The Economics of Genocide: Made In Greece by IMF/EU/ECB

The Economics of Genocide

Made in Greece by IMF-EU

The depression and the MoU (memorandum of understandings) have evaporated around 65Billion Euros in relation to 2008. During the same period the govts cut around 23billion Euros whilst investments were reduced by 2/3 and the consumer demands of households reduced by 36billion Euros.

The numbers show with clarity the ‘miracles’ performed in Greece in the last 5-6 years from the governments of both parties who are demanding once more our vote to complete their destructive work in cooperation – during periods – in cooperation with other (vanished political forces like LAOS and Dem Left) but they surely don’t describe the extent of the humanitarian catastrophe which was implemented in the name of efficiency and growth.

The statistics produced by the Greek statistical body could be referred to as ‘Statistics of Genocide’ as they constantly remind us that no horrific achievement no new tragedy will stop the disastrous policies of the coalition govts in charge. A policy they follow with frightening regularity all these years towards the advantage of the banks, the big construction companies, the ship owners, the big tax evaders, the ‘investors’ etc

None of these give anything to the unemployed and with the semi unemployed constitute around 1.5 million with 1 million positions being lost, the strangulation of the welfare state and the destruction of hundreds of thousands of small businesses.

GDP

In 2013 the GDP was reduced in relation to 2008 by E65b Euros or by a percentage of 26% (It was 25% during the Greek civil war which only lasted 3 years!) The percentage as well as the duration of the crisis are profound for the western world during the post war period.

In the same period wages were reduced by 23b or by 28% whilst the consumer spending of households was reduced by 36b Euros or by a percentage of 22%> Investments were reduced by 37b Euros or by 65%

Industrial Production and Consumer Sales

Last October industrial production was 24% reduced in relation to the same month as 2008

The volume of consumer sales was reduced by 35% in relation to the same month as 2008

In relation to sales in stores we notices the following reductions:

-Big supermarkets by 26%.

-Food, drinks, smoke -35%

-Chain stores by -43%

-Fuel -34%.

-Clothes -50%.

-Furniture household items -50%

Employment-Unemployment

In this sector are to be found some of the ‘best’ achievements of the current government

In the 3^rd quarter of 2014 there were 3.6m in work 1m less than in the same period of 2008. A reduction of 22%

In the same period official unemployment increased from 355k to 1.3m ie around 900k

If we add those 250k in number who work so little that they appear to be more like the unemployed then the unemployed are around 1.5m

Let’s look now at the losses in the most important sectors of the economy in the 3^rd quarter of 2014 in relation to 2008.

-Agriculture -30k or 6%

-Restaurants 230k or 42%

-Construction 240k or 60%.

-Trade 200k or -24%

-Transport -43k or -20k.

-Tourism -2,900 1%

-Banks, insurance companies -28k or 24%

-Public administration, defence, social security 65k -17%

-Εκπαίδευση -34.100. -10,8%.

-Education -34k -10%

-Health -21k or 9%

The ‘family basket’

The median spend of the Greek family has been reduced to 1.5k Euros from 2.3k Euros in 2009. In other words inside of four years it has been reduced by 30% or around 700Euros

Greek households reduced their spend on food by 17.5% whilst they have stopped essentially spending money on clothes and shoes by 50%

The smallest drops have been the costs for education or more importantly private education as they were reduced even more than the reductions for food by about 17%. Greeks chose to eat less but to ensure their children continued their education

After the reductions for food we had reductions in health by 20% or drinks by 27% or housing by 30% hotels and eating in restaurants by 38% and transport by 40% (purchase of cars, fuel etc)

Social Protection

The Troika hit with particular venom against the welfare state using Presidential Decrees extreme neoliberal practices but in particular the  vile attacks against the social groups which had some form of social protection and the dissolution of all the networks of social protection.

Based on ELSTATs figures which only go up to 2012 (we do not have those for the extreme 2013) we are placing the main social welfare policies and how they developed to 2012 from 2009. They all develop negatively with the possible exception of pensions where here it appears the cost has increased not because pensions increased but because of the large number of people that went for early retirement.

Social benefits in millions of Euros
	2009	2012	difference	%
Mothers benefit	470	400	-70	-14,9%
Family Benefits	722	552	-170	-23,5%
Pregnancy benefit	100	48	- 52	-52,0%
Pension benefits	16.876	21.287	4.411	26,1%
Health benefits	1.102	1.010	- 92	-8,3%
Hospital care	7.588	5.270	-2.318	-30,5%
Care outside hospitals	7.838	5.110	-2.728	-34,8%
Unemployment pay	1.611	1.423	-188	-11,7%
Disability pensions	1.515	1.276	-239	-15,8%

Looking at the chart until 2012 that is we see that whilst unemployment has increased by 250% unemployment pay has been reduced by 12%. (Unemployment is only paid for a short period of time and then nothing is provided) At the same time by 52% the benefits for birth are reduced in a country where deaths outnumber births.

Hospital treatments have been reduced by a third and disability pensions by 16% whilst family benefits have been reduced by 25%

Between 2009 and 2012 costs were reduced by 5.3b Euros or around 8.5%

Only total pensions have shown an increase of 13%

In other areas of social protection the situation has developed accordingly

·         Illness 6K million -32%

·         Disability -395million -13.5%

·         Widow -550m -10%

·         Family 1k million -25%

·         Unemployment -56m -1.5%

·         Housing -677million Euros -58%

·         Social Care 112m Euros-112 -8,3%.

If in 5 years of Troika austerity around 25-30% of the economy is shattered another 5 years of this and there won’t be any economy left to realistically talk about.