Two brief wrapups: 1. In his June 15 statement, Greek CP general secretary Dimitris Koutsoumpas declared:
"Today the deceptions that SYRIZA addressed to the Greek people before the elections, when it promised that it could effectively negotiate for the interests of the people inside the predatory alliance, are becoming more obvious. The people now need to enter center stage. The fact that new anti-people measures are on the table in the discussions between the government and the lenders, beyond those already included in the government’s proposal of 47 pages, demonstrates that the real way out is disengagement from the EU, unilateral cancellation of the debt, socialization of the monopolies, with the people truly holding the reins of power." Excerpt from http://inter.kke.gr/en/articles/D-Koutsoumpas-The-path-of-rupture-is-the-real-way-out/ 2. What are Syriza's concessions in the 47-page proposal? British economist Michael Roberts summarizes: The 47-page document sent by the Greeks to the Troika last week includes VAT rises, phasing out of early retirement along with further pension reform, measures to further deregulate the product market, primary surplus targets reaching 3.5% of GDP from 2018 onwards, an increase in the 'solidarity tax' on income, the continuation of privatisations and the 'liberalisation' of the energy market. But it seems the Syriza leaders will go no further and have balked at two further demands from the Troika; namely further cuts in pensions that would affect many of the poorest Greeks and a 10% rise in VAT on electricity with similar results. Syriza has now agreed to austerity measures of more than €2.5bn, more than the previous Conservative government had been negotiating. Excerpt from https://thenextrecession.wordpress.com/2015/06/16/nobodys-blinking/ _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
