Austerity measures likely to pass despite enraged public
(AP) - A general strike paralyzed Greece a second day as outraged protesters gathered by the tens of thousands outside parliament today, where lawmakers prepared to vote on intensely unpopular austerity measures needed to secure the next $11 billion installment from the international rescue loans that have so far prevented the country from sliding into bankruptcy. The austerity bill won initial approval in a first vote last night, and deputies are now to vote on the details. "If the law is not approved, including every single article it contains ... the country will once again serve as the scapegoat on which Europe's historic, political, and institutional shortcomings will be dumped," threatened Greece's finance minister. More»
