13 December 2012 / 00:12:17  GRReporter
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An interesting finding in this study is the way in which the homeless people voted in the elections in October 2009. 46.5% of them went to the polling stations. 42% voted for PASOK, 6% - for New Democracy, 8% - for the Communist Party, 2% - for SYRIZA, 4% - for the far-right LAOS and 38% - for some other party or refused to answer.

The results of the exit poll in June this year were 22.2% for SYRIZA, 21% for the Communist Party, 20% for Golden Dawn, 11.1% for New Democracy and 2.2% PASOK.

47.6% believe that Greek politicians are to blame for today's situation and 25.7% say all the Greeks are.

75% believe they are responsible for their present situation.

When asked about their most essential needs, the homeless people stated:

The lack of a home - 85.6%

The lack of health care - 83.1%

The lack of a job - 76.5%

The lack of personal hygiene – 75%.

71.7% of homeless people believe that preventive action by public authorities is the only way to stop the negative social phenomenon.

The representatives of "Klimaka" also stress that the implementation of short-term programmes that aim to provide food is not enough. "We have plenty of pasta, beans and rice. Strange as it may seem,food is not a problem for the homeless. They find it in the soup kitchens, in churches, from people in the neighbourhood. They, however, lack other essential things like a place to wash themselves. And the fact that they are searching for such a place shows that they have not become downhearted," said Ada Alamanou.

According to her, the most serious problem in addition to the lack of housing is the lack of health services, "as people with very serious problems come to us. Among the new homeless are people who find themselves on the street after being treated in psychiatric hospitals and it is very difficult for them to be taken into shelters. The same applies to patients with infectious diseases. The fact that they are not insured and it is increasingly difficult for hospitals to accept them for treatment makes things even more complicated."

"Klimaka" indicates that the efforts should be concentrated on measures for the reintegration of the homeless rather than on the organization of charity.

After the presentation of the results of the study, the organization announced its cooperation with the Fourlis company, which manages the Greek branch of the IKEA international chain for home furniture and with the support of which the shelter of the organization was fully repaired and the furniture in it - fully renewed in August this year.

Tags: SocietySocial issuesHomeless peopleStudyKlimaka
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