ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Warning of a "catastrophe" that
would leave Greeks subsisting on food stamps and the country wallowing
in bankruptcy, Greek leaders urged lawmakers Saturday to pass more
painful spending cuts on the eve of a crucial vote to qualify for a
massive bailout.
In a televised address Saturday, Prime Minister
Lucas Papademos defended the thousands of job cuts, drop in the minimum
wage and other austerity measures that would earn the country a euro130
billion ($171.6 billion) bailout deal and stave off bankruptcy.
"The
deal will ensure our country’s future inside the euro. … A bankruptcy
would lead to uncontrollable economic chaos and social explosion,"
Papademos said. He added that a bankruptcy would lead to Greeks losing
their savings; the state being unable to pay salaries and pensions; and
shortages in import items such as medicines, fuel and machinery.
He
and the leaders of parties backing Greece’s coalition government —
socialist George Papandreou and conservative Antonis Samaras — as well
as Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos, a socialist — used stark images
of a country under bankruptcy to convince the public and, more
importantly, persuade Parliament members debating the measures to vote
for the deal.
"If we do not dare today, we will live a catastrophe," Papandreou said
during a parliamentary debate session.
"What
do you want, a country where food will be handed out with food stamps
and where we will have no fuel?" Samaras angrily told a dissenting
deputy.
"The battle is now. The war is now. If we falter, nothing
will be left standing…The real dilemma is between painful measures and
crushingly painful ones," Venizelos told socialist lawmakers.
Several
dissident lawmakers were unconvinced. At least 13 conservatives and
seven socialists declared they would not vote and two more socialist
deputies resigned, bringing the total to three. Their replacements will
be seated Sunday.
Typical of the dissidents’ arguments was the one
put forward by veteran socialist Vasso Papandreou (no relation to the
socialist leader), a former minister and member of the European
Commission. "If we say we do not pay the bond that matures on March 20,
all (Europeans) will rush to find a solution," she said.
Debt-stricken
Greece does not have the money to cover a euro14.5 billion bond
repayment on March 20, and must reach a vital debt-relief deal with
private bond investors before then. The country’s woes have threatened
its future in the 17-country zone that uses the euro currency.
The Europeans are waiting to see Greece finally act on their commitments.
"If
the right course is now set sustainably in Athens, Greece can count on
our support — but only then," German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle
was quoted as telling the weekly Der Spiegel.
"There can no longer be advance payments," he said, according to the
report. "Only actions count now."
Westerwelle
said that the "clear aim" is to keep Greece in the eurozone. But he
insisted that "it is not enough to approve reform programs; it is
necessary to begin the implementation of the reforms without delay. Not
sometime, but now."
The austerity measures included in the bailout
deal, including the layoffs of 15,000 workers and a 22 percent drop in
the minimum wage and pension cuts, have set off street protests and led
to the resignations of half a dozen Cabinet officials.
Lawmakers
are wary of voting for the measures and the prospect of more to come,
along with the job cuts and the shutdown of several state agencies,
including welfare agencies. The demands of creditors, including the
European Union and the International Monetary Fund, have caused one of
the original coalition parties — the populist right-wing Popular
Orthodox Party — to quit the government and withdraw its four members
from the cabinet. Two more cabinet members, both socialist deputy
ministers, have also quit. They cited their disagreements with parts of
the austerity package.
Both Papandreou and Samaras made it clear
that dissenters are not welcome in the party. Samaras threatened to
expel those who did not vote in favor and exclude them from the lists of
party candidates in the next election. "I want to make it absolutely
clear … rebels or ‘bravehearts’ have no place in (the party’s)
candidate lists," he said.
"I call on you to fall in line and vote
for this difficult and painful deal that will help (the country) stand
on its feet. Whoever has a conscience problem can resign," Papandreou
told his lawmakers.
Together, the socialists and the conservatives have 236 deputies in the 300-member
parliament.
Parliament
will vote Sunday on emergency legislation approving the new bailout and
a debt-swapping deal with private creditors. Further legislation
detailing the measures demanded by, and agreed with, Greece’s public
creditors, the EU and the IMF, will be up for vote a few days later. The
exact time has not yet been set.
Samaras also called for an
immediate election once the bond swap deal with Greece’s private
creditors is over, saying he would not agree to the extension of the
mandate of the coalition government beyond that date. Elections are
normally due in October 2013. The bond swap deal with Greece’s private
creditors is expected to help Greece get rid of some euro100 billion of
its debt. The bond swap must be completed before March 20, the
redemption date for euro14.5 billion worth of bonds. Elections could
then be held about three weeks later than that, at the earliest.
While
the two parties met, union leaders staged a demonstration outside
Parliament that attracted about 4,000 protesters, while up to 6,000
policemen patrolled the streets of Athens. The protest ended with some
scuffles that left two people injured when police tried to clear the
street in front of Parliament. Authorities are bracing for a much
larger, and possibly violent, one on Sunday evening.
Another 4,000 turned out for a peaceful demonstration in Thessaloniki, Greece’s
second-largest city.
___
Costas Kantouris in Thessaloniki and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this
report.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.