The dreaded “memorandum,” the dirtiest 10-letter word in Greece’s recent vocabulary, is back on the lips of Greek people. A simple business term that became the word that shall not be spoken is now back, with a vengeance.
The unspoken word is even back on the lips of people who made a political career of being anti-memorandum. SYRIZA, Independent Greeks and Golden Dawn used their anti-memorandum rhetoric to win votes. The first two capitalized on the word and now comprise Greece’s coalition government.
Why then people who sit in parliament today cashing in on their pre-election pledge to abolish the memoranda with creditors are now saying that the new deal Greece is about to sign looks suspiciously like a memorandum? And why politicians and parties that were destroyed for signing memoranda are using the word again with glee?
Because Alexis Tsipras, the man who became Greece’s first leftist and youngest prime minister on the promise to tear up memoranda is about to sign one. After four months of vain negotiations and a new dive into recession abyss.
Tsipras came to power with enthusiasm and determination, along with the ambition to put his Marxist ideals in practice. Unfortunately, though, he came without any experience of how the real world operates. He has lived a sheltered life as a party member, which is a paid job in Greece. He has never worked in the real world and his business skills — essential in any kind of negotiations — are non-existent.
Many SYRIZA cabinet members and lawmakers have no business experience either, since, like their leader, they lived off political party money which the Greek state generously provides. Many of them were university professors and can hardly go beyond theory. They can analyze and theorize until they are blue in the face, but in the real world they wouldn’t be able to run a newspaper kiosk. Unfortunately, that applies to almost all Greek politicians, regardless of political color.
For the SYRIZA government, negotiations seemed like a piece of cake in the beginning. Fueled by political ideology and clean of any financial scandals — unlike their steeped in corruption predecessors — they went to the negotiations with the belief that a few political slogans about democracy, equality and social justice would suffice to convince creditors to give them more money with no strings attached. That and the belief that they struggle for the people of all Europe(!) as well, made them look like visitors from outer space on the negotiating table. Or children, like the IMF chief called them recently saying that talks can continue only “with adults in the room.”
But reality hit hard when state coffers emptied, Greeks ran to the banks to withdraw their money like it’s the end of the world, and the specter of bankruptcy overshadowed the sunny Greek skies. That’s when lenders stepped in and said: Sign a new memorandum, you can call it whatever you want, and we will give you enough cash to stay afloat. As for restructuring the Greek debt, we will discuss that after you implement crucial fiscal reforms.
Coming out of Monday’s Eurozone summit, Alexis Tsipras looked like a pupil who had received a beating from his teachers. Like a child who learned the lesson that in order to take something you must give something else in return. It was a “take it or leave it” situation, five minutes ’til midnight. He wanted to ask for debt restructure but probably Europe and the International Monetary Fund shook the finger at him.
According to the government’s defiant statements, no agreement would be accepted unless it included the assurance of debt restructure. Now they are about to sign a deal that will include harsh austerity measures without the promise of debt restructuring. Also, it will not be a comprehensive deal like the Greek prime minister wants but it will probably be an extension on the current austerity bailout program. As for the famous “red lines,” they faded in rainy Brussels.
Furthermore, analysts say that the austerity measures Athens is about to sign are more harsh than the ones the previous government was ready to sign.
So, the agony for Greece will continue. The fear of deadlines and crucial meeting dates, the Greek market uncertainty, and heavy taxation will lead Greek people to more poverty and despair, the two things that neither this nor the previous governments were able to tackle.
The greatest pathogeny of Greek politics is that most political parties are born out of its pathogenies. It is ironic, and sad, but Greek politics and policies are based on these pathogenies. For instance, ever since democracy was restored in 1974, there was no party that didn’t inflate the public sector or stayed clear of nepotism and clientelism practices. Not even the first ever leftist government. They all promise change but they fight tooth and nail to preserve statism and old practices.
So creditors are reluctant to bail Greece out for the third time unless there are comprehensive reforms and guarantees that the present government — or any government from now on — will finally go in sync with European Union financial policies.
So, the “Groundhog Day” feeling will continue, along with Greek people reenacting the tale of Sisyphus.
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