Donkeys abused to build luxury villas in Caldera (video)

Loaded with heavy building materials, donkeys try to find their balance, climb up and down the narrow cobblestone streets in the central square of Firostefani. The modern slaves are the only ones who can transport construction material for the luxury villas with view of the stunning Caldera.

The institutional framework for the donkeys’ protection is ready, says the founder of the Panhellenic Association for the Protection of Equines “IPPOTHESIS”

Complaints and concerns are being strongly expressed regarding the exploitation of donkeys in Santorini, as they are used as “living tools” to transport building materials in the Caldera area. Animal welfare organizations and residents speak of mistreatment of the animals, who are forced to carry heavy loads under difficult conditions.

A video obtained by protothema.gr vividly captures the problem. In the video, which was on Wednesday afternoon (March 5) next to the main square of Firostefani, donkeys loaded with marble slabs and other bulky building materials are seen laboriously climbing up and down the narrow cobblestone streets.

Video: Donkeys are abused to build villas on the Caldera

Construction activity on the Caldera of Santorini is accompanied not only by human and animal costs, but also by exorbitant financial costs.

The dream of acquiring a villa or a tourist accommodation with a unique view of the Caldera has an outrageous price: the construction cost is almost double the usual, making construction a privilege for a few. Currently, the price of concrete in the Caldera has skyrocketed to 800 euros per cubic meter when in the rest of Greece its price does not exceed 400 euros. The doubling of costs is not only due to demand, but mainly to the special conditions for transporting materials. It is no exaggeration to say that building a house in the Caldera depends on donkeys, which are the only way to transport materials up the steep slopes, protothema.gr  reported.

Each trip costs 50 euros, depending on the agreement that the contractor makes with the owners of the animals. And we are not talking about one or two trips – the transport of concrete, stones, gravel and other materials requires dozens of trips per day, raising the total cost of construction to the sky. The same applies to the removal of rubble. Everything that needs to be removed from the construction site (excavation rubble and construction debris) is transported in the same expensive way, since the use of mechanical means in these places is almost impossible. Thus, every new building in the Caldera costs many times more than in any other area in Greece, making construction here a high-risk investment not only due to the instability of the soil, but also due to the enormous cost of construction.

The institutional framework for donkeys’ protection is ready

The founder of the Panhellenic Association for the Protection of Equines “IPPOTHESIS”, Rosa Roussou, speaking to protothema.gr, said:

“There is no legislation for the donkeys of Santorini, only circulars that recommend how they should work. That is why we see them working tirelessly in the Caldera and transporting construction materials. First of all, their owners do not even know how much weight they can carry, because this depends on the physical condition of the animal and its weight. What we, as IPPOTHESIS, have prepared together with the organization Promise to Animals is a clear institutional framework and we are even waiting for a meeting with the Minister of Rural Development to present it. This institutional framework concerns the protection and well-being of all equines. As long as it is not implemented, we will see images like the ones you describe to me.”

PS And when construction is over, the donkeys of Santorini will keep on working transporting tourists who are to lazy to walk.