Forum Views ()
Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
Greek austerity plan draws 80,000 to Athens square
|
Edition:
U.S.
Article
Comments (2)
Slideshow
Smart Money
Hedge funds sell faltering U.S. banks
Promise, drama in Yahoo's Asian assets
Hedge funds see bargains in discount retail
Two better than one at Marathon Oil
Alyeska's Parekh runs ahead of the pack
Follow Reuters
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
YouTube
Read
Germany says beansprouts may be behind E.coli
|
3:58pm EDT
Hackers attack Nintendo's servers in United States
12:09pm EDT
Indian police break up guru's anti-graft fast
|
12:26pm EDT
New "X-Men" tops class at worldwide box office
2:34pm EDT
Israeli forces kill 18 protesters: Syrian TV
|
4:37pm EDT
Discussed
76
150 economists back U.S. Republicans in debt fight
62
Moody’s sounds alarm over U.S. debt limit and deficits
55
”The world is getting warmer”: Romney
Watched
Latvian blondes prove they have more fun
Thu, Jun 2 2011
Scientists revive ancient spider in stunning 3D detail
Tue, May 24 2011
Transsexual model takes Rio
Fri, Jun 3 2011
Greek austerity plan draws 80,000 to Athens square
Tweet
Share this
Email
Print
Related News
Timeline: Greece's debt crisis
4:23pm EDT
Analysis & Opinion
Trichet’s United States of Europe?
How Europe’s central banks are staving off catastrophe
Related Topics
World »
Greece »
1 / 2
A huge crowd of protesters stands in front of the Greek parliament during a rally against austerity economic measures and corruption in Athens' Constitution (Syntagma) square June 5, 2011. The protest, on its twelfth day, was organized through a Facebook group called ''The Indignant''.
Credit: Reuters/Pascal Rossignol
By George Georgiopoulos
ATHENS |
Sun Jun 5, 2011 4:23pm EDT
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek government plans for yet more austerity to satisfy its international lenders brought at least 80,000 protesters on to a central Athens square Sunday to vent their fury at the nation's plight.
With Athens struggling to avoid a debt default, the cabinet will discuss a medium-term economic plan Monday which promises several years at least of extra budget cuts and faster privatisations, its side of a deal to get a second financial bailout in a year from the European Union and IMF.
Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou will then present the plan to the political council of his PASOK party Tuesday, his office said, before the cabinet clears it the following day and sends it to parliament.
Greeks are showing signs of reaching the limits of their endurance as budget cuts imposed under Greece's first bailout a year ago have helped to push unemployment close to 16 percent.
Police said more than 80,000 people packed the main Syntagma square outside parliament Sunday, although protesters accuse the authorities regularly of underestimating their numbers.
Protesters have gathered on the square every night for 12 days but Sunday's was by far the biggest rally so far in the series that draws inspiration from similar protests in Spain.
Sunday, some banners also evoked the Arab Spring movement to oust authoritarian rule in the Middle East and North Africa.
"From Tahrir Square to Syntagma Square, we support you!" read one banner raised above a sea of splayed hands waved at the parliament building -- a highly offensive gesture for Greeks.
Other banners showed helicopters in an apparent reference to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's flight from Cairo in February after weeks of popular protests on the city's Tahrir Square.
DON'T ROCK THE BOAT
Papandreou has used his parliamentary majority to ram through successive rounds of austerity including cuts to pensions and civil servants' salaries. But faced with the popular anger, some PASOK lawmakers are becoming uneasy.
A group of 16 wrote to the prime minister Thursday demanding a full party debate on the medium-term plan as "a matter of patriotism and democracy."
But Interior minister Yannis Ragousis warned that rocking the boat could lead to early elections, which opinion polls suggest would lead to political stalemate, raising the risk that the new bailout deal with the EU and IMF might unravel.
"Anyone who drives the nation toward elections now will be effectively giving it the last push over the cliff," Ragousis told Sunday's edition of the Realnews newspaper.
German news magazine Der Spiegel reported Sunday the new bailout could end up costing more than 100 billion euros, if Athens still needs foreign aid in 2013 and 2014.
Spiegel cited estimates by experts from the German Finance Ministry and the "troika" of the EU, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank. In Berlin, the finance ministry declined to comment on the weekly's report.
Greece agreed its first, 110 billion-euro, bailout a year ago. But this assumed that it could resume borrowing commercially early next year, which now appears inconceivable.
So far, Athens has received 43 billion euros under the first bailout, although it urgently needs another 12 billion which had been due in late June to cover debt repayments and for its day-to-day running costs. The troika said Friday that money should now be forthcoming in July.
Euro zone finance ministers and the IMF board must still back the new bailout, which would supersede last May's rescue.
It is expected to demand commercial creditors share some of the cost of Greece's huge funding needs. A source close to talks on the bailout involving EU officials in Vienna last Thursday said it would involve some participation of private investors.
The ECB opposes any attempt to cut the overall value of creditors' bond holdings, known as a haircut, fearing this would badly hurt banks which hold Greek debt and provoke a violent reaction on international financial markets.
However, creditors may be asked to buy new Greek bonds when old ones mature, to avoid Athens having to produce more money.
In Germany, which funds much of the bailouts, a conservative politician was unmoved by the Athens protests.
"We can't let ourselves be influenced by the demonstrations in Greece," said Volker Kauder, an ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Germany was due to put up 24.4 billion euros of the 110 billion total of the original rescue. "Greece is trying, but its efforts are insufficient," Kauder, who leads the Christian Democrat party in parliament, told Bild newspaper.
(Additional reporting by Erik Kirschbaum in Berlin; writing by David Stamp; editing by Ralph Boulton)
World
Greece
Tweet this
Link this
Share this
Digg this
Email
Reprints
We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language, all capital letters or appear to be spam, and we review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters.
Comments (2)
Eric93 wrote:
They want Greece to ‘to come up to central European standards’, do they? Haha. That’s like getting a zebra to give up its stripes. Like getting a bunch of cats to dance in a structured routine. Are they joking? Can they be this stupid? Not only is the euro a treacherous hoax but so is the whole EU. It amazes me that the sheeple there haven’t caught on yet?
Jun 05, 2011 12:20pm EDT -- Report as abuse
DanAllen wrote:
eric, how much have you lost on your short so far?
Jun 05, 2011 2:11pm EDT -- Report as abuse
See All Comments »
Add Your Comment
Social Stream (What's this?)
© Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters
Editorial Editions:
Africa
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
Reuters
Contact Us
Advertise With Us
Help
Journalism Handbook
Archive
Site Index
Video Index
Reader Feedback
Mobile
Newsletters
RSS
Podcasts
Widgets
Your View
Analyst Research
Thomson Reuters
Copyright
Disclaimer
Privacy
Professional Products
Professional Products Support
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Careers
Online Products
Acquisitions Monthly
Buyouts
Venture Capital Journal
International Financing Review
Project Finance International
PEhub.com
PE Week
FindLaw
Super Lawyers Attorney Rating Service
Reuters on Facebook
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.
Other News on Monday, 6 June 2011 Thirteen Syrian protesters killed attempting to cross into Israel
Cloud of soot darkens sky in Chile, Argentina following Puyehue eruption
Yemens Saleh in Saudi Arabia for wound treatment, Yemenis rejoice
Arizona wildfire burns 250,000 acres
Alex Noren's steady day captures title at Wales Open
Sixth sense: Rafael Nadal continues mastery of Federer on clay, wins French title
One killed in Kenya blast, over 30 injured
|
Greek austerity plan draws 80,000 to Athens square
|
Late night star: Ty Dillon wins Chicago ARCA race
Matt Kemp continues tear with 16th homer; Dodgers lead Reds 4-1
Macedonia ruling VMRO-DPMNE claims election victory
|
Death toll from Tunisian clashes reaches 11
|
Bomb attacks kill 24 in north-west Pakistan
|
Apple's Jobs to take the stage as iCloud hype grows
|
Hackers attack Nintendo's servers in United States
|
Yemen's Saleh comes out of surgery, future unclear
|
Israeli forces kill 18 protesters: Syrian TV
|
Leftist Humala declares victory in Peru election
|
Portuguese center-right beats Socialists in vote
|
NBA Finals: Wade's 29, Bosh's go-ahead bucket help Heat survive Mavs' late charge
Britain says rebels must plan for post-Gaddafi Libya
|
Shin-Soo Choo says DUI charge hurting his play
Socialists face humiliating defeat in Portugals elections
China paper warns Google may pay price for hacking claims
|
Ex-Dodgers greats may look into purchasing team;
U.S. missile strike kills 14 militants in Pakistan: sources
|
Bob Gilder glides under radar, gets victory at Principal Charity Classic
Pope Benedict XVI celebrates Mass before thousands of supporters in Croatia
Bahrain police clash with Shi'ite religious marchers
|
Pakistan foils President Asif Ali Zardari assassination plot
Greece sells historic ports
Bean sprouts grown in Hamburg nursery may have caused E. coli outbreak
Steve Stricker starts strong, survives rain delay to win Memorial Tournament
China paper warns Google may pay price for hacking claims
|
Twilight sequel shines brightest at MTV awards
|
Syrian forces' death toll in clashes rises to 40: State TV
|
E.coli food probe targets German bean sprouts
|
Cubs pitcher Zambrano rips club after another loss to the Cardinals
U.S. missile strikes kill 17 militants in Pakistan
|
Piers Morgan expecting first child with wife Celia Walden
Steve Wheatcroft shatters Nationwide Tour marks with impressive victory
Turkey's leaders livid over Economist article
|
Augusta State University repeats at NCAA golf champions
"Twilight" star Nikki Reed gets engaged to "American Idol" finalist Paul McDonald
Ban Ki-moon asks U.N. council to remain as chief
|
"Twilight" wins big at this year's MTV Movie Awards
Atom watchdog chides bombing of Syrian site in '07
|
Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Model Jessica White Promotes Mercy at a Charity Dinner
Land mines add to security worries in south Sudan
Palestinian Statehood Drive Fraught With Obstacles
Family of missing CA nursing student want FBI to lead search
Analysis: Soaring IPOs raise specter of new bubble
|
Apple's Jobs to take the stage as iCloud hype grows
|
Stigma puts many firms off reporting cyber attacks
|
Sina plans U.S. launch of Weibo as Twitter rival: TechWeb
|
New theater app puts Broadway on the go
|
SuVolta licenses new chip technology to Fujitsu
|
Mega Brands extends toy making contract with Microsoft
|
Cowell still in talks over U.S. X Factor judges
|
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights