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Greeks Closely Divided Over Bailout Deal At Campaigns' Close

July 04, 2015
by RFE/RL

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has accused international creditors of 'terrorism' one day before a national vote in Greece that could decide if the country stays in the eurozone.

Varoufakis said the creditors, which includes the International Monetary Fund (IMF), had 'forced' Greece to close its banks 'to instill fear in the people' and that this phenomenon is called 'terrorism.'

But he said he believes that 'fear will not win.'

Campaigning was halted in Greece on July 4 ahead of the closely watched referendum -- with voters in a dead heat over whether to defy European leaders and push for better loan terms or seek new leadership in Athens to find a compromise.

Political rallies and new opinion polls are banned 24 hours before the July 5 referendum called by left-wing Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who has promised to ease austerity after six years of recession.

Rival rallies took place a kilometer apart in central Athens, while Tsipras made his final pitch on a stage set up for a rock concert outside parliament.

'This is not a protest. It is a celebration to overcome fear and blackmail,' he told a crowd of 30,000 supporters as they roared 'No! No!' to the bailout deal proposed by European leaders.

The 40-year-old Tsipras is gambling the future of his government on the hastily called referendum, insisting a 'no' vote will strengthen his hand to negotiate a third bailout with European leaders despite their warnings to the contrary.

If he loses, Tsipras has vowed he would step aside and allow a new government to carry out the tough spending cuts and tax increases the European Union is demanding in exchange for new loans and a writedown of Greece's $300 billion in debt.

Greece defaulted on its loans from the IMF this week and had to close its banks to prevent them from collapsing amidst a gathering run on deposits.

Elsewhere in town, police said about 22,000 people gathered outside the Panathenian Stadium for the 'yes' rally, waving Greek and EU flags and chanting 'Greece, Europe, Democracy.'

Evgenia Bouzala, a Greek born in Germany, said she was considering shutting down her olive oil export business because of the financial turmoil.

'I don't think we can keep going. Look at what happened in the last three days. Imagine if that lasts another six months,' she said, referring to the closure of banks, limits on cash withdrawals, shutdown of credit lines, and other financial obstacles Greeks faced during the week.

'A 'yes' vote would bring a caretaker government and that would probably be better...We have to start over,' Bouzala said.

Rallies for both campaigns were also held in 10 other Greek cities, and the drama remained high in the final hours of campaigning.

The country's top court stayed in session till the late afternoon before rejecting a petition to declare the referendum illegal. Political party leaders, personalities, and even church elders weighed in with impassioned pleas to vote 'no' or 'yes' on the airwaves and social media.

A series of polls published at the end of a frantic weeklong campaign showed the two sides in a dead heat, with an incremental lead for the 'yes' vote, well within the margin of error.

They also showed an overwhelming majority of people -- about 75 percent -- want Greece to remain in the euro currency zone. That sentiment lends support for the 'yes' side of the ballot since European leaders have warned that a 'no' vote is a vote to exit the eurozone.

But many voters confessed they are confused, and the nation's nearly 10 million voters won't get any help from the complicated question posed on the ballot. It asks them to approve or reject a two-part plan 'submitted by the European Commission, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund to the Eurogroup on 25 June.'

'People don't even understand the question,' Athens Mayor George Kaminis told supporters at the 'yes' rally.

'We have been dragged into a pointless referendum that is dividing the people and hurting the country.'

With reporting by AP and AFP

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/greece-referendum-campaigning-vote-euro-debts/27109607.html

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Greeks Closely Divided Over Bailout Deal At Campaigns' Close