Greek protesters unfurled banners over the defensive walls of the ancient Acropolis today in protest at harsh new austerity measures as strikes began across the country.

About 100 protesters from the Greek Communist Party cut through locks on the gates of the country's most famous monument and tourist attraction and unfurled the banners in Greek and English reading: "Peoples of Europe - Rise Up."

Police did not intervene as the protesters carrying red flags stood beside the ancient Parthenon, next to the two large banners. The demonstrators did not attempt to prevent tourists from visiting the site.

Greece's cash-strapped government has announced spending cuts worth 30 billion euro through to 2012, to secure a vital rescue package of loans from the International Monetary Fund and the other 15 European Union countries using the euro.

The measures will result in deeper cuts in pensions and public servants' pay, and a hike in consumer taxes.

Public servants, including teachers and hospital workers, began a 48-hour strike today, with protest marches planned later.

Workers in the private sector are due to join them tomorrow for a nationwide general strike that is expected to shut down all services across the country, grounding flights and halting public transport. Shop owners have said they will also walk off the job and close their businesses for the day.

Union leaders say the cuts target low-income Greeks.

"There are other things the (government) can do, before taking money from a pensioner who earns 500 euro a month," Spyros Papaspyros, leader of the public servants' union ADEDY, told Mega television.

Yesterday protesting teachers forced their way into Greece's state television building, disrupting programming.

With debts of 300 billion euro and a budget deficit of 13.6% of gross domestic product, Greece has been struggling to put its finances in order and was less than three weeks away from default when the eurozone finance ministers agreed on Sunday to activate the three-year eurozone and IMF rescue.