Greece passes austerity measures; sparks protest

The measures are aimed at reducing the fiscal deficit by 4.8 billion euros or 6.5 billion dollars by incorporating tax hike and reducing spending in the economy.

In a statement Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said, "The sacrifices will have results.

"Three years from now, public finances will be in order and we will have restructured and modernised the administration."

Though the measures sound good theoretically, will they reap positive results as planned by the government?

Austerity measures draw protest
The move, at the very outset, has been met with widespread criticism.

A 21-year old student Christina Vasilopoulou, who was a part of the demonstrators, told Reuters: "We are fighting the austerity measures, the cuts in salaries and the new taxes. With these measures only a small percentage of the debt will be cut and the poor will suffer more."

Many civil employees bombarded the government buildings and staged a protest against the austerity measures passed by the prime minister.

Around 12000 demonstrators came out on streets and some assembled in front of the parliament building pelting stones, burning garbage containers, and raising slogans to voice their resentment.

The protesters believed that the measures would unfold a series of cuts in the salaries and pensions of the civil servants.

A 21-year old student Christina Vasilopoulou, who was a part of the demonstrators, told Reuters: "We are fighting the austerity measures, the cuts in salaries and the new taxes. With these measures only a small percentage of the debt will be cut and the poor will suffer more."

Greece wins German support
Despite widespread protests, the latest measure by the Greece government has been praised by the European Union.

Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel commended the move by Greece saying that austerity measures will definitely help rescue the country from huge debts.

She added that Greece will not require any help to bail itself out from the crisis but if “it would be necessary, we would keep the financial stability of the euro under control together."

Merkel's wait and see strategy related to crisis is widely popular in the Germany as the nation strongly opposes the use of tax payers’ money to rescue a country that has spent beyond its means.

But if Germany and other leading European countries continue with this strategy for long, there is a possibility that the crisis could spread to other vulnerable countries like Portugal and Spain.