‘No Nudity’ Sign Drives Nudists Crazy: Eye-Catching Protest

Hundreds of nudists who come here every year have reacted to the fact that the Sarakiniko Municipality put up ‘no nudity’ signs on the beaches of Sarakiniko on the island of Gavda (Gavdos) near Crete for the first time this year.

Nudists protested to the municipality by stripping naked in front of the sign, stating that it is not forbidden to swim naked and integrate with nature on the island, whose nature has not spoiled for thousands of years.

The nudists decided to take the situation to the international platform. Many nudists, who saw the municipality’s sign on the beach, continued to protest with comments on their social media account: “We came to feel intertwined with nature, free from unnecessary things, and suddenly we found out about this ban.”

THE MAYOR MADE AN EXPLANATION

The mayor of Gavdos, Lilian Stefanaki, told the Ekriti newspaper that the Municipality made this decision: “We received complaints from both visitors and merchants on the island, and they asked us to ban nudity on this central beach. We respect that, we have this ban,” she said.

The mayor said that these posters were hung after the complaints and he defended himself.

In his statement, President Stefanaki also stated that 15-16 thousand visitors come to the island annually, and that the Swiss and Germans, especially the Greeks and Italians, show great interest, 70 percent of foreigners camp for free, and that in such cases, tourists will first be warned and then the police will be called into action.

As there is no municipal police on the island, the enforcement of the ban is in the hands of the permanent police. There are only 320 tourist beds on the island of Gavda and it is full during the season.

WHAT IS NUDISM?

Nudism or naturism is the state of naked people together in a social environment and integrated with nature. It has no sexual meaning.