Embattled Greek Prime Minister grovelled to his parliament on why the ‘no’ vote must turn into a ‘yes’ now.
Less than a week ago, Greece stood defiant. Thousands of people flooded the square outside Parliament, draping themselves in blue-and-white flags to celebrate the country’s sweeping rejection of the tough austerity measures demanded by its European creditors, which Greece’s fiery young leader had likened to “blackmail.”
But by Friday, the euphoria had faded as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s vows to stand up to Europe caved to the harsh realization that the birthplace of democracy stood just 48 hours away from financial ruin — and Greeks were poised to swallow what amounted to the same dose of austerity they had refused in a vote Sunday. “Each one of us shall be confronted with his stature and his history. Between a bad choice and a catastrophic one, we are forced to opt for the first one,” Tsipras said in a speech before his party’s lawmakers, according to local media. “It is as if one asks you for your money or your life.”
In the wee hours of Saturday morning, the Greek Parliament backed a last-ditch plea to creditors for more than 50 billion euros in emergency funding that could carry the country through the next three years. European officials in Brussels also planned to pore over the proposal Saturday afternoon. Approval from the 19-member euro zone’s finance ministers would open the door to restarting formal negotiations that had broken down in the run-up to the referendum.
Securing the bailout money could pave the way for shuttered banks to reopen, return some semblance of normalcy to beleaguered citizens and affirm this Mediterranean nation’s identity as an integral part of Europe. But it almost would amount to an acknowledgment that while the austerity Tsipras disdained may be painful — and may deepen Greece’s financial crisis — leaving the common euro currency would be worse. “The revolutionary moment has fizzled,” said Mark Medish, who served as a top official in the Treasury Department and the National Security Council under President Bill Clinton. “In effect, the no vote would be turning into a yes.”
But members of the far-left block of Tsipras’ ruling Syriza party signalled they were unhappy with the deal. Panagiotis Lafazanis, who heads the radical block and sits in Tsipras’s cabinet, characterized it as a departure from party philosophy. He and seven other Syriza members abstained from voting. Seven of the party’s lawmakers skipped the vote altogether, and two rejected the proposal. The insurgency could result in a political shakeup once negotiations with Europe are over.
