Greece

The Artificiality of Greek Debt and its Odious Nature

29 June 2015 - by Ilias Bantekas

In April 2015, the President of the Parliament of the newly-elected government of Greece set up a Committee on the Truth about the Public Debt. This was composed of Greek and foreign experts, economists lawyers and others, as well as members of grassroots organisations. All members offered (...)
Why we should talk about the origin of Greece’s debt… and then get rid of it

26 June 2015 - by Tiago Stichelmans

The Truth Committee of the Hellenic Parliament has just released a report investigating the origin of Greece’s public debt. It shows that the debt is unsustainable, illegitimate, illegal and odious. Syriza now has two alternatives: repudiate its debt unilaterally or restructure it on the basis (...)
Break the chains of Greece’s debt!

24 June 2015 - by Collective

People across Europe are being crushed by austerity, a failed policy and false solution to the problem of accumulating public debts, much of which were caused by the bailing out of the banks. They join millions of people in developing countries who continue to be profoundly affected by repeat (...)
Summary of the first day of the presentation of the preliminary report of the Debt Truth Commission

22 June 2015 - by Emilie Paumard

The first day of the Debt Truth Commission preliminary report was presented yesterday 17, June 2015 to the Greek parlement (the Vouli) in the presence of the Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras and several other Greek ministers as well as other international dignitaries. The event was hosted by the (...)
Preliminary Report of the Truth Committee on Public Debt

18 June 2015 - by Truth Committee on the Greek Public Debt

The Truth Committee on Public Debt (Debt Truth Committee) was established on April 4, 2015, by a decision of the President of the Hellenic Parliament, Ms Zoe Konstantopoulou, who confided the Scientific Coordination of its work to Dr. Eric Toussaint and the cooperation of the Committee with the (...)
Greek debt audit - Definition of terms

18 June 2015 - by Cephas Lumina

The mandate of the Truth Committee on Public Debt is to examine the nature and extent of the country’s public debt, as well as the processes relating to the contracting and/or accumulation of the debt and the impact of the cuts or changes in the provision of public services, programmes and (...)
Executive Summary of the report from the Debt Truth Committee

17 June 2015 - by Truth Committee on the Greek Public Debt

In June 2015 Greece stands at a crossroad of choosing between furthering the failed macroeconomic adjustment programmes imposed by the creditors or making a real change to break the chains of debt. Five years since the economic adjustment programmes began, the country remains deeply cemented in (...)
Hellenic Parliament’s Debt Truth Committee: Presentation of the Preliminary Findings

16 June 2015 - by Truth Committee on the Greek Public Debt

The Hellenic Parliament’s Debt Truth Committee will announce on 17-18 June 2015 the preliminary findings of its works, examining the legality and sustainability of the Greek public debt. The Committee’s works will begin on Wednesday, 17 June 2015 (10:30am)), at the Senate Hall of the (...)
Greek crisis: Human rights should not stop at doors of international institutions, says UN expert

3 June 2015 - by Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky

GENEVA (2 June 2015) – The United Nations Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, has urged European institutions, the International Monetary Fund and Greece to show courage and reach a deal on the Greek debt crisis that respects human rights. In a statement, (...)
Is Democracy compatible with the determination of EU institutions, whether in Greece or elsewhere?

3 June 2015 - by Eric Toussaint, Thierry Brun

Interview of Eric Toussaint for the French weekly paper Politis 1st June 2015 I. Do you see the negotiations between Greece and its creditors as involving Europe’s economic and political future, and why? The political dimension is essential. Is it possible or not for a people to vote in such (...)
An initial analysis of the campaign of international support for the Greek Debt Truth Commission

3 June 2015 - by CADTM

In just over two weeks, the call for support for the work of the Greek Debt Auditing Commission, which was backed by over 300 public figures (including Noam Chomsky, Ken Loach and Susan George among others), has already collected more than 6,000 signatures from Europe and around the world. It (...)
Zoi Konstantopoulou and Francisco Louca

1 June 2015 - by Francisco Louça, Zoe Konstantopoulou

The President of the Greek Parliament Zoi Konstantopoulou and Francisco Louca, founder of the portuguese Bloco de Esquerda, discussing the Truth Commission on the Greek Public Debt (Lisbon, 12/05/2015) With respect to http://www.hellenicparliament.gr/Enimerosi/Vouli-Tileorasi/Tv-History/?d=16/05/20
Auditing the Greek Debt: unity of place, time and action, as in classical drama

27 May 2015 - by Eric Toussaint

Some major features of the public debt that is claimed from Greece: Like a classical Drama, the Greek debt is characterized by unity of place (Greece within the EU), unity of time (2010-2015), unity of action (the policies enforced by the 2010 and 2012 memoranda that resulted in a 25% fall in (...)
Why it would be good for the IMF if Greece stopped repaying the IMF loans

27 May 2015 - by Bodo Ellmers

The creditor community has another shock and awe moment this week, as more and more influential actors argue that Greece should stop repaying the International Monetary Fund (IMF) loans and rather use scarce public resources to tackle its economic and humanitarian crisis. While Prime Minister (...)
Définition of illegitimate, illegal, odious and unsustainable debts

21 May 2015 - by Truth Committee on the Greek Public Debt

In order to define the odious, illegitimate, illegal and unsustainable parts of the Greek public debt, the Truth Committee on the Greek Public Debt set up by the President of the Hellenic Parliament will use the definitions that follow. These definitions, based on the doctrine, the (...)
Terms of reference for the Hellenic Parliament’s Truth Committee on Public Debt

21 May 2015 - by Truth Committee on the Greek Public Debt

Background Since May 2010, Greece has been implementing a macroeconomic adjustment programme as a condition for accessing loans from the International Monetary Fund, European Commission and European Central Bank to help it reduce its budget deficit. The programme consists of policy measures (...)
Europe’s moment of Truth

19 May 2015 - by Tassos Koronakis

Tassos Koronakis, Secretary of the Central Committee of SYRIZA, calls for acts of social and political solidarity. From the organization of rallies and awareness campaigns across Europe, to institutional initiatives in local, regional and national parliaments and personal or collective (...)
Athens : Press Conference Committee for the Truth on the Public Debt

18 May 2015 - by Eric Toussaint, Maria Lucia Fattorelli, Yorgos Mitralias, Cephas Lumina, Zoe Konstantopoulou

Participants: Ms. Zoe Konstantopoulou, President of the Greek Parliament and President of the Committee for the Truth on the Public Debt; Mr. Éric Toussaint, Scientific Coordinator of the Committee and head of the group of international experts, historian and political scientist who completed (...)
Interview with Maria Lucia Fattorelli on the Committee for the Truth on Greek Debt

17 May 2015 - by Maria Lucia Fattorelli, Vmedia.gr

Here is an interview with Maria Lucia Fattorelli by V.media on the work of the Committee for the Truth on the Greek debt Source: http://vmediagr.blogspot.gr/2015/05/video_14.html
Eric Toussaint’s statement after his dialogue with Dimitris Stratoulis, Greek minister of pensions

16 May 2015 - by Eric Toussaint

After a visit on Friday 15th May 2015 to the Greek Ministry of pensions and a meeting with the Minister Stratoulis, here is my statement. It is clear that there is a direct relation between the conditions imposed by the Troika and the increase in public debt. The Debt Truth Committee will (...)
Committee for the Truth on the Greek Debt: A successful 2^nd plenary session in Athens 4 to 7 May 2015

13 May 2015 - by Raphael Goncalves Alves

After a first session in April most members met again for four days in order to account for their respective investigations, plan and organize what has to be done for the intermediary report to be handed in by mid-June. Sessions took place within the Hellenic Parliament where all (...)
What can we learn from Greece?

12 May 2015 - by Sushovan Dhar

The contemporary Greek tragedy of high sovereign indebtedness and the ensuant “austerity” measures have very few historical parallels. Ever since the debt crisis erupted, the infamous troika --- the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission — (...)
Zoe Kostantopoulou’s speech, Rome, April 20^th 2015

6 May 2015 - by Zoe Konstantopoulou

Here follows the speech given by Zoe Konstantopoulou at the Italian Parliament on April 20th 2015. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi7e7kfa3BU
Appeal to support the Resisting Greek people and its truth Commission on Public Debt

To the people of Europe and the whole world! To all the men and women who reject the politics of austerity and are not willing to pay a public debt which is strangling us and which was agreed to behind our backs and against our interests. We signatories to this appeal stand by the Greek (...)
Eric Toussaint: The audit will reveal what really happened in Greece the past years

29 April 2015 - by Eric Toussaint, Kostas Papagiannis

Eric Toussaint, a world renowned specialist on the subject of illegitimate and odious debt write-off, will be in charge of the scientific coordination of the international team of specialists participating in the Audit Committee of the Public Debt. The Committee was appointed by the president (...)