Athens anti-austerity protests
February 22, 2012
CSEE and Adedy, which together claim more than a million members, called for protests in Athens and Greece's second city, Thessaloniki, over new salary and pension cuts which form part of the austerity program.
The pro-Communist Pame union has also called for a march to the capital's central Syntagma square, which has played host to numerous violent protests in recent years.
The rallies were timed to coincide with an expected parliamentary debate of reforms to the health care system that are aimed at lowering costs by up to one billion euros in 2012, notably by merging various hospitals.
A parliamentary committee was also to discuss the planned 107-billion-euro ($141-billion) writedown by banks and other private holders of Greek bonds, but no details of the discussion points had been released.
The deal reached early Tuesday between Athens and the international troika - the International Monetary Fund, The European Central Bank and the European Union - gives Greece 130 billions euros in bailout loans. It foresees Athens reducing its debt down to 120.5 percent of gross domestic product by 2020.
Many economists believe, however, that Greece, after its second aid package, will still not escape its debt trap without further aid. Many financial experts expect that sooner or later, another much larger debt "haircut" or writedown will be necessary.
dfm/ng (dpa, AFP)