Protests erupted in Greece Wednesday as the Greek Parliament approved harsh new austerity measures in exchange for a third European bailout. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras won the parliamentary vote by a vote of 229 to 64. But 32 members of his own Syriza party voted against the plan, including former Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis. Greece’s deputy finance minister, Nadia Valavani, resigned ahead of the vote.
Greek politicians approved the harsh austerity measures just days after voters rejected similar reforms in a referendum. The measures include retirement age increases, tax hikes, public spending cuts, pension adjustments and collective bargaining restructuring in exchange for up to $94 billion. Ahead of the vote on Wednesday, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras expressed his reservations about the bailout but urged Parliament to support it anyway.
“I will admit that the measures we are tabling are harsh, and I don’t agree with them. I don’t believe they will help the Greek economy, and I say so openly. But I also say that I must implement them. That is our difference.”, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said. [Shame]
The vote came amid worker strikes, peaceful marches and violent clashes between protesters and police across Athens.
One Protester said, “I’ve come here to protest against the austerity programming of the new—the austerity program of the new Greek government, because it’s an austerity program much worse than that of the right wing. And they are using the so-called, under parentheses, left-wing government in order to implement the program that they couldn’t do it with the right-wing and the center-wing government.”
— source democracynow.org