The civil servants' union (ADEDY) called on public sector employees to participate in a nationwide 24-hour strike on Tuesday, March 16, in protest the government's austerity measures involving the wider public sector in the country. Taxi owners will hold a 48-hour strike on Tuesday and Wednesday in protest against government measures requiring them to provide receipts to customers. A taxi driver kicks the car of a colleague accused for breaking their 48-hour strike during a rally in Athens, March 2, 2010. The drivers abandoned their vehicles on Tuesday, taking to the streets to march in protest at a tax clampdown, though polls indicated relatively strong public support for the government's budget measures.
PM chairs Cabinet meeting on justice sector
Prime minister George Papandreou on Monday chaired a Cabinet meeting on justice sector issues, which was also attended by the presidents of the country's three highest courts and the Areios Pagos (Supreme Court) prosecutor.
Papandreou stressed, in his opening address, that the people need to feel that Justice protects them and that, in recent years, there has been a sentiment that the power of law has been overshadowed by the power of the mighty, and called on the high courts' functionaries to frankly state their views for a justice system worthy of the expectations of the Greek people.
The premier said that his government is prepared to give an answer on all those issues with courage and determination, and create the feeling that those who breach their duties and those who break the law will be punished.
The justice system is not functioning in a way that protects the citizens from lawlessness, and the sentiment is that no one is punished in Greece, while the Greek citizens and leaders of the European Union countries are asking whether Justice exists in Greece, Papandreou said, adding that frequently economic crime remains unpunished, citing a series of examples in which, "for reasons of inconceivable bureaucracy" or faulty attitude, many cases are judged at the expense of the citizen and the proper attribution of justice.
"We can't go on like this," the premier stressed, adding that "as Justice is a foundation of Democracy, it must be attributed quickly and qualitatively...This is the demand of the citizens, and the government is determined to materialise this".
Papandreou further spoke of phenomena of manipulation of justice by the political authority, which he said gave rise to serious questions on the distinction of the authorities, adding that his government has begun efforts to restore a democratic system of selection of the justice leadership.
Turning to the crisis Greece is facing, the premier stressed that it is a political crisis that is only the tip of the iceberg of a generalised crisis, and that is why it is necessary to tackle the causes of the crisis and not only the symptom, namely the political crisis.
In recent years, he added, there has been corruption and extensive lawlessness in Greece, coupled by a weakness of the institutions to put a check on the phenomena of lawlessness.
Papandreou said his government is calling for rallying together to save the country, adding that the overwhelming majority of the Greek people are willing to help in this, despite the endless and unjust defamation the country has recently undergone. However, he continued, the citizens need also to see that their sacrifices are not in vain and that the state is taking them and their problems seriously, and that it is punishing those who break the law and breach their duties.
03.03.2010
