End of August, end of summer vacations. Greece gets back to normal with mass-protests on the making, important political and economic meetings, and the package of 11.5 billion euro apparently to have been sealed by the coalition government partners. Yesterday, Thursday, leakages to the press informed – even though unofficially- the Greeks about the 72 horror measures that will test the limits of what a debt-ridden society can take.
The cruel knife of austerity will cut deep into incomes of civil servants, pensioners, jobless. Allowances and benefits for economically weak groups of the society will come down to a minimum, while some groups will see state aid disappearing for good.
Despite government pre-elections promises, horizontal cuts will be made and thus for pensioners.
As if this is not enough, insured patients will have to pay extra constibutions if they want to take advantage of health care services. This practice started already, with patients paying one euro per phone call to private companies in order to make an appointment with a state doctor. If one considers that the national health care organisation EOPYY has 9.5 million insurers, one can easily imagine the profit of the private companies per month. For a service that should be free of charge.
The package of measures will be discussed today at the Cabinet meeting and will have to be voted at the parliament, once the Troika has approved it. Most possible next week.
“It is the last package of measures,” Prime Minister Antonis Samaras told Greeks yesterday.
Last or not last, Greeks have run out of money and patience and cannot afford further income cuts. Some professional groups started already their protest mobilization, others go zealously on planning them. Already pharmacists refuse to give patients prescription medicine on credit.
Members of Greek police, Firefighters and Coastal guards are holding a protest in Athens today, opposing further income cuts.
Athens Metro workers will hold a work stoppage on Saturday, September 1st 2012, from 5:30 am until 12 o’clock noon, in order to participate to the general convention of their trade union to decide about future actions.
The first mass-protest test for the government is expected to take place on September 8th, when Samaras will visit the International Fair in Thessaloniki. An event that any Greek prime minister would traditionally use to announce “presents” to the citiznes. However, this time Samaras will go empty-handed and keep his visit as short as possible.
Vacations seem to be over also for anti-authoritarian groups. Last night some 20-30 people attacked with stones a riot police squad in Exarchia district of Athens. They also set three garbage bins on fire and fled to unknown direction.
Walking back to Black-White Reality
PS KTG will report on the package measures later, once the administrator’s brain has switched into more proper English 🙂
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