Alexis Tsipras is between a rock and a hard place as his Syriza-led government is faced internally by a wave of social protest against pension reform and externally by the harsh demands of the IMF and Germany.
Already the austerity measures taken in line with the July 13 agreement with Greece’s lenders have caused a collapse of the government’s popularity as seen in the recent opinion polls.
According to the first two polls published over the weekend, a week after the election of Kyriakos Mitsotakis in the leadership of New Democracy (ND), Syriza is losing one of its three voters from the September election and it has been relegated to second place with a 3% deficit.
Social protests intensify
This week farmers will intensify their protests against pension and tax reform.
They plan to close with their tractors main roads in central and northern Greece and paralyze transportation in the national grid.
This follows last week’s protests by the self-employed, lawyers, doctors, engineers and other professionals.
Protests that will culminate with a general strike on February 4 organised by the General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) and the Civil Servants' Confederation (ADEDY).
IMF and Schaeuble reject reforms
At the same time, Tsipras is faced with the hardliners abroad. The IMF and the German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble have rejected the pension reform proposal.
They demand permanent changes and are linking the reforms to the medium-term fiscal plan of 2016-18.
According to reports, they estimate that is a fiscal gap which should be closed by an immediate reduction of basic pensions.
In this climate, the government is seeking to address differences through negotiations on a political, rather than on a technocratic level.
Tsipras will start a new cycle of contacts with foreign leaders and officials in Davos this week.
Source: thetoc.gr
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