Anger, Uncertain Future in Greece Following Austerity Vote

 　　Greece may get its next installment¹ of European Union bailout funds this week, after the country's parliament approved more austerity measures. As the country cleans up from massive riots protesting the cuts, however, Greece's financial future is far from certain.

　　Stock markets rose Monday following the Greek Parliament's approval of new austerity measures. The cuts are one condition for Greece to get more than $170 billion in bailout funds, without risking default on its debt.

　　Europe's largest economy, Germany, which has pushed for the reductions, cautiously welcomed the vote. A spokesman for German Chancellor² Angela Merkel said they reflected Greek efforts to put their country on the right track.

　　But approval did not come painlessly. As Greek lawmakers voted Sunday, angry protesters took to the streets of Athens and other cities, smashing and looting buildings.

　　One Athens resident, Sarah Saidi, blamed the police for the violence that she said came after peaceful protests against the austerity measures.

　　"The police have started this problem. They came into the crowd. The crowd was peaceful, moving, and they [the police] started it. But the people were fantastic," said Saidi.

　　Greek analyst³ Panos Tsakloglou said there is no doubt the population is angry at yet more belt-tightening measures.

　　"However, I do not think that these rioters represent all these demonstrators that were mostly peaceful yesterday," said Tsakloglou.

　　The vote appears to pave the way for E.U. finance ministers to approve a new loan installment to Greece when they meet Wednesday.  But Germany says it is still awaiting a report by international debt inspectors⁴ on whether Athens has fulfilled all the conditions for more bailout funds.

　　Even if the funds come through, there are concerns Greece ultimately may leave the eurozone, possibly prompting other economically troubled members to follow.

　　"The extremes are that Greece completely falls apart and fails - goes into debt, into a chaotic⁵ debt. And that, of course, will also provoke social unrest," said Steven Ekovich, political science professor at the American University of Paris. "Or that, and I suppose this is the desired outcome, that Europe does come to the rescue of Greece, but on conditions that the Greek government and especially the Greek population find unacceptable."

　　The latest austerity measures follow a series of tax hikes and spending cuts that have driven up unemployment and hardship in Greece, which is now in its fifth year of recession.

1 installment   

n.(instalment)分期付款；(连载的)一期

参考例句：

• I shall soon pay the last installment of my debt.不久我将偿付我的最后一期债款。
• He likes to buy things on the installment plan.他喜欢用分期付款法购买货物。

2 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

4 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。