13th Symi Symposium in Poros | Prime Minister’s speech

Poros, July 15 2010

Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen, dear colleagues, MPs of the region, I wish first of all to thank the Mayor of Poros, Dimitris Stratigos, our host for the next few days, as well as of course the regional Governor of Piraeus, Giannis Mihas, who is welcoming us to the broader Argosaronikos region for his hospitality this evening.

Giannis’ gift clearly tells me, that I shall continue to run for quite some time but it is worth the effort. It is indeed worth the effort and we welcome your support for the successful outcome of the Symi Symposium.

We are gathered here on Poros, for the Symposium’s 13th year, to discuss issues that concern the world, Europe and of course Greece that finds itself at the center of this crisis these last months. We have talked about the important challenges, the international financial crisis, climate change, inequality issues as many of these questions by now have a common origin.

Common answers must be given therefore by the world’s progressive forces. Before I come to the details of the proceedings, I want us to recall the situation a few months back and remember that it was not at all obvious that we could have such a meeting a few months ago, since our country had found itself, a few months ago, at the center of an unprecedented and violent I would say crisis. For many months we were all forced to deal with a crisis that was facing us directly.

A crisis which if we allowed it to develop, without any decisive intervention on our part, without working systematically, would have simply led us to bankruptcy and, of course, from bankruptcy to pessimism and lasting and deep decline.

Ladies and gentlemen, this last year assuredly was the most difficult year of the last decades for Greece. In a matter of months, we were forced to experience in the harshest and most violent way the tragic consequences of a double crisis: the international financial crisis on the one hand, as well as the domestic crisis that was accelerated and aggravated by the former.

This crisis was the result of deep-rooted mentalities, of a state that did not respect itself, of perceptions and practices that hade created a Greece plagued by corruption and impunity and distorted economic development, as well as social and economic injustice since all these phenomena generated inequality, injustice, the law of the strongest and not the law of fairness, the power of the law.

These were the causes that brought us on the brink of bankruptcy, a harsh reality that we lived more intensely than ever before unfortunately because of the policies implemented during the last six years, in particular, by a conservative government which, instead on building on the many opportunities our country had chose instead of ridding the country from its pathogenic conditions to use these pathogenic conditions and invest in them in order to serve vested interests and petty partisan expediencies.

Conservative views but also views of self-interested groups that have always been against the country and society’s collective interest and have wanted for years to keep us, to keep Greece immobilized, without ever changing anything.

Ladies and gentlemen, before the elections of last October, we knew that we were taking over a country with many problems and inequities and we promised and are promising to change it. What we had to face, though was something unprecedented. We found ourselves looking at collapse, the possibility that the country would go bankrupt, a totally corrupt, inefficient, wasteful, unfair state and a country that had lost all credit in the eyes of our partners and international markets.

But we did not hesitate, not even for one moment, to take on our responsibilities, our historical responsibilities; leading Greece out of the crisis was our first priority, we waged battles on all fronts in order to keep Greece on its feet, we fought to convince our partners, to convince the markets that Greece is a deserving country, a country capable of assuming its responsibilities, a trustworthy country, a country that can correct its mistakes.

And we have succeeded and I mean all together, not only the government but the whole of the Greek people who are today making persistent and often very difficult efforts for the benefit of us all.  Within nine months we managed to do the impossible, to avoid collapse, to prove that Greece was again trustworthy, to convince the European Union of the need for solidarity and coordination.

And we were able to obtain both political and material solidarity, by securing € 100 billion in loans that will of course be repaid, the largest financing program ever created, in order to have time as our ally, time to do the things that had not been done for years. To change what had to change, major structural changes in our state and economy.

These are changes that will lead us to prosperity, to the correction of inequities and to a new growth model and, more important, will allow us in the end to secure our own autonomy, our own right to determine our fate, our own right to shape our decisions and priorities and no longer rely on borrowed resources.

They will allow us to develop our own capabilities, with imagination, initiative, collective endeavor, by drawing upon our competitive advantages, promoting the best we have and we have so many good things, pride, love for our work, self-esteem, pride in our country, Greece, hospitality for any person coming to Greece, rectitude, sincerity and community spirit. And then there are our traditions, for which we are proud, traditions though that we sometimes forget and must enhance again in a new environment, through renewed efforts, a new beginning.

All together in the course of last year we were able to demonstrate something very important. We have shown that we can do even the difficult things if we want to. This does not mean that all problems have finally and irrevocably been resolved, far from it.

We are still at the beginning of our joint efforts. We have, however, made a good start, we have made it all together and the time has now come to continue because we can not only save Greece from bankruptcy as we did, but also build a different Greece, a Greece that shall no longer have to face such a crisis again.

I want you all to know that our people’s expectation for change is great, as Giannis said and this great expectation for a better future will not be lost and their efforts, our efforts to lead the country away from the impasse and open up new prospects will not be lost.

We have already completed a large part of the difficult effort we are undertaking. We have done what we should to save the country. There is still much that needs to be done, I would say more creative things in the next few years, in order to change Greece drastically.

One thing is certain though; as we move on conditions will be improving and prospects will become more positive. I am now much more optimistic and certain that we can soon create a fairer, more robust, more modern, more easy-to-live and more pleasant Greece, a more human Greece. This is an essential condition for moving forward and work together with all our society’s creative forces for this Greece of growth, justice, social protection.

An as the Mayor and the Regional Governor have said, the potential of the local community, local government is now released under the new law, the revolutionary I would say “Callicrates” law, generating new opportunities for self-government.

This collective effort has been recorded today in another act that I want to salute. I salute the signing of the collective agreement between the social partners, i.e. the workers of the General Workers’ Confederation and the employers of the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises. The signing today of this three-year collective agreement symbolizes our shared will to overcome difficulties together, but also symbolizes our joint resolve to bring changes and make these changes a reality.

So, the challenge ahead of us is huge, but I am certain that as we did during the past months when we proved also to ourselves that we were able to do it, because there were many who were saying, “can we do it?” the answer is, We can do it!

We managed to stand on our own two feet and in the same way, with the same resources and the same will we shall leave behind us, once and for all, the decline phenomena that have led us to what we recently experienced. These are very big challenges. The changes we have to implement are so many and have to be made in a very short period and this is why a meeting like the Symi Symposium is so important.

It allows to come in contact with new ideas, methods, experiences and progressive policies; find among us people, friends who wish to contribute who have had similar experience, people from our neighborhood, from Europe, as well as people from the other end of the world and/or people who had to deal with similar situations like Leif Pagroski from Sweden, Kemal Dervis from Turkey who came to power under precisely the same conditions as Greece has faced and is still facing.

In an unprecedented period for the country it would be arrogant on the part of anyone to affirm that they know the whole truth, that they have all solutions ready in their hands, refusing to explore all possibilities, to discuss any probable good and new idea, especially when we are going though a period when we, as well as Europe and the rest of the world are facing unprecedented challenges.

In fact, many of the ideas underpinning our options today and which constitute the core of our policies, our ideas, like green development, citizens’ access to public information, citizens’ participation in the decision-making process, electronic governance, regional decentralization, were born from the many discussions we had among us, we the progressive people here at the Symi Symposium and at the Socialist International and on which we are now drawing as a government.

These productive discussions were particularly useful this year as well because there are politicians here of great caliber, the President of Esthonia, our friend Ségolène, Andrian from Romania, Luis Ayala from the Socialist International, to mention just a few, and of course our distinguished speakers this evening who have come here bringing with them extensive experience and knowledge.

The change that we have set as a strategic objective is the change of our country’s growth model that will bring social welfare, as well as a kind of tourism, or production if you like that will link the word “value’ to the word “Greece”. Our products, our environment, the transparency under which our country will be operating, as well as the sense of justice which every citizen will have.  With these words I would like to thank again our friends for their hospitality.

Dear friends, dear Symi friends, let me thank you again, old and new, for participating in this year’s Symi Symposium.

Given the unprecedented crisis in our country during the past year, it is natural that Greece should be at the center of our discussions.

This has been a great opportunity for myself, an important not only a break but also important work, to be able to work with you, and of course many of our ministers that came to the Symi Symposium, so that we could exchange experiences, best practices, with policymakers, politicians, intellectuals and many analysts that have gone through similar crises, and of course Sweden, Turkey, the US.

Listening to these success stories reaffirmed my conviction that even though we have made very painful cuts and difficult reforms these are a foundation on which we can build a very new Greece.

I was encouraged by the positive reactions to our own efforts to move Greece from the crisis to credibility, within a matter of months.

Together we have drawn up a roadmap for a different Greece, stable, successful, founded on a clean, green development model, where our natural entrepreneurial spirit can flourish, because setting up a business is easy and quick, and the right incentives to invest are in place.

A Greece where a civil service means exactly that, serving the people, serving the citizen.

A Greece that will be known not as a byword for corruption, but as a model for total transparency.

We have already demonstrated that we have the political will to take this road and make this roadmap a reality. As well as taking urgent steps to tackle the fiscal crisis, we are making deep structural changes.

We are revitalizing our governance model. In less than a year we have pushed through legislation on chronic problems that had festered for decades: pension reform, labor reform, tax reform, improving public administration, streamlining bureaucracy, clamping down on tax evasion and corruption, creating a new framework for local government. And we believe our economy and state will both emerge stronger and healthier as a result.

But passing laws, creating innovative policies is not enough. The next big challenge is to ensure implementation and that momentum is maintained.

Restore confidence in the markets. And to do so, we must prove that our policies are working. So far the numbers are encouraging, but we still have to overcome residual skepticism.

Restore credibility in government. But to do so, we must engage our citizens in the reform process. People are prepared to make the tough choices, if you give them balanced, credible information, but also a sense of justice, give them a real say in transparent decision-making.

Our democracy is around for thousands of years with ups and downs, but I believe from our Symi Symposium we have all come up with the conclusion that democracy must be – and that’s what my goal is – more open, more robust, more dynamic. And it is challenged in these new times, with the changes that are made throughout the world.

Paradoxically, while markets have been skeptical about Greece’s ability to change, wherever I go Greeks tell me over and over again that they desperately want things to change.

Of course, there is resistance to change from some quarters, especially from vested interests. But even the financial analysts who said Greece was doomed to fail and could never change have been forced to reassess.

This crisis is now for us a great opportunity, to establish a very different Greece but also more effective rules and institutions in the European Union. We have already taken important steps, such as the creation of a European credit rating agency, a solidarity fund.

However, the crisis has exposed the fact that many European nations are still reluctant to move forward in a more unified and strengthened Europe, and a more collective Europe. And I think we, particularly progressives, around Europe are ones who want to see a much stronger, more collective, more democratic, more solidarity in Europe, working together.

The crisis in Greece has in fact been a catalyst for some of these changes, at the European level and hopefully at the global level of economic governance. After a prolonged paralysis following the 2008 recession, the sovereign debt crisis has finally mobilized the international community to take collective action to protect the real economy from excessive speculation.

However, the sovereign debt crisis is more a symptom, not a cause, of deeper problems, and particularly deep problems that our financial systems had created.

That’s why I think what was important in our meeting – and particularly for us progressives and social democrats – is that we see democracy, we see transparency, we see the needed regulation as a foundation for healthy growth and for healthy societies and for a participative society.

We see equality not as a burden but both as a value and a prerequisite for a stronger economy.

We see our welfare state and solidarity not as a weight but as both, again, a value and a prerequisite for a strong and competitive economy.

And we see green growth not as a heavy burden but as the way out for a sustainable world, one with quality of life.

So I sense in these past few days that I believe Greece has convinced you that we are determined, but also that, as you well know, many who have come again and again, Greece is a safe, welcoming and beautiful country.

And I hope that soon we will host our symposium in a carbon-neutral island capable of generating all its energy from wind, sea and solar power, and of course producing one of the most productive things that Symi produces: ideas and imagination and hope.

So I again would finally like to thank you, thank you all, for your participation, for your love of Greece, for your beautiful and practical ideas, your commitment to imagine a different world and your promise to make it a reality. Thank you very much.