Services across Greece paralysed as unions scale up strike

Feb 11, 2012, 9:02 GMT

Athens - Greek trade unions scaled up their industrial action and protests on Saturday by placing an anti-austerity banner on the ancient Acropolis, as draft legislation for new austerity measures was set for a parliamentary vote at the end of the weekend.

The cabinet approved the new bill early Saturday, facing down massive public protests and ignoring the resistance by a handful of cabinet members, who resigned over the deeper spending cuts.

The bill is to be put to a vote in the 300-member parliament on Sunday evening.

Six members of the 48-strong cabinet have quit in the past three days alone, including the transport minister and deputy foreign minister.

George Karatzaferis, the leader of the right-wing LAOS party that backs the three-party ruling coalition, said he would withhold his support for the new measures.

European leaders have given Athens until next week to provide guarantees on the austerity measures and on the economic reforms that Greek leaders had promised in return for funding totaling 130 billion euros (171 billion dollars).

Meanwhile, the anger on the streets of the Greek capital was growing.

Unions placed a huge banner on the Acropolis in central Athens that read: 'Down with the dictatorship of the monopoly of Europe.'

Workers went on strike and police clashed with hundreds of black-hooded rioters a day earlier, with the demonstrations expected to continue until Sunday.

Public transport has been paralysed and hospitals were functioning with emergency staff.

The unions are protesting the measures, which include a 22-per-cent drop in the minimum wage, public sector layoffs and spending cuts to the health, social security and defence budgets.