Violence In Greece As Parliament Passes New Austerity Package
Greek Parliament Approves Bill
Greeks continued on Monday to protest against new package of cuts the troika made of the International Monetary Fund, European Union and European Central Bank demanded of the government in Athens in order to make possible the new part of the bailout intended to safe Greece and prevent it from entering default, a move that would jolt the entire European Union and would hurt the eurozone.
Greek government was compelled by the European authorities to make sure that 15,000 jobs in the public sector are being cut, that the minimal wage is lowered by 22 percent, from 751 to 660, and negotiations with banks would be started in order to obtain a write-off.
All these measures would bring a 350 million euros to the economy and would be a token of Greek government’s responsibility and commitment to the austerity program that would bring Greece out of the dark zone of default. The European partners demanded in addition that a political consensus be realized.
As soon as word got out, the Greek trade unions declared a 48-hour general strike against the new austerity program, saying that the people has already paid enough for the crisis. People took to streets in Friday, when the government in Athens accepted the plan and proposed it to the parliament for approval.
The passage of the bill through the parliament on Monday was also difficult, with 43 lawmakers rebelling against the decision and being expelled on that account from their parties, socialist and conservative. 199 lawmakers out of 300 backed the new measures.
The protest turned extremely violent on Sunday, with 150 shops looted, and 48 buildings in the centre of Athens set ablaze, some of them being buildings with a national and historical value. 100 people were wounded, 68 of the police personnel, and 130 were detained by the police. Violent protests spread to Thessaloniki, the second-largest city in the country, and to the islands of Corfu and Crete.
Greece must meet a deadline set for February 17, if the government wants to see the money that would allow it to run normally. The troika said that it has had enough of the broken promises of the government, and no money will be delivered unless the Greek government follows through on its promises.
The violent moves of the people in the streets of Greece and the devastation of its center compelled the prime minister to say that since 2008 such a breakdown of order has not been attained, and that such violence cannot be tolerated, even though it is hard for a country to go through what Greece went through.
