A distressed pensioner crying on the ground outside a closed bank station in July 2015
Photograph by Sakis Mitrolidis/ AFP via Getty Images
In the highly globalized world we live in, it is inevitable that we will face challenges during the period of global governance. “Global Governance” as defined by K. Benedict is “the purposeful order that emerges from institutions, processes, norms, formal agreements, and informal mechanisms that regulate action for the common good”. Despite the success of global governance institutions after World War II, on numerous occasions, there are still a number of international complex and pressing issues that international organizations, including countries’ governments, ought to address and cope with.
The United Nations is a key organization involved in global governance. Founded in 1945 with the objective of encouraging multilateral organizations and preserving peace and security. There are currently 27 members in the European Union one of which is Greece. The country is located in south-eastern Europe and is the southernmost country on the Balkan Peninsula and has faced economic and political ramifications since the 2010 economic crisis dominated Greek society. The peak of this occurred in 2015 during summer time when Greece was in the fourth year of supervision by the IMF and the EU; the fourth year that the Greek people had to live under the imposition of extremely harsh austerity policies that had debilitated the Greek society. Consequently, the Greek government failed to find alternative approaches to finance the social security system. Greece became a target of external political forces, the government confiscated thousands of houses, and countless families were forced to live on the streets. Its policies exacerbated the depression, with financial institutions distributing a restricted amount of money for every citizen per week and unemployment reaching up to 55%.
A demonstration on the sidelines of a Greek parliament vote on new austerity measures May 18, 2017.
Photograph by Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP via Getty Images
In 2022, reflecting on the preceding government's decision to disregard the people's perspectives on a third bailout situation, with a new government it is safe to assume that some valuable lessons in global governance can be illustrated. Particularly, negotiating power is never with the individual country, implying that EU member states most likely formed advantageous alliances or incorporated informal mechanisms to present a unified front of technical and legal issues to the country wishing to leave the club.
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