An
unofficial referendum on water ownership
Thessaloniki's
water company is about to sold to a private mulitnational but
referendum organisers hope results of unofficial poll on keeping
water public will be heeded.
The citizens
of Thessaloniki will have the opportunity to participate in a unique
experiment in democracy today, when they will be invited to vote in
an unofficial referendum on water privatisation while casting their
ballot in the local and regional elections.
More:
Related:
Update:
According to
some info, the Greek government threatened to arrest those who will
make the referendum outside the buildings of the local elections! The
Leftist parties SYRIZA and former government coalition party DIMAR
reacted against this decision. Officials of local authorities have
also reacted against this decision, among them, current Thessaloniki
mayor, Yiannis Boutaris.
Additionally,
28 European observers arrived in Thessaloniki to support the
referendum, characterised this decision as a huge problem for
democracy far from the European standards.
http://www.tvxs.gr/news/ellada/%C2%ABfreno%C2%BB-sto-dimopsifisma-gia-nero-bazei-i-kybernisi
Update:
“Meanwhile,
in Thessaloniki an unofficial
referendum on the privatization of the city’s water company
will go
ahead, despite interior ministry objections.”
“Municipalities
backing the plebiscite said they would place ballot boxes outside
polling stations after the ministry said they could not be set up
inside. In addition, referendum organisers will use municipal
registers, and not the official electoral register, during the poll,
as the ministry said this was illegal and anyone doing so faced
arrest.”
“As
part of the terms of the troika memorandum, in 2011 the government
announced its plans to privatise Eyath, the state-managed company
that provides the city's 1.5 million inhabitants with water and
sanitation services. Although the referendum is non-binding, those
behind it hope that the result will send a clear message that
Thessalonikians want water to remain in public ownership. They cite
the example of 86 cities worldwide that have successfully overturned
privatisation and remunicipalised the water supply.”
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