29 Jun 2011

Greece passes austerity measures as riots erupt

With thousands of protesters packing the square outside the parliament building in Athens, Greek MPs pass a five-year austerity plan by 155 votes to 138.

Greece passes austerity measures amid chaotic rioting - reuters

Only one member of Prime Minister George Papandreou’s Socialist party voted against the law, and the speaker of parliament announced he had been immediately expelled from the party.

One deputy from the conservative opposition cast a vote in favour.

The vote suggests that Mr Papandreou is on course to win backing for a second law on Thursday.

The European Union and International Monetary Fund have insisted that Greece pass both Wednesday’s 28bn euro austerity law and Thursday’s specific legislation to implement it before disbursing the next 12bn euro tranche of Greece’s bailout programme the country needs to avoid default next month.

But news of the passing of the measures provoked more protests on the steets of Athens, after demonstrators against the plans had already clashed with police earlier in the day.

Tens of thousands of protesters, many of them waving Greek flags and beating drums, packed Syntagma Square outside parliament as part of a 48-hour general strike that began on Tuesday and brought central Athens to a standstill.

Demonstrations turned violent when a surge in the crowd overturned metal barriers, forcing back a line of riot police, who responded with flash bombs and tear gas.

Protesters using ladders broke into the first floor of an office building in the square and attempted to set it on fire, according to reports.

About 30 protesters entered the building, which houses a branch of Greece’s second largest lender Eurobank. They were driven out by riot police who were able to stop them from burning the offices, according to witnesses.

Leading up to the vote, newly appointed IMF managing director Christine Lagarde called for “national unity” in Greece to push through austerity measures.

“If I have one message tonight about Greece, it is to call on the Greek political opposition to support the party that is currently in power in a spirit of national unity,” she said.

Read more: How does Greece's bailout affect Britain?