Give citizens the star role to turn this Greek tragedy into a success story

Tomorrow [7 July] Eurozone Heads of State will meet here in Brussels to respond to yesterday’s “No” vote in the Greek referendum. Faced with this unprecedented situation, the French President and the German Chancellor will meet tonight in Paris to define a common approach. I have been listening since last night to statements and have been reading articles. EU Heads of State and governments appear to be divided on how to proceed: Grexit, an additional loan or ECB support of banks? I don’t have the answer to these questions but I know what the goal of all discussions should be: finding a sustainable and inclusive future for both those living in Greece and those in other EU member states.

While the Greek emergency has led to division between member states and finger-pointing, external actors still regard the EU as united. President Obama is afraid that an exit from the Eurozone will destabilise the whole region geostrategically. He has a long-term perspective of the situation and he strongly advises our political leaders to work towards keeping Greece in the Eurozone.

I would give the same advice, but for social reasons. The Greek emergency shows us that we cannot focus on just economic or social policies – the two go hand in hand. Our member Caritas Europa gives real life examples of the consequences of five years of austerity measures. 35.7% of the Greek population was at risk of poverty in 2013, compared to 28% in 2008. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the share of people saying that they cannot afford food has doubled to almost one in five. Greece is the only EU member state to have seen minimum wage decrease since 2008, and unemployment has risen from 17% to 27%.

There will be difficult discussions and decisions ahead for all actors in this crisis. I hope that the political long-term vision of an EU common project will overcome the financial short-term approach of finance ministers.

It is extremely difficult to argue that five years under the Troika’s supervision has ensured the improvement of the wellbeing of the population, especially those in vulnerable situations. Whatever the solution proposed later this week, the Greek people should be the focus of discussions, for a common future within Europe.

Let’s engage!

Pierre Baussand, Director