Definitely the precursor of all that was to become Western, Greece with its schools of philosophies, arts, military, and overall qualities led it to hammer an impact on the world back then and today. From the successful marches of Alexander the Great to the battles against Fascist Italy, this once great country faces worrying obstacles such as the huge amount of debt that covers their Mount Olympus from shining with Greek glory along with the very controversial austerity that is being ordered by the PASOK (Panhellenic Socialist Movement) with the Prime Minister Papandreou pushing it from behind.

The amount of debt in Greece is startling, it is such a huge crisis that the European Union with Germany at its front voted to help Greece with 25 billion Euros, (around 33 billion U.S Dollars). All the EU countries will share the burden of assisting Greece with this package of money, however Greece will still have to pay off their debt of 53 billion Euros very soon.

Keeping that in mind, the government of Greece had little choice as it complied with the European Union along with the international banks to drastically decrease wages, social programs of benefits, jobs, and other public budgets so that government debt can be lowered by lowering Greece’s budget deficit. Basically, the standard of living in Greece will have to hover a bit low until the Greek economy can improve and achieve fiscal balance.                                            

 According to the World Socialist Web Site, two million Greek workers hit the streets and roads to protest the recent austerity policies that PASOK recently implemented. Protestors included students, teachers, journalists, air control staff, pilots, public transport workers even including ferry drivers and other civilians as well.

One of the peaceful protests, the banner says "Let the Plutocracy Pay The Crisis!" showing stressed friction between the middle-class people and the higher-classes including the government.

On Thursday, 25th of February, Greece as a nation is basically closed down. All plane flights concerning Greece were cancelled, public schools, governmental offices, hospitals, and other facilities were closed down as well. From Athens to Thessaloniki and in other towns and cities in the Greek peninsula, protestors marched with homemade banners and chanted slogans, sometimes riveting against the higher class and of course the government’s economical actions. Some actions were taken by the Greek riot police with tear gas and gave out a few beatings here and there. 

Violence breaks out as police launches tear gas and pepper spray onto some protestors.

Despite all these protests, PASOK announced that it will take further austerity measures next week. Is there room for optimism? Erm…No, Chief Economist Olivier Blanchard of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that countries like Greece up to their neck in debt will face a period of extreme budget difficulty for 20 years or so. Also…social unrest will get worse and worse.

On further note: Great spot for a vacation over here, really. Had a fantastic time being stuck without the metro in Athens.

Authored By: Bera Te.

2/25/10