It is a deeply sad and disappointing thing (and probably disturbing to some people) to realize that Mykonos, once the island selected by authors, painters, sculptors, poets and people aiming to experience the natural beauty of this little piece of arid land in the middle of the Aegean sea that was allegedly a stronghold for pirates for centuries, has now become a place where prostitution, drugs, alcoholism, rudeness and complete disrespect of almost any lawful behavior rules. Hotels, restaurants, beach bars and cafeterias charge exorbitant prices (usually without issuing any receipt), they employ young Greeks or illegal immigrants at monthly wages below (sometimes way below) the minimum wage without any social security compensations and having them work 12-14 hour shifts 7 days per week treating them like slaves, while beach bars and hotels occupy beaches charging ridiculously high prices for an umbrella and two “chaise longues”, forbidding people who are not willing to use them (and pay for them) to swim in that beach (Btw. by Greek law all beaches are public and freely accessible to everybody). Much of the tourist economy of the island has fallen in the hands of the Russian mafia and its oligarchs, much of the supply of food, equipment and fuel and quite a part of the building business is ruled by the Albanian mafia. Corruption runs high at all levels, as you can open any sort of shop almost anywhere, provided you have "the right connections" (or if you are willing to pay hefty “shortcut fees”) and you can build almost whatever you wish (or can afford to) without feeling restricted by any building permits, laws on the use of land, or any public space demarcation. Local Mykonians, once happy and proud of their island, are worried if they are going to have the means to keep their properties on the island, and are increasingly threatened both by the shady people that make Mykonos their summer residence and by the myriads of people landing on their island as tourists seeing in Mykonos the paradise for heavy drugs, easy free and paid sex, wild partying and a chance to engage in any sort of extreme, unhinged nightlife "entertainment" of all sorts. Multiple reports by public authority auditors characterize the situation in Mykonos as “way out of hand” and international news networks are recently known to grant Mykonos the title of "Colombia of the Mediterranean Sea", if that adds a layer of description to the fast, sad and probably irreversible disintegration of this very beautiful island. What a shameful waste!
