Greeks Defy Europe With Overwhelming Referendum 'No' Sunday July 05,2015

 

Greece Resoundingly Rejects Austerity In Referendum On Bailout Deal

Greeks overwhelmingly rejected conditions of a rescue package from creditors on Sunday July 05,2015, throwing the future of the country's euro-zone membership into further doubt and deepening a standoff with lenders.

  

 

Thousands of jubilant Greeks waving flags and bursting fire crackers poured into Athens' central square as official figures showed 61 % of Greeks had rejected a deal that would have imposed more austerity measures on an already ravaged economy.
"You made a very brave choice," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in a televised address. "The mandate you gave me is not the mandate of a rupture with Europe, but a mandate to strengthen our negotiating position to seek a viable solution."

The surprisingly strong victory by the 'No' camp defied opinion polls that had predicted a tight contest after a week of rising desperation as banks shut and cash machines ran dry.

For millions of Greeks the outcome was an angry message to creditors that Greece can no longer accept repeated rounds of austerity that, in five years, had left one in four without a job and that shrank the economy by a quarter. Tsipras has denounced the price paid for aid as "blackmail", a national "humiliation".
"The message from the 'No' is that we're not scared after all the pressure that we faced from both Europe and within," said Stathis Efthimiadis, 47-year-old teacher.
"We want to live fairly and freely within Europe."


The result also delivers a hammer blow to the European Union's grand single currency project. Intended to be permanent and unbreakable when it was created 15 years ago, the euro zone could now be on the point of losing its first member with the risk of further unraveling to come

Greek banks, which have been closed all week and rationing withdrawals from cash machines, are expected to run out of money within days unless the European Central Bank provides an emergency lifeline. 
Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is due to meet top Greek bankers later on Sunday July 05,2015 and State Minister Nikos Pappas, one of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras's closest aides, said it was "absolutely necessary" to restore liquidity to the banking system now that the vote is over.

However the European Central Bank, which holds a conference call on Monday morning, may be reluctant to increase emergency lending to Greek banks after voters rejected the spending cuts and economic reforms which creditors consider essential to make Greek public finances viable, central bankers said.

First indications were that any joint European political response may take a couple of days. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will meet in Paris on July 06,2015 Monday afternoon. 
The European Commission, the EU executive, meets in Strasbourg on Tuesday and will report to the European Parliament on the situation