Greek PM Risks Everything on Referendum

November 01, 2011 from Al Jazeera English

Less than a week after French and German leaders brokered yet another debt deal for the nation, Athens is now putting the plan, including a proposed 50 per cent write down of Greek debt through a referendum to be voted on by the people. However, the eurozone deal is not the only thing George Papandreou is putting on the line in the impending vote. With only a three-seat majority in the parliament, the prime minister is also putting his own leadership to the test with a confidence vote. Despite on-going protests, the Greek people themselves say they want to remain in the European Union but that the eurozone nations were more focused on the nation's ailing banks and less on the Greek people themselves. Al Jazeera's Rory Challands reports.

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Greece

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. According to the 2011 census, Greece's population is around 11 million. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, its urban area also including Piraeus. Greece is strategically located at the cr... Explore this topic

European sovereign debt crisis

The European sovereign debt crisis is an ongoing financial crisis that has made it difficult or impossible for some countries in the euro area to repay or re-finance their government debt without the assistance of third parties. In 1992, members of the European Union signed th... Explore this topic

George Papandreou

Georgios A. Papandreou, commonly anglicised to George and shortened to Γιώργος in Greek, is a Greek politician who served as Prime Minister of Greece following his party's victory in the 2009 legislative election. Belonging to a political dynasty of long standing, he previousl... Explore this topic

Referendum

A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal, usually a piece of legislation which has been passed into law by the local legislative body and was signed by the pertinent executive official. This may resul... Explore this topic

Bailout

A bailout is a colloquial pejorative term for giving a loan to a company or country which faces serious financial difficulty or bankruptcy. It may also be used to allow a failing entity to fail gracefully without spreading contagion. The term is maritime in origin being the ac... Explore this topic

2010-2012 Greek Protests

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Politics of Greece

The Politics of Greece takes place in a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Greece is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Hellenic Parliament. Between the re... Explore this topic

Anti-austerity protests

Anti-austerity protests, chiefly taking the form of massive street protests by those affected by them and some of them also involving a greater or lesser degree of militancy, have happened regularly across various countries, especially on the European continent, since the onse... Explore this topic

Economy of Greece

The economy of Greece is the 32nd or 37th largest in the world at $312 or $309 billion by nominal gross domestic product or purchasing power parity respectively, according to World Bank statistics for the fiscal year 2009–2010. Additionally, Greece is the 15th largest economy ... Explore this topic

European Union

الاتحاد الأوروبي هو جمعية دولية للدول الأوروبية يضم 27 دولة، تأسس بناء على اتفاقية معروفة باسم معاهدة ماسترخت الموقعة عام 1992 م، ولكن العديد من أفكاره موجودة منذ خمسينات القرن الماضي. من أهم مبادئ الاتحاد الأوروبي نقل صلاحيات الدول القومية إلى المؤسسات الدولية الأوروبية. لكن ... Explore this topic

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Greece

European sovereign debt crisis

Referendum

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