Greece braces for general strike over austerity

2012-10-18 10:31:33

Greece is braced for a general strike in protest against the next round of

spending cuts, required in return for another bailout instalment.

It will be the country's 20th national stoppage since the debt crisis erupted

two years ago and comes as EU leaders meet in Brussels.

Taxi drivers, ferry workers, doctors, teachers and air traffic controllers are

among those taking part.

Protests, which often turn violent, are also planned across the country.

Greece is currently preparing an 11.5bn euro ( 9.3bn; $15bn) austerity package

to satisfy the "troika" of IMF, European Commission and European Central Bank

lenders in return for its next 31.5bn euro tranche of aid.

The country is due to run out of money next month.

However, trade union leaders says they hope to show EU leaders that a new wave

of wage and pension cuts will only worsen the plight of the Greek people.

Greece is in its fifth consecutive year of recession and more than a quarter of

its workforce is unemployed.

"Just once, the government ought to reject the troika's absurd demands," said

Yannis Panagopoulos, head of the GSEE private sector union.

"Agreeing to catastrophic measures means driving society to despair, and the

consequences as well as the protests will then be indefinite," he added.

The BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says cracks are already appearing within the

coalition government as party leaders disagree over job losses and other

austerity measures.

Anger has led to a loss of faith in the state, he says, with Greeks

increasingly turning to political extremes such as the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn

party.

Although the Greek government has vowed to stay the course, social unrest could

yet prove explosive, our correspondent adds.