The Rise Of Anti-Austerity Movement In Europe: A Case Study Of Greece
In 2010, a number of countries across Europe were dealing with indifferences and protests. Most of them collaborated together and formed the anti-austerity movement. As opposition in Southern Europe increased against austerity, most of them coincided with other major protests like the Arab Spring.
Most of the events started on 5 May 2010, and the biggest reason was to reduce public spending. It also opposed plans to raise taxes in the form of austerity measures. The movement mainly focused on solving the Greek government’s debt crisis.
On 5 May, three people were massacred in the largest protest ever took place in Greece. Much more happened after that. So, let’s get started on this article and draw some major highlights on the movement.
Behind-The-Scenes Of The 2010 Events
The mid-2000s did not prove lucky for Greece as the government misused its robust economy by operating a huge deficit. While most economies were already trying to cool down, Greece was drowning because of its key industries like tourism and shipping.
Both became sensitive to changes and couldn’t adapt well to the new business cycle. What was next? The nation started experiencing a piled-up debt, which caused the government to announce bad news to the world.
In 2009, Greece was declared to have ample debt for running a deficit of over 13% of global domestic products found in the country. Tax evasion continued to worsen the problem for the upper and upper-middle classes. The movement indicates the mobilization of grassroots campaigns that happened in multiple countries.
It was finally on 5th March 2010 when the Hellenic Parliament passed the bill on cost-cutting economic protection. The Greek Government, as a response, requested a bailout on 23 April. The latter was offered by the International Monetary Fund as well as the European Union.
Series Of Protests That Took Place In 2010
The anti-austerity movement was not a single reformation but a series of demonstrations that took place all around Europe. Here are some of the most important ones:
Prior To 5th May, 2010
Multiple protest marches took place in Thessaloniki and Athens on May Day and were conducted by several unions, anarchists, and left-wing supporters. A number of violent clashes started breaking out, and police had to keep protestors at bay.
4th May was when the Communist Party members of Greece force entered the Acropolis of Athens. Soon, there were huge banners stating “People of Europe Rise Up” all around the construction.
Strikes and Protests on 5th May, 2010
As a response to tax maximization and proposed spending deductions, a strike took place on 5th May. The strike began at midnight when all modes of transportation in the country were ceased, including trains, ferries, and even airplanes.
Private businesses, hospitals, and schools were shut down, and the protests rose to end the Greek military junta. More than 100,000 protestors came out on the streets of Athens. As more protests started taking place, some protestors tried to hijack the Syntagma Square parliament in Athens.
Protests That Turned Ugly
As time passed by, demonstrations started getting ugly. Protestors set a branch of Marfin Bank on fire, which was located at Stadiou Street. A few witnesses believed that protestors continued marching even after hearing employees crying for help.
A few others kept chanting anti-capitalist slogans, which were too cruel to imagine. Two employees tried to escape the fire by jumping from the second-story balcony and were later declared dead.
The demonstrations were so severe that even fire crews couldn’t reach the spot to save lives. Toxic fumes caused asphyxiation among the victims, and they choked to death later.
Anti-Austerity Protests In 2011
Just when we think 2010 was the end of the movement, 2011’s disturbing elements start piling up. More than 36% of the people of Greece were now said to have taken part in the protest.
The second mobilization wave rose as the Aganaktismeni movement came into existence. Cairo’s Tahrir Square motive inspired the latter, as did what happened in Spain.
The 2011 movement was now regarded as the movement of squares, which was a new phenomenon in the 2010 protests. It began aiming at the public spaces and targeting them for violent protests.
6 Significant Lessons From The Anti-Austerity Demonstration
Every social movement has an impact on our way of perceiving changes in society. Well, anti-austerity was no exception because it provided a handful of lessons to every common being, whether or not they belonged to Greece. Check them out:
Gaining Funds
A major drawback of the movement was that it lacked financial support apart from conventional institutions such as trade unions. Due to this, some activism couldn’t be virtually sustained.
But that wouldn’t be a big issue if funds were in place. Raising ample funds indicated that there’s a possibility of spending money on transport. There’s also a possibility of enhancing communication and political messaging techniques.
Great funds remove the dependency on free and unorganized labor of individuals who are working full-time. This simply indicates that activists experience less burnout, and they try to give the movement a proper shape.
Leverage Structure
A handful of anti-austerity elements leveraged the structure efficiently. There are so many quality networks that could be further used in different movements. Additionally, the protest was very much dependent on the climatic movement’s network.
There was a constant difficulty of people leaving the protest without giving a proper structure to it. This created havoc among activists, which was another major reason why anti-austerity didn’t succeed the way it should.
For future movements, there could be efforts to assign small responsibilities to primary activists. This helps them to understand their roles and take their positions seriously.
Demonstrate Solidarity
One of the biggest reasons why the movement was disintegrated is the lack of solidarity. There were instances when activists were hostile towards each other, and disagreements took place over ideologies and tactics.
All of this, together, contributed to excommunication and denunciations, which ultimately resulted in nothing. A protest requires common thinking, opposing one thing at a time.
Hence, it makes no sense to malfunction against our own people. It ultimately diminishes the movement’s chance of achieving its true goal. Protestors should work hand-in-hand, not against each other.
Taking Breaks Whenever Necessary
Protestors believing in their activists’ better conditions have proven to be successful reformations. There was a point in the movement when police held the group, and some of them ended up in nursing homes.
It is important to understand that even reformists need breaks. The habit must be inculcated within the culture, irrespective of the grueling nature of the movement. Breaks are important, and so is mental and physical well-being.
Anti-austerity protests were much more than men introducing themselves by talking high about their arrest records. It is not too healthy to glamourize the risks related to a march because it might frighten inspiring activists who are next in the queue.
Lead By Example
All the above suggestions were a lot easier to implement, but leading by example is no piece of cake. This was one of the things that went wrong in the protest. The Occupy London movement struggled to surface concrete demands.
The Occupy’s internal politics made it impossible to devise demands without ignoring a few activists. Furthermore, success in protests has a lot to do with socialist utopia. Achievable demands are no longer restricted to just being liberal and reformist.
Without a clear vision of victory, the movement will be in despair. It would become difficult to convince activists to continue even if a minor thing goes wrong. And settling for petty success isn’t what a social movement is about.
Control, Wherever Necessary
The left-wing is always on the lookout to dominate with the aim of bringing impeccable social changes. The goal is to ensure a permanent change. It is necessary to identify your movement’s leaders.
Train them and ask them to operate the movement. This gives them a clearer idea of where they need to exercise control. Activists can also consider a case-by-case basis to make way for independent campaigns.
Activists should always focus on taking power, and there must be a constant reminder of the same. Anti-austerity, at certain points, demanded power, which is a massive lesson for those walking in its footsteps.
Parting Thoughts
All the results of anti-austerity reformation in Greece proved one thing: taxes and inflation are two things that have a major impact on the society. Whenever there will be increasing taxes, the public has to set some demands for making their lives easier.
It is true that a few approaches to the movement were not too amicable. But that was the only way for the commoners to make their voices heard in the Parliament. In fact, the mobilization pattern also did not fit easily into the protest’s distinction.
That being said, this article comes to an end. Thank you for reading this through. Before you leave, do comment below and share your thoughts with us. We are delighted to hear from you!
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