HappyAsHellas
30-01-2015, 07:35 PM
I came across this post on a Greek website and it makes for some interesting reading:
Since Varoufakis will shortly be entering negotiations about the Greek debt and the austerity programme, it occurred to me that he might start the negotiation with a question.
While the Greek government cannot escape some responsibility for how the austerity programme was structured, the Troika determined the savings that the programme had to achieve, the Troika determined the time-scale over which the savings had to be achieved and the Troika approved, supervised and enforced the programme. That programme has had the following effects:
1 GDP reduced by around 30 %
2 Government debt almost doubled
3 Overall unemployment increased to around 28 %
4 Youth unemployment increased to around 65 %
5 Suicide rate, which used to be the lowest in Europe, increased by 40 %
6 About 10 % of the population in big cities visiting soup kitchens on a daily basis
7 30 % of the population living in poverty with no access to healthcare
8 Thousands of businesses driven into liquidation
I could go on but lets skip to the simple question:
"Did the Troika predict the outcome of the austerity programme described above?"
If they did predict it then they are guilty of the biggest act of financial terrorism ever perpetrated on a country and the world should be made aware that they imposed the programme, totally cynically, knowing what it would do to ordinary EU citizens solely in the interest of protecting large investment banks.
If they did not predict it then they are guilty of gross incompetence and negligence. If they cannot predict with some reasonable accuracy what the consequences of their actions will be then they should not be in a position to define those actions.
In either case perhaps they should be put on trial for crimes against humanity or at least sacked?
Warwick[/quote]
Quite a pertinent question I think, and one that has to be answered by someone in a position of responsibility.
Since Varoufakis will shortly be entering negotiations about the Greek debt and the austerity programme, it occurred to me that he might start the negotiation with a question.
While the Greek government cannot escape some responsibility for how the austerity programme was structured, the Troika determined the savings that the programme had to achieve, the Troika determined the time-scale over which the savings had to be achieved and the Troika approved, supervised and enforced the programme. That programme has had the following effects:
1 GDP reduced by around 30 %
2 Government debt almost doubled
3 Overall unemployment increased to around 28 %
4 Youth unemployment increased to around 65 %
5 Suicide rate, which used to be the lowest in Europe, increased by 40 %
6 About 10 % of the population in big cities visiting soup kitchens on a daily basis
7 30 % of the population living in poverty with no access to healthcare
8 Thousands of businesses driven into liquidation
I could go on but lets skip to the simple question:
"Did the Troika predict the outcome of the austerity programme described above?"
If they did predict it then they are guilty of the biggest act of financial terrorism ever perpetrated on a country and the world should be made aware that they imposed the programme, totally cynically, knowing what it would do to ordinary EU citizens solely in the interest of protecting large investment banks.
If they did not predict it then they are guilty of gross incompetence and negligence. If they cannot predict with some reasonable accuracy what the consequences of their actions will be then they should not be in a position to define those actions.
In either case perhaps they should be put on trial for crimes against humanity or at least sacked?
Warwick[/quote]
Quite a pertinent question I think, and one that has to be answered by someone in a position of responsibility.