GRÉCIA PARECENDO ÁFRICA:
Povo aos empurrões disputando comida doada. Tomates, repolhos.
"Nunca imaginei que eu acabaria nesta situação".
Images of people struggling to seize bags of tomatoes and leeks thrown from a truck dominated television, triggering a bout of soul-searching over the new depths of poverty in the debt-laden country. “These images make me angry. Angry for a proud people who have no food to eat, who can’t afford to keep warm, who can’t make ends meet,” said Kostas Barkas, a lawmaker from the leftist Syriza party.
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| February 6, 2013: Greeks reach out to take fruits and vegetables distributed for free by farmers. Over 100,000 pounds was not enough |
Other lawmakers from across the political spectrum decried the images “of people on the brink of despair” and the sense of “sadness for a proud people who have ended up like this“. People have seen their living standards crumble as the country faces its sixth year of recession that has driven unemployment to record highs. The free food handout in Athens began peacefully as hundreds of Greeks lined up in advance outside the agriculture ministry, where protesting farmers laid out tables piled high with produce, giving away 50 metric tonnes (55.11 tons) of produce in under two hours. Tensions flared when the stalls ran out of produce and dozens of people – some carrying small children – rushed to a truck and shoved each other out of the way in the competition for what was left. One man was treated for injuries after being trampled when he fell to the ground in the commotion.
