Greek Protest against Tax Increase turns ugly

Greek Protest Against Tax Increase Turns Ugly

A general strike disturbed services in Greece,and violence erupted outside the Parliament on Tuesday.  The protesters are demonstrating their disagreement with tax increases and spending cuts essential for the country to receive critical bailout funds that will prevent a potentially disastrous default.

During the strike, lawmakers were inside the parliament debated new austerity measures which includes greece’s release of 12 billion euros that will prevent a drag down of European banks and the shaking up of the European economy.

Unions established a general strike because of pending tax hikes and spending cuts even on minimum wage earners.  This caused widespread out breaks that paralyzed nearly all public transport, even cancelling flights and bringing public services to a still.

There were approximately 20,000 peaceful protesters from which the violence began.  Hooded youths began throwing chunks of ripped up paved stones from building facades and steps.  This prompted the police to throw back tear gas and stun grenades to pacify the situation.

Police reports said the 37 policemen sustained injuries during the protests, while 14 people were arrested.  Emergency services reported that there were 9 protesters who got injured.

Greece, a place that is no stranger to violent protests is not expecting any derailment of parliamentary votes on Wednesday and Thursday.  However, these kinds of events help add to the atmosphere of deep dissatisfaction.

Posted by James Fried on Wednesday June 29 2011, 2:44 AM EST. Ref: MSN.com. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0