If you think the Troika representatives can bypass 50 disable protesters and enter unharmed the Labour Ministry in Athens , you’re wrong. The panic and confusion is so big that the Troikans can land into some private gym instead…
Sorry, that was the gym. Labour ministry is there!
Some 50 representatives of disable organisations had gathered outside the Labour and Social Care Ministry to protest cuts in health care and benefits. And thus before the Troika arrived for a meeting with minister Yiannis Vroutsis.
It was first, Matthias Morse (EU) who approached the Ministry. The angry crowd started to boo and chant slogans.
Video:
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When the turn of Poul Thomsen (IMF) came, as he is more recognizable, his six body-guards decided to take him to the Ministry through the back door. However, by mistake they led him to a private gym located in the same mall.
Video:
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Of course, despite the mistake, Poul Thomsen managed to meet the Labour Minister and to hand him out a long list with many-many cuts in labour rights, wages, allowances and benefits for disabled or not.
PS Who pays for the Troika’s body guards? We or the Troika? Just wondering…
more pictures here.
Ever thought what will happen when one of the Troika will get hurt seriously? Just a question…
Remember when they first came to Greece? They did not have bodyguards. They gave interviews and press conferences. Then the majority decided that they were offended by these foreigners and that blaming them would be a great way to escape from self-reflection. After that, press conferences stopped (so now we only have leaks from the Greek side to base our anger on) and they stopped walking alone in Athens and instead had to be protected by bodyguards.
Hope everybody here is very happy by those accomplishments.
They stopped the press conferences after they had rushed to announce the decided austerity measures before the Greek government did so. The government complained and the Troika had to refrain from officially taking the role of the Greek government.
That the Troika is being booed and harassed is ‘understandable’ as long as the government blames the Troika for all the evils of the austerity package: “The Troika wants this”, “the Troika demands that”, “Thomsen imposes”, “the government resists” and other communication games of this kind. When everybody knows that Nea Dimocratia and PASOK signed and voted in tfavor of the package in March 2012.
Today, there was another incident, where municipality workers chased a technical team of the Troika.
You sow winds and harvest storms.
I know. And since then we not have had heard one truth about any measure.
Who is sowing and who is harvesting is the main question indeed.
If I was the troika and this nonsense continues, I would insist that any further discussions or issues regarding the Troika take place in New York or Berlin, if they cannot guarantee the safety of their official guests.
Dear Smithers. You’re jumping the gun. Till now the Greek state still was able to keep them out of harms way.
There is a history of murdering foreign diplomats in this country. And I am sure that everybody is very aware of that. And that makes these publicity ‘games’ played by politicians and their cronies a potential deadly one.
Hell, why even bother? Just disband the pretense of Greek self-governance. Instead of wasting all this time to put on a show, we could be spending our time enjoying the wealth we’ve sucked out of workers’ dry bones!