There’s something noticeably ironic about the fact that the current European crisis began in Greece. For the country’s woes bear a lot of similarities to a classical Greek tragedy, in which a man of noble character is destroyed by the fatal power of hubris.
The tragedy of Greece is that the entering the euro was supposed to be the finest moment of noble undertaking that would result to a high quality democracy and shared prosperity to a once and frequently war-torn country. Instead, after years of living beyond its means, hubris punished Greece and turned it into a wasteland of unemployment where devastation threatens the livelihood, security and dignity of its citizens. The collapse of economy swept like a wave from Thessaloniki to Crete, and Greeks increasingly realise that they have to kiss goodbye the middle-class lifestyle they had for the past 35 years.
And as the Greek middle-class slowly disappears, a new underclass makes its appearance in Athens’ trash-filled streets: It is the increasing number of the homeless and the hungry and the drug addicts. It is the psychiatric patients forced out from institutions that can no longer “afford” them.It’s the thousands of shop owners forced to close their businesses. It is the once proud pensioners who wait for the fruit and vegetable markets to close so they can dig in the leftovers and find food.
Some 70% of households have cut back spending on basic foods, health care and children’s education. Young couples don’t have children simply because they can’t afford it, while the country’s youth migrates to Australia and Germany just like in the 60s. Every three months there is a rise in anxiety as the Greek government panics about receiving its bailout from the IMF and EU, without which it would not be able to pay its obligations. The past week was such a time. The press was once again full of speculation about whether the eight billion euro payment will be made and how much more the Greek people will have to sacrifice to pay off the government’s deficit. Greeks went on a massive strike, in fact they called it the “mother of all strikes”. A man died, another one of the crisis victims. He was 53, a construction worker with two children who started working during his teens and had nothing to do with “markets” or “swaps”. But riot victims are not they only human cost Greece pays for its deficit.
Crisis kills Greeks (literally)
The general mood led Greek Finance Minister Venizelos to say that the Greek people are exhausted – emotionally and financially. And they are. They are so exhausted, they literally kill themselves. From being the country with a rate of 2, 8 for 100,000 -one the lowest suicide rates in the EU- warm and sunny Greece has seen its suicidal rate for men doubled. Andreas Loverdos, Greece’s Minister for Health, made a shocking statement that suicides have jumped by as much as 40 percent in the first few months of this year. Greek health experts have now reached the conclusion that there must be a link between the Greek financial crisis and the increase of suicide rate in the country. According to a BBC report, NGO Klimaka hot-line has received 5,000 telephone calls from suicidal people in the first eight months compared to 2,500 for all of last year, while 70 percent of those who called had problems relating to unemployment and overwhelming debts.
“We have callers telling us that they will drive their car off a cliff to make it seem like an accident so that their family and community will never know it was suicide” a health expert from Klimaka told the BBC. In fact,the powerful stigma against suicide that exists in Greek culture in combination with the Greek Orthodox Church refusing to conduct burial rites for those who have killed themselves implies that the number of suicides in Greece is significantly under-reported.
Psychiatrists worn that Greeks who lose their jobs, are more likely to suffer from mental problems, or even die younger and their children are likely to do worse in school. “The life and personality of contemporary Greek man are grounded on employment and financial status. It is not just about money. Making a living contributes to both identity and self-image formation and those who are unemployed face not only obvious practical issues but an equally important ‘symbolic’ collapse” say G. Bouras and L. Lykouras from the University of Athens, in a research study they conducted on “The Greek crisis and its impact on mental health” published in Encephalos Journal.
On Fire
A couple of months ago in Thessaloniki-Greece’s second largest city- a man stand in front of a bank, doused himself with gasoline and set his clothes on fire while shouting that he was in debt as he carried out the act. He could not pay back his bank loan due to failed business and the bank was threatening to confiscate his home. “Home” for Greeks is a vital part of their culture and their identity. It is a lifetime goal and they work hard to be able to have a roof of their own. And if the banks continue to take away people’s homes, it’s certain there will be more Greeks that will follow this man’s example.
Crete under stress
Over 20 suicides have been recorded for the past twelve months in the once carefree island, drawing attention even from Washington Street Journal that hosted an article on a the tragic story of Vaggelis Paterakis, one of the three recent suicides at Heraklion wholesale food market.
Paterakis, a typical Cretan mustachioed man of few words, worked day and night since he was a kid selling livestock feed from a truck. After years of hard work at the Heraklion wholesale food market, Paterakis managed to combine his savings with a bank loan and create his own wholesale food business. His business developed and soon he was distributing hotels and supermarkets. And then the crisis hit. Paterakis began falling behind on loan payments and Banks threatened the family with forced sales of their assets. including their home. In desperation, as many other Greeks, Petrakis turned to a harebrained scam and tried to sell it to a bank. But the fake was spotted by the bank. The police arrested Mr. Petrakis and searched his house where they found his father’s old World War II rifle, (a common Cretan memento). He was charged with possession of an unlicensed gun as well as financial fraud. But was freed on pending trial.
Next day, Paterakis went to work. He got into an argument over money with an orange grower who called him a “crook”. Being called a crook at the market right before they eyes of friends, customers and colleagues was a big offense for Paterakis who walked out immediately. He took his car keys went home grabbed his hunting rifle from home and wrote farewell notes on an old calendar. His wife found him dead under an olive tree with his dog whimpering next to him. “The banks have destroyed me. I’ve lost my honor over the fake check” he wrote. He also warned that other Cretans would suffer his fate. Cretan male identity is intertwined with the island’s history of rebellion against foreign occupiers, from Arabs and Venetians to Nazis, ideal of male strength and pride.
Pain moves up
In the past couple of months the pain has been migrating upwards and country’s rich have garnered headlines for high profile, financially-motivated suicides. Michael Kriadis, the managing director of an Athens advertising firm called Take Vitamin Ad, jumped to his death from his fourth-floor office after a proposed merger with another company failed. But Kriadis wasn’t the only businessman that just couldn’t cope any more. Journalist Costas Cavathas told BBC: “Michael [Kriadis] never borrowed any money personally, he always paid his taxes on time. Recently businessmen are feeling really desperate. Four in Crete, another in Kalamata, and another in Sparta, committed suicide because they could not pay their obligations. Everybody is on the edge here.”
Ashamed
“The Greek identity has suffered a tremendous blow,” says Aris Violatzis from NGO Klimaka. Greeks are ashamed. The entire world today thinks that they are cheaters, thieves and one of the main reasons the Euro is suffering. Greeks are the black sheep of Europe. Jokes of Greeks going abroad and having taxi drivers and restaurant waiters asking them if they have money to pay indicate the prejudice towards Greek nationality today. This is very hard to accept, especially for those who have never in their lives been cheaters or liars, and yet must suffer the tragic concenquences of a financial crime they never committed.
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