ATHENS (MNI) – Anti-austerity protests accompanying a two-day
general strike turned violent here Thursday afternoon, as an employee of
the public electricity utility who had joined the protests was killed,
according to Greek media reports.
Two more protesters were reported to be in every serious condition.
The violent turn came hours before Greece’s Parliament was set to
vote on a new multi-year fiscal austerity plan that includes additional
tax increases, more public sector layoffs, and wage and pension cuts
that hit middle and lower income workers. The plan is intended to reduce
Greece’s public budget deficit to 2.9% of GDP by 2014.
The government of Prime Minister George Papandreou had been
expected to eke out a majority of 154 in the 300-seat chamber, but a
member of parliament from his ruling Socialist Party said this evening
that she would not support one of the articles in the package.
Papandreou has requested a straight up or down vote on the whole
package.
Police earlier today evacuated Athens’ central plaza, Syntagma
Square, where police had fired tear gas and other chemicals to disperse
the protesters, who responded with stones and molotov cocktails. The
parliament, which is on the square, was under siege.
There were conflicting reports about the age of the dead
electricity company worker, and about the cause of his death. Some
reports said he had died after being hit in the head with stones; others
said he had suffered a heart attack in all the commotion. It was
reported in some media that he was 45, and elsewhere that he was 53.
–Angelika Papamiltiadou; a_papamiltiadou@hotmail.com
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