Greece and its international lenders staged a new round of talks Tuesday over deeply unpopular austerity measures the creditors are demanding that the Athens government impose before they will agree to hand the country more bailout money.
One government negotiator said the lenders were questioning the effectiveness of the government's $17 billion plan. Athens needs approval for its latest round of budget cutting in order to collect another segment of the rescue package it needs to avoid defaulting on its financial obligations.
Greece is headed to a 6th straight year of recession in 2013. But the government's austerity measures aimed at resolving its debt crisis have sparked widespread street protests. On Tuesday, dozens of disabled workers and students blocked the main entrance to the building where the negotiations are being held.
One young music student, Olga Yanacopoulou, said she was protesting a shortage of teachers. "We want them to provide us with buses so we can return home and go to school," she said. "Teachers also, because we have a lot of shortages. That's why we are protesting."
Some information for this report was provided by Reuters.