Hopes, fears for the future
January 19, 2015
Jorgos Sarandopoulos watches the TV news with some apprehension in his hair salon in northern Athens. Reports revolve around gloomy economic forecasts, warnings of bankruptcy and political muscle-flexing between the government and opposition. As a small business owner and young father, Sarandopoulos depends on stable economic and social conditions in his country. No other Greek election campaign over the past 20 years, however, has proven to be as divisive as the current battle.
Conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is fighting for his political survival, and warns of an exit from the eurozone in the event of a change of government. Meanwhile, the leftist Syriza party, which is leading in the polls, has called for a break with the lenders and for Greek debt to be renegotiated - or even canceled.
The economic crisis has made life difficult for Sarandopoulos, who hails from the Peloponnese. Like many other Greeks, the hairdresser hopes for an ease to austerity. He needs to pay off a bank loan that he took out before the economic crisis hit, when he had plans to modernize his salon. The business owner told DW that he no longer trusts in the campaign promises from politicians, who pretend they're able to reorganize Greek debt overnight.
"Our politicians will still be confronted with the reality as soon as they are represented overseas. Just like it was with Samaras: Before his election victory [in 2012], he wanted to renegotiate, but made a U-turn when he was faced with the sobering reality," said Sarandopoulos.
His greatest wish is that Greek politicians reach a bipartisan agreement on a joint approach to get through the crisis.
'Greece doesn't deserve it'
Leonidas is also worried. The well-off bank clerk from Athens, who didn't want to give his full name, says he has no patience for radical campaign rhetoric.
"We're in a tricky situation, and I can only hope that the parliamentary elections finally bring some stability," he said. "Ultimately, it's not about me, it's about my children. I want them to have a better future. Our country truly doesn't deserve the actions we need to take now."
But what would a better future for Greece look like? It's a vision that hasn't played a big role in the election campaign thus far. The country's politicians are perhaps far to busy playing the blame game - the record unemployment and the state's role in economic troubles have provided more than enough material for a pre-election war of words.
While the left-wing opposition pledges publicly-funded benefits and to roll back privatization, the conservative Prime Minister Samaras insists he will continue with carefully-regulated tax breaks and investment incentives for companies.
For Jorgos Sarandopoulos, though, one thing is certain: "New jobs can only be created in the private sector, and that could contribute to current or promised privatization." The 38-year-old believes it's precisely the archaic economic structures of the state and the power of some labor unions that have compounded the current crisis.
Loud calls for a political change
Evangelia Alexaki sees things differently. She was one of the 595 permanent cleaners at the Greek Finance Ministry who lost their jobs in September 2013 as part of a cost-saving measure. Since then, the cleaning ladies have held demonstrations in front of the ministry's entrance almost every day, waving their brooms and mops.
"We are fighting for survival. Our dismissal was totally unjust," Alexaki told DW. "At 60 years of age you can't get another job, or a pension."
Alexaki, 58, who comes from the island of Corfu, is putting her hopes in the leftist Syriza. She's sick and tired of the promises made by the governing parties, and believes people issuing warnings about political instability are just spreading fear in Greece and the rest of Europe.
"I'm not afraid, we need different policies. Our children are migrating overseas, our country is getting sold off," she says, fuming. "I've never seen so many people looking in the trash for food, or so many people who are homeless. We were promised growth, but I think we'll all be dead before we see growth."
On the plus side, the dismissed cleaning ladies have already had a small victory: Last May, a judge in Athens ordered that 397 of the cleaners be immediately reinstated. The Greek government has lodged an appeal against the ruling, and a verdict is expected as early as February. Now the cleaning ladies hope for a political decision - by a left-wing government.