Greece: Sisyphus and Tsipras

Opinion by Anna van Densky

With the resignation of Yanis Varoufakis the finance minister and 'No' man in the hard bail-out bargaining, the Greek tragedy turns into a farce. 'The Prince of Darkness' perceived as an ultimate challenger or even a threat to the EU's bright future in ever-closer integration, whose black silhouette has invaded the front pages, causing the financial markets to tremble, Varoufakis has departed from history's stage, leaving behind Europe fragile and disillusioned.

The symbolic sacrifice is offered, signalling that Greek government is willing to continue the negotiations and stay in the EU and eurozone. From predator to prey: the Minotaur is slaughtered and the steak is served. But is it Greece's fate to stay in the EU?

Like a hovering white flag over Athens, the departure of Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is seen from far away as manifesting the readiness of the Greek government to continue negotiations with creditors. The referendum drama, staged to hit the nerve of those holding the purse strings, and aiming to fortify Alexis Tsipras in negotiations, pursuing the 'troika' to turn down austerity, but at what price?

The leftist government of Tsipras has confused 'responsibility' with 'responsiveness' with an almost infantile naivety, leaving the country's already depressed economy in tatters. A responsive government is a weak government – a common place in politics,  while responsibility is the key, meaning that the unpopular decisions have to be taken for the sake of the public good.

Tsipras has omitted the key obligation of a democratic ruler, who is not only accountable to his electorate, but primary responsible for their well-being, stability and security. All those were thrown into the fire of the ambition to keep up appearances of a party which came to power on its popular slogans of blaming the creditors for the misfortunes, which were in reality rooted in the mismanagement by the predecessors' governments and the significant incoherence in the Greek society.

Surprisingly Tsipras, flaunting his 'democratic' looks without the 'bourgeois' silk tie, has never raised his ire against the Greek top bourgeosie, namely the Greek shipowners who are traditionally immune to taxation by their privilege enshrined in the Constitution. Meanwhile, the Greek-owned merchant fleet is at the top, ranking first in tankers, second in dry bulk carriers and in LNG tankers and container ships, with their mega-revenues from controlling more than half of the EU merchant fleet.

But neither Tsipras, nor his 'uncompromising' Finance Minister Varoufakis ever called upon this ultra-wealthy caste of Greek society to stretch their hand out to the people.   The leader is deliberately looking for those responsible outside his realm, in vain.

Increasingly allergic to the unjust blames of the successive Greek governments, both the Brussels apparatchiks and eurozone electorate no longer take these manipulations at face value.

Tsipras's political chorus of a loud accusation that might have impressed audiences in the times of Euripides, leaves the modern public unmoved. The flows of cash from European taxpayers have been evaporating, raising criticism of corruption and clientelism, with a consequent reluctance to introduce a broad package of reforms. But at most, the Greek privileged leave the Europaan taxpayer indignant.

Forever associated with jet-setters, the Greek shipowners whose image is largely imprinted by Aristoteles Onassis consoling the world's most famous widow (pictured), offering her a fairy-tale life on the magical island of Scorpios, the shipowners remain remote and silent, like Olympic gods observing the struggle of mortals to survive. They continue to watch with indifference the epos of their own people, resembling the condemned Sisyphus rolling his boulder uphill.

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