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Anastasia Balezdrova

The protests of "discontented" citizens with the parliament in Athens continue for the 12th consecutive day. There is insignificant participation during the weekdays, but according to some sources, about 300 thousand were present yesterday. The massive participation of people caused great enthusiasm in some of the most enthusiastic supporters of the protest in social media, who told that the goal is to gather one million people on Syntagma Square on the day of the vote on the new package of measures.

Despite this euphoria and the "revolutionary" spirit, a significant number of the Greeks disagree with these protests, because they believe that they have no demands, and therefore no proposals for the longed change. GRReporter discussed the matter with one of the skeptics regarding the protests. Here is what the 50-year-old Dimitris told us.

The yesterday's protest was really impressive. But most of the people who do not participate in it are not aware of its exact purpose.

They have no demands. They would say, for example, "Thieves out!" And would I ask: 100 of the 300 MPs in today’s Parliament were elected for the first time. When did they manage to steal? Second, the entire Greek society has been stealing since 1975. The only people who are not guilty for the current situation are children and teenagers under 18. All the others have fumbled in the honey jar in one way or another. They have benefited directly or indirectly and the "discontented" themselves know it very well.

They think they would cause a revolution by organizing a rave party. Yes, but things do not happen like that, nor they can expel politicians. But let's assume that all those who are in politics today leave it. Who would come to govern? What would they offer?

On the other hand, I have serious concerns that we are moving to a new national division as in 1914-1917. Half of us will be on the one side and the other half on the other side.

One of the arguments of those who support the protests is that politicians have already managed to split the public and private employees.

This is actually a myth. The number of people who are working in the Greek public sector is slightly less than 10% of the economically active population, close to the average number in Europe. The Greek public sector is not incredibly large, it is ineffective and meritocratic. When we are talking about the number of civil servants the issue is of economic nature and of moral, when it comes to how they were recruited and why they are not working. And here it is the politicians’ responsibility.

Tell me what are your major disagreements with the protests of the discontented?

I disagree with this movement for many and specific reasons. I think that we as a society should sit down and discuss – not curse – the reasons that brought us here in a very serious and sober way before protesting. What has happened since 1975 and who participated in it. Because I know that numerous layers of society took part. Let me give you an example: The endless agricultural benefits that have not contributed in any way to the development of the country and turned into cigars and bottles of champagne in taverns.

Greece is the country with the highest percentage of expenditure on education in terms of the gross national product throughout the European Union and its education is of the poorest quality. And I would like to add another example: 16 – 20% of the subsidies granted to Greek universities are spent on repairing the damage from student occupations, parties, meetings, etc. Let them stop spending for those purposes to have money. It is not appropriate all of us to pay for a party that somebody wants to organize, because that person decided to do so, or for occupation carried out by 30 people, or for thefts.

The reasons to disagree with this movement are numerous. I think what happens on Syntagma Square is foolish, not to use a harder word.

Do you think that some political forces would try to take advantage of the movement?

They are doing it already. Even in a negative way. It is known that there are groups of supporters of political parties who are trying to manipulate the movement and they are ranging from far left to far right. The system itself would use them to frighten the others and this is where I fear the split would be caused. But I do not think all this could have some practical effect. Furthermore, I find it a very dangerous phenomenon to raise their hands as a sign of harming and to beat empty pots. I would like to remind you this: For the first time in human history, a similar demonstration with pots was carried out by the people who paved the imposition of dictatorship in Chile against Salvador Allende. They provoked conservative citizens to demonstrate in this way and then made a coup. Let the young people who do not know the history hear this.

Do they have an opinion on the issue that there is a gap of 6.5 billion euros in state revenues in the first half of 2011? I would like to know which government departments have undertaken the specific cases, how much confirmed taxes are not received, which employees have not done their job and what their assets are. Let's leave aside the 300 lawmakers and start from the simpler things. But the "discontented" do not reply these questions. They simply shrug their shoulders and curse. They carried their behaviour of fans from the stadium on the political scene. Well, I disagree with those things. I disagree for hundreds of other reasons that are related to the daily lives of us all.

Isn’t the Greek society mature for changes?

It is not a matter of a maturing society. It was "eating" with the politicians over the past 40 years. The Greek society ate four European frameworks for support, ate eight other such frameworks in the form of borrowings and did absolutely nothing. All those over 18 years old have no right to go and speak out. All were "eating" in one way or another. They were making use of it. They were takings loans to go on holidays, to buy shares on the stock exchange, to go to SPA resorts.

All this money was borrowed money and it must be returned. Nobody gave it to us because we are the beautiful Mediterranean lovers. And I can not listen to arguments as "banks lent." This is what banks are doing – they are selling money. Why are you buying? You are not a child, so, you can not hide behind "I did not know."

Do you think these people do not understand what needs to happen to set things right?

On the contrary, I think many of them understand and are protecting the old things that are dying. They do not care that this country is also gradually dying. An individualistic bliss has been reigning in Greece since 1974 or in other words, everyone is taking care only of him/herself. Now, all this is gone and they must learn to work again to appreciate the efforts and savings, as my parents did. They have managed to create homes with deprivation and savings. Then my generation came, i.e. the 50 years old today who ate what their parents have created, took loans and gambled the future of their children.

Should I understand that you are completely despaired?

No, I am not a pessimist. Greece would enter a period during which the whole society would reform and learn to work and produce goods, because nothing remains if you do not produce goods. It would remain nothing no matter how many pieces you cut. There should be investment in order to have production. But investment with wages 30% higher than the German salaries - compared with the productivity of each country - can not happen, of course. A Greek produces 37 euros in an hour, and a German - 78 euros. This is very indicative. Germany, however, invested in knowledge and innovation, and we invested in establishments. So, we have to pay for this.

And because we are descendants of ancient Greece we know the Greek tragedy very well. Who is Nemesis (the goddess of vengeance - author's note) and who is Catharsis (the purification - author's note). This is happening now.

This is my opinion. That is why I and many others do not go to Syntagma.

Do you think the protest would grow?

I think it would break up steadily. People will go sunbathing soon.

How would they go to the sea when they have no money?

I personally have no money and I am melting in the heat of Athens. However, many people have houses in the villages. They would leave Mykonos and return to their villages. And those who have friends and acquaintances who have houses near the sea would go there.

It's okay! We are on the eve of the glorious 1945 and we have not budged at all ever since.

We will start from scratch. We lost two generations, but it is not a tragedy. Mao Zedong lost one generation too and China is a global force in the production of computers today. I'm not absolutely agreeing with everything that is happening there, I am just mentioning it as an example.

World history is replete with examples of lost generations. In the literature, we have the generation between the two World Wars. Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, to whom the phrase "you are a lost generation" belongs, John Steinbeck, John Fitzgerald and many others who belong to the lost generation of that period and still have achieved so much.

But let's see what happens. The history ended in Auschwitz and the gulag system whenever it was raped. This is what our experience of the 20^th century shows us. Therefore, we must be careful and personally I am against what is happening.

You said that the movement would break up.

Yes, it will happen. We had no twist in 1975, when different things could happen and the people were politicized unlike the "discontented" on Syntagma.