Greek police fired water cannon and fought running battles with protesters hurling petrol bombs outside Parliament yesterday during the biggest rally in over a year against spending cuts that the country must approve to avert bankruptcy.
Nearly 100,000 Greeks waving flags and chanting “Fight! They’re drinking our blood” packed the square outside Parliament as lawmakers neared a vote on unpopular budget cuts and labour reforms.
Violence erupted when a handful of protesters tried to break through a barricade to enter Parliament, prompting riot police to respond with teargas, stun grenades and, for the first time in an anti-austerity protest, water cannon.
More chaos reigned inside the assembly, where the session was briefly interrupted when parliamentary workers went on strike to protest against a clause that would have cut their salaries.
In a humiliating about-face, the Government was forced to cancel the measure to allow the session to resume.
“Today we vote on whether we will remain in the eurozone or return to international isolation, meet complete bankruptcy and end up in the drachma,” Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said in a final plea to lawmakers to back the cuts and unlock aid.Outside, loud booms rang out through the evening as hooded protesters hurled molotov cocktails and rocks at police. Billowing smoke and small fires dotted the square and streets next to Parliament.
At least 35 people were detained. There were no reports of serious injuries but at least four protesters suffered breathing problems, police said, as protesters dispersed in pouring rain.
The anti-austerity rally appeared to be the largest in Athens since summer last year.
“These measures are killing us little by little and lawmakers in there don’t give a damn,” said Maria Aliferopoulou, a 52-year-old mother of two living on €1,000 a month.
“You live in constant fear and uncertainty. You never know what’s waiting for you around the corner,” said Panos Goutsis, 58, who works in a small corner shop in Athens.
“How many times will they tell us these are the last measures? We’re sick of hearing it.”
Earlier, EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn called on the Greek Parliament to do its part in securing its next tranche of bailout aid by passing the measures.