“Who knows what tomorrow will bring?” people ask in Athens, Salonika and right across Greece.
There’s a sense of collective imprisonment, individual uncertainty and impending catastrophe.
Yet Greece has had a turbulent history, and the Greeks have always seen themselves as a gifted
people, sturdy and accustomed to adversity. “There have always been difficult times, and we
always made it through. But now, all hope has been taken from us,” said a small business
owner.
While the austerity measures are piling up, an avalanche of laws, decrees and edicts is sweeping
aside the social, economic and administrative frameworks. Yesterday’s reality is crumbling. As
for tomorrow — who knows?
Greek citizens are subject to a Kafkaesque bureaucracy, with its incomprehensible, fluctuating
regulations. Addressing colleagues, a civic employee in the Cyclades said: “People want to
conform to the law, but we don’t know what to tell them, [the authorities] haven’t given us any
details.” A man had to pay € 200 and present 13 papers and proofs of identity to renew his
driving license. Salary cuts among public employees have disrupted the public sector. “When
you call the police to alert them to a situation, they reply, ‘it’s your problem, you deal with it’,”
said a retired engineer officer from the merchant navy. Tensions are rising. Reports show a big
increase in domestic violence, theft and murder (1).
Salaries are falling (by 35-40% in some sectors) while new taxes are invented, some backdated
to the beginning of the calendar year. Net incomes have fallen drastically, in many cases by 50%
or more. Since the summer, a solidarity tax (1-2% of annual income) and an energy tax
(calculated on the consumption of petrol and natural gas) have been levied. Further novelties
include the lowering of the tax threshold from € 5,000 to € 2,000, and a property tax of € 0.5
to € 20 per square metre levied as part of electricity bills, payable in two or three instalments
(failure to pay results in power cuts and penalties).
Since the start of November, pensioners and public and private employees cannot anticipate
their monthly earnings. Many workers go without pay altogether. The state is reducing its
workforce drastically as part of its restructuring programme. Between now and 2015, 120,000
public employees over the age of 53 have been earmarked for “semi-retirement”, the precursor
to full mandatory retirement after 33 years of service, during which employees are obliged to
stay at home, and only receive 60% of their basic salaries. Once fully retired, many public
employees will be reduced to living on very little. A group of ex-railwaymen, aged 50 and
above, said they used to earn between € 1,800 and € 2,000 a month, a relatively comfortable
salary in Greece. They have now been posted to jobs as museum guards as part of a “voluntary
transition” package (2) and their basic monthly income fluctuates between € 1,100 and € 1,300;
semi-retirees are restricted to € 600. All are barred from taking on extra paid work to
supplement their income — the penalty, immediate loss of revenue, is enforced.
’Insurance payments have stopped’
The loss of income is tearing society apart. Bills are not paid, consumption is down, stores are
closing and unemployment rising. In May the official unemployment rate was 16.6% (10 points
higher than in 2008) and 40% among the young. The actual rate is likely to be much higher. The
social, economic and political crisis has shaken the national health service. Hospital and public
health care centre budgets have been cut by 40% on average. More patients are admitted to the
emergency room, others go to Doctors of the World health centres, and many choose to do
without medical care altogether. People report being denied access to crucial medicine. One
journalist said her father suffers from Parkinson’s disease: “His medication costs € 500 a
month. The pharmacy told us it will stop supplying him, because insurance payments have
stopped.”
Physical ailments (notably heart conditions) and mental illnesses are increasing at a worrying
rate. Recent epidemiological studies have shown that heightened stress, exacerbated by high
debt and prolonged unemployment, is generating “major depressive disorders, disruptions and
generalised anxiety” (3), which account for a dramatic rise in suicides. According to unofficial
figures discussed in parliament, the suicide rate increased by 25% from 2009 to 2010, with a
further rise of 40% in the first half of 2011, compared to last year, according to health ministry
sources. Figures published in The Lancet (4) reveal an alarming increase in prostitution, as well
as infection rates of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (5). There are unprecedented
numbers of homeless people, and they are no longer limited to alcoholics, drug addicts or the
mentally ill. A recent study demonstrates that the middle class, the young and the moderately
poor are now more likely to end up on the street (6).
The Greeks struggle to see a way out of what a social worker described as a return to a
“barbaric” way of life. They feel abandoned and unable to cope. Strong family ties are buckling
under the pressure of diminished incomes and a collapsing welfare state. Those who can leave,
do so. The options for those remaining are limited. Some turn to the Church, which arranges
soup kitchens and other social services. In Salonika, Father Stefanos Tolios of the Orthodox
church, is swamped by desperate people looking for work. Residents of several cities (Volos,
Patras, Heraklion, Athens, Corfu, Salonika) have set up community-based informal economies,
based on local exchange systems. Families are bringing their elderly back from retirement
homes, to recover the monthly charge of € 300-400.
No country could withstand this. Greece is worse equipped to deal with the social consequences
of the austerity measures imposed with a “scientific cruelty” (7) by the national and
transnational elites. Post-1945 Greece, with a weak state and clientelism, had neither the time
nor means to build a resilient system of social protection. The existing safety nets are now
tearing. “Everything is falling apart,” said Sotiris Lainas, a psychologist and coordinator of the
Self Help Promotion Programme at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Salonika).
Who’s to blame?
The previous government, under George Papandreou, scrambled to conform to the demands of
the “troika” — the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank —
for instance by cutting 210 budget lines in the health ministry. No thought was given as to how
the budget cuts would undermine the ability of essential (and viable) services to function, such
as the day care provided by the Panhellenic Federation of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related
Disorders. Thus the transnational forces, which for nearly 30 years have worked to erode the
welfare state, have passed on the task to national enforcers, themselves longtime beneficiaries
of a nepotic, inefficient, corrupt system.
Responsibility for the crisis has been shamelessly dumped upon the Greeks. Accused, but not
tried, they have been pronounced guilty because of their association with their inept leaders.
Certain sections of the population are exposed to popular fury: seen as a privileged caste,
public employees are stigmatised; doctors and shopkeepers are all suspected of untruthful tax
filings. But the people know that the system and their leaders are at the root of the rot.
Knowledge is not power, though, and the nation is left wondering what to do next.
Patronage and corruption have historical roots. Greece has never enjoyed a modern state with a
relatively autonomous bureaucracy, free from private interests, with the capacity to shape
economic and social development. Nor has it had a strong civic identity. Foreign powers have
imposed their preferences since independence in 1830 (8), when Greece was forcefully
integrated into the world capitalist economy in a peripheral position, kept servile and buffeted
by various great powers. History has superimposed an artificial political model on a fragmented
society traditionally centred on local loyalties, the extended family and community values. As a
result, the Greek political system has always been authoritarian and centralised, denying the
separation of powers, local autonomy or real democracy (9) — fertile soil for corruption and
patronage, which serve the interests and entrench the domination of the elites. The Greeks have
resigned themselves to all this.
They are not naive or ignorant of their and their country’s shortcomings. But they are destitute
and disempowered. What hope is there for a nation that has proved “fundamentally incapable of
forming a political community” (10)? Even if it wanted to return to the pre-crisis days, “when we
were living a lie”, as Lainas put it, Greece would be unable to do so. It has been hit too hard, as
the repeated calls for order and control make clear. Polls initially favourable to the new
government formed by Lucas Papademos, the former governor of the Greek Central Bank
replacing Papandreou as prime minister, point to the belief among some Greeks that a
technocratic administration might be preferable to the disgraced political class. This does not
imply an adherence to the austerity measures, but rather a willingness to set matters right. For
some, a strong foreign authority, mentioned by Mario Monti before he became Italy’s prime
minister (11), might guarantee an honest and competent government acting in the interests of
the country.
But everything points against it. Having seen off their worthless leaders, Greeks may not know
who the enemy is any more. “There is no enemy to fight,” said Lainas: “You can’t fight what you
can’t see. Their strength lies in abstract governments. Such as the EFSF [European Financial
Stability Fund]. The enemy may be abstract, but the tragedy is real. They are stealing our lives,
depriving us of a future.”
by noel burgi
-this is the downward spiral that is coming at us.this is what all the political parties did to us.
See why its so easy not to support any of them?
There’s a sense of collective imprisonment, individual uncertainty and impending catastrophe.
Yet Greece has had a turbulent history, and the Greeks have always seen themselves as a gifted
people, sturdy and accustomed to adversity. “There have always been difficult times, and we
always made it through. But now, all hope has been taken from us,” said a small business
owner.
While the austerity measures are piling up, an avalanche of laws, decrees and edicts is sweeping
aside the social, economic and administrative frameworks. Yesterday’s reality is crumbling. As
for tomorrow — who knows?
Greek citizens are subject to a Kafkaesque bureaucracy, with its incomprehensible, fluctuating
regulations. Addressing colleagues, a civic employee in the Cyclades said: “People want to
conform to the law, but we don’t know what to tell them, [the authorities] haven’t given us any
details.” A man had to pay € 200 and present 13 papers and proofs of identity to renew his
driving license. Salary cuts among public employees have disrupted the public sector. “When
you call the police to alert them to a situation, they reply, ‘it’s your problem, you deal with it’,”
said a retired engineer officer from the merchant navy. Tensions are rising. Reports show a big
increase in domestic violence, theft and murder (1).
Salaries are falling (by 35-40% in some sectors) while new taxes are invented, some backdated
to the beginning of the calendar year. Net incomes have fallen drastically, in many cases by 50%
or more. Since the summer, a solidarity tax (1-2% of annual income) and an energy tax
(calculated on the consumption of petrol and natural gas) have been levied. Further novelties
include the lowering of the tax threshold from € 5,000 to € 2,000, and a property tax of € 0.5
to € 20 per square metre levied as part of electricity bills, payable in two or three instalments
(failure to pay results in power cuts and penalties).
Since the start of November, pensioners and public and private employees cannot anticipate
their monthly earnings. Many workers go without pay altogether. The state is reducing its
workforce drastically as part of its restructuring programme. Between now and 2015, 120,000
public employees over the age of 53 have been earmarked for “semi-retirement”, the precursor
to full mandatory retirement after 33 years of service, during which employees are obliged to
stay at home, and only receive 60% of their basic salaries. Once fully retired, many public
employees will be reduced to living on very little. A group of ex-railwaymen, aged 50 and
above, said they used to earn between € 1,800 and € 2,000 a month, a relatively comfortable
salary in Greece. They have now been posted to jobs as museum guards as part of a “voluntary
transition” package (2) and their basic monthly income fluctuates between € 1,100 and € 1,300;
semi-retirees are restricted to € 600. All are barred from taking on extra paid work to
supplement their income — the penalty, immediate loss of revenue, is enforced.
’Insurance payments have stopped’
The loss of income is tearing society apart. Bills are not paid, consumption is down, stores are
closing and unemployment rising. In May the official unemployment rate was 16.6% (10 points
higher than in 2008) and 40% among the young. The actual rate is likely to be much higher. The
social, economic and political crisis has shaken the national health service. Hospital and public
health care centre budgets have been cut by 40% on average. More patients are admitted to the
emergency room, others go to Doctors of the World health centres, and many choose to do
without medical care altogether. People report being denied access to crucial medicine. One
journalist said her father suffers from Parkinson’s disease: “His medication costs € 500 a
month. The pharmacy told us it will stop supplying him, because insurance payments have
stopped.”
Physical ailments (notably heart conditions) and mental illnesses are increasing at a worrying
rate. Recent epidemiological studies have shown that heightened stress, exacerbated by high
debt and prolonged unemployment, is generating “major depressive disorders, disruptions and
generalised anxiety” (3), which account for a dramatic rise in suicides. According to unofficial
figures discussed in parliament, the suicide rate increased by 25% from 2009 to 2010, with a
further rise of 40% in the first half of 2011, compared to last year, according to health ministry
sources. Figures published in The Lancet (4) reveal an alarming increase in prostitution, as well
as infection rates of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (5). There are unprecedented
numbers of homeless people, and they are no longer limited to alcoholics, drug addicts or the
mentally ill. A recent study demonstrates that the middle class, the young and the moderately
poor are now more likely to end up on the street (6).
The Greeks struggle to see a way out of what a social worker described as a return to a
“barbaric” way of life. They feel abandoned and unable to cope. Strong family ties are buckling
under the pressure of diminished incomes and a collapsing welfare state. Those who can leave,
do so. The options for those remaining are limited. Some turn to the Church, which arranges
soup kitchens and other social services. In Salonika, Father Stefanos Tolios of the Orthodox
church, is swamped by desperate people looking for work. Residents of several cities (Volos,
Patras, Heraklion, Athens, Corfu, Salonika) have set up community-based informal economies,
based on local exchange systems. Families are bringing their elderly back from retirement
homes, to recover the monthly charge of € 300-400.
No country could withstand this. Greece is worse equipped to deal with the social consequences
of the austerity measures imposed with a “scientific cruelty” (7) by the national and
transnational elites. Post-1945 Greece, with a weak state and clientelism, had neither the time
nor means to build a resilient system of social protection. The existing safety nets are now
tearing. “Everything is falling apart,” said Sotiris Lainas, a psychologist and coordinator of the
Self Help Promotion Programme at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Salonika).
Who’s to blame?
The previous government, under George Papandreou, scrambled to conform to the demands of
the “troika” — the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank —
for instance by cutting 210 budget lines in the health ministry. No thought was given as to how
the budget cuts would undermine the ability of essential (and viable) services to function, such
as the day care provided by the Panhellenic Federation of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related
Disorders. Thus the transnational forces, which for nearly 30 years have worked to erode the
welfare state, have passed on the task to national enforcers, themselves longtime beneficiaries
of a nepotic, inefficient, corrupt system.
Responsibility for the crisis has been shamelessly dumped upon the Greeks. Accused, but not
tried, they have been pronounced guilty because of their association with their inept leaders.
Certain sections of the population are exposed to popular fury: seen as a privileged caste,
public employees are stigmatised; doctors and shopkeepers are all suspected of untruthful tax
filings. But the people know that the system and their leaders are at the root of the rot.
Knowledge is not power, though, and the nation is left wondering what to do next.
Patronage and corruption have historical roots. Greece has never enjoyed a modern state with a
relatively autonomous bureaucracy, free from private interests, with the capacity to shape
economic and social development. Nor has it had a strong civic identity. Foreign powers have
imposed their preferences since independence in 1830 (8), when Greece was forcefully
integrated into the world capitalist economy in a peripheral position, kept servile and buffeted
by various great powers. History has superimposed an artificial political model on a fragmented
society traditionally centred on local loyalties, the extended family and community values. As a
result, the Greek political system has always been authoritarian and centralised, denying the
separation of powers, local autonomy or real democracy (9) — fertile soil for corruption and
patronage, which serve the interests and entrench the domination of the elites. The Greeks have
resigned themselves to all this.
They are not naive or ignorant of their and their country’s shortcomings. But they are destitute
and disempowered. What hope is there for a nation that has proved “fundamentally incapable of
forming a political community” (10)? Even if it wanted to return to the pre-crisis days, “when we
were living a lie”, as Lainas put it, Greece would be unable to do so. It has been hit too hard, as
the repeated calls for order and control make clear. Polls initially favourable to the new
government formed by Lucas Papademos, the former governor of the Greek Central Bank
replacing Papandreou as prime minister, point to the belief among some Greeks that a
technocratic administration might be preferable to the disgraced political class. This does not
imply an adherence to the austerity measures, but rather a willingness to set matters right. For
some, a strong foreign authority, mentioned by Mario Monti before he became Italy’s prime
minister (11), might guarantee an honest and competent government acting in the interests of
the country.
But everything points against it. Having seen off their worthless leaders, Greeks may not know
who the enemy is any more. “There is no enemy to fight,” said Lainas: “You can’t fight what you
can’t see. Their strength lies in abstract governments. Such as the EFSF [European Financial
Stability Fund]. The enemy may be abstract, but the tragedy is real. They are stealing our lives,
depriving us of a future.”
by noel burgi
-this is the downward spiral that is coming at us.this is what all the political parties did to us.
See why its so easy not to support any of them?
Comment