No majority for Greek austerity plan

The majority obtained by the governing Pasok party in Greece's local elections is not a confirmation for Prime Minister Giorgos Papandreou's austerity plan, writes the left-liberal daily Der Standard: "Even the voter turnout makes this amply clear: despite compulsory voting only 60 percent went to the polls, and of that 60 percent - another record in Greece - almost one in ten spoiled their ballots. Subtracting the votes for the Communists, the other left-wing parties and the conservative former ruling party Nea Dimokratia - all opponents of the austerity policy without providing any real alternative - and it becomes clear that only 25 percent of voters support the reforms. Despite the near bankruptcy of the country and record loans from the Europeans and the International Monetary Fund, the majority of Greeks hold doggedly to the role of victim and spin yarns about capitalist imperialism. Certainly, you can't expect people to go out and vote en masse for the austerity programme. But you can expect a sense of reality and commitment."

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