I AM a Greek national who adopted Scotland as his home nearly 40 years ago. I am now on my summer break on the Greek island of Aegina, hoping for some sun and relaxation but finding myself in the centre of the political and financial turmoil the country is in, after a call for a referendum and the capital controls that ensued immediately after its call.
I will not attempt here to make a political analysis of what has brought the country to the edge of the cliff, or where its citizens will have cast their votes yesterday. I will simply attempt to explain what capital controls mean for the every day life on this small island.
Wednesday morning I am woken up by my anxious elderly mother, she wants me to drive her to the nearest bank 9km away to withdraw the princely sum of €120 from her pension. Under capital controls, a pensioner is allowed such a withdrawal once a week and it is for this reason that the bank has stayed open.
Thankfully, she does not have any repayment commitments, but come next week when all utility and other bills are due this will be a major problem that she and over 1.5 million others like her, will find herself in.
Before I start my drive to the main town, my other three passengers have been waiting for me. One other pensioner and two young men, neighbours, all gracefully accepting the offer of a lift. You see, fuel supplies are restricted and without any guarantees for next week, I am careful with the number of trips I make.
The two young men want to withdraw their daily limit of €60, but as all the ATMs have dried-up of €10and €20 notes, they now dispense only one €50 note and for that, queuing time is on average very close to an hour. If we were in Athens or any other big city, that time would more typically be over four hours. It’s 8.30pm and there’s no sign of the queues subsiding while everyone is waiting to withdraw the daily allowance of €50.
We live in the small fishing village of Souvala which during the summer is served by a small boat to and from the port of Piraeus.
The boat, however, has not arrived for the last few days as the operators, being unable to purchase petrol on credit, have had to cancel all sailings. Would-be passengers have now to call a taxi to take them to the main port, adding another €15 expenditure to the €10 ticket for the ferry.
The inevitable panic that ensued early in the week when the referendum was announced has now subsided a little, thankfully. As people rushed to the supermarkets for essential supplies, restrictions were imposed. Still, we were allowed to buy two of packed goods such as milk, shampoo, spaghetti, rice and everything packed.
This time of the year on a holiday island such as Aegina, tavernas would be full of patrons enjoying the fresh fish and some of the locally- produced wine.
Not this week, however, customers are very few and far between as my friend Costas, owner of the local eaterie, tells me. I have been lucky enough to have brought euros with me and my wife and I are one of the very few eating there tonight.
Despite the tempting menu and prices, the local tavern is still waiting for their first diner at just after 8.30pm.
Tourist numbers, on the other hand, are little affected despite the various warnings that have been issued.
There is no limit to the amount one can withdraw from a foreign account provided, of course, that the bank has enough cash to satisfy the request.
All that may change, however. At the time of writing this it is unclear if an agreement with the country’s creditors will be in place, in time for cash stocks to be replenished.
Despite what some politicians are advocating, banks are not expected to reopen today, the day after the referendum.
People have lost confidence in the system and if the banks did open there would certainly be a run on them as everyone would rush to withdraw their deposits bringing the banking system to its knees within the first few hours.
The problems outlined above will multiply and the young government that is still popular among voters will find it very difficult to negotiate.
Nondas Pitticas is senior lecturer at the University of West of Scotland, Chairman of the Scottish Hellenic Society and General Secretary of the Greek Community Board in Glasgow
Greeks stand up to Europe and say No to austerity
George Kerevan: This historic referendum is a watershed moment in European politics
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here