Austerity measures must pass in parliament to avoid threat of debt default
Tens of thousands of angry protesters turned Athens into a violent riot scene on Tuesday, as the demonstrations against tough austerity measures in the debt-laden country escalated.The latest measures must pass in two parliamentary votes Wednesday and Thursday if Greece is to receive bailout funds from the EU and the IMF that will keep it from becoming the first eurozone nation to default on its debts.
The clashes with police came at the start of a two-day general strike called by unions furious that the government's new €28 billion ($39 billion) austerity program will slap taxes on minimum wage earners and other struggling Greeks. The measures come on top of other spending cuts and tax hikes that have battered the Greek economy, which is currently labouring under an unemployment rate of more than 16 per cent.
Hooded youths ripped up paving stones and set trash bins on fire in central Athens as police gave chase and fired tear gas and stun grenades. Earlier, about 20,000 people had marched peacefully in two separate demonstrations, while another 7,000 protested in the northern city of Thessaloniki without incident.
Tens of thousands of people flooded into Syntagma Square in Athens' centre.
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Source: CBC news
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