Statement “On the coming referendum in Greece” (July, 2) Boaventura de Sousa Santos,
Boaventura Santos
Coimbra, Portugal, July 2, 2015
On the coming referendum in Greece
Statement 1
After five years of austerity and its disastrous results in Greece and Southern Europe, should we trust the European institutions in urging the Greeks to vote YES to the continuation of such catastrophic measures? NO, we cannot trust them. In solidarity with the Greek people and with ourselves, I wish we were all Greek this Sunday to vote NO!
Statement 2
I wish I were Greek to vote NO on Sunday. Neither the YES nor the NO to austerity measures will make disappear the problems facing Greece and Europe today. The decision to be preferred is the one that gives us a better chance of overcoming the hardships in the very near future, that is, opening the way to a dignifying solution and to the strengthening of democracy, both in Greece and in Europe. The decision that allows us to see more clearly the light at the end of the tunnel is the rejection of the austerity measures. The NO vote is a vote for hope against fear. It is a vote for a better Europe.
