Greece shut down

Problems in Greece

As the strikes take hold in Greece, more and more of the country is being affected as hundreds of thousands of people protest against the proposed cuts to try and resolve the countries 12.7 percent public deficit.

EU governments are looking for guarantees that Papandreou, elected in October, will slash spending before they spell out what help they may offer.

The government has pledged to cut this to 8.7 percent this year, and also reduce the 300 billion euro national debt, by freezing public sector salaries, raising the retirement age to 63 by 2015, and increasing taxes on petrol, alcohol and tobacco.

Under proposals adopted by finance ministers from the 16 nations that share the euro, the Greek government will have to take additional measures to cut its deficit if it fails to satisfy the European Commission next month. These may include higher value-added tax, a levy on luxury goods, higher energy taxes and spending cuts.

Unions

Greece's unions have shut down transportation, medical and educational facilities, in what is a second 24-hour strike aimed at Prime Minister GeorgePapandreou's drive to cut the European Union's biggest budget deficit.

Air-traffic controllers, customs and tax officials, train drivers, doctors at state-run hospitals and school teachers walked off the job to protest government spending cuts that will freeze salaries and hiring and cut bonuses. Journalists also joined the strike, creating a media blackout.

"People on the street will send a strong message to the government but mainly to the European Union, the markets and our partners in Europe that people and their needs must be above the demands of markets,"Yiannis Panagopoulos, president of the private-sector union GSEE, told NET TV yesterday. "We didn't create the crisis."

Half a million civil servants already held a one-day strike on 10 February. Now they have joined forces with GSEE, which represents two million workers, after EU warnings that Papandreou's government needs to bring in new taxes and make more spending cuts if it fails to rein in the largest budget gap of all 27 EU member states. Unions are set to hold rallies in Athens and other cities and towns.

Papandreou's government needs to sell 53 billion euros of debt this year, the equivalent of 20 percent of gross domestic product.

Isolation

Due to the strikes today, almost 500 international and domestic flights have been canceled, a spokeswoman for Athens International Airport, told Business Week.

The Athens metro, which carries 650,000 commuters to work each morning, isn't running nor are the capital's trams. Passenger ferries and other vessels will remain docked until the end of the strike.

Greece is on lock-down, but how many strikes is it going to take for the country to take notice that its citizens aren't happy?

Jodie Humphries

Jodie Humphries graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA Hons in Creative Writing in 2008. She has worked for GDS Publishing for the digital group since July 2009. She has previous experience with writing for the web, running her own website since April 2007.

Related News:

Greece told to tighten its belt | GDS Publishing |Is the Eurozone in danger? | GDS Publishing

Like this article? Get the RSS feed: