Greece prepares for crucial referendum

Greeks are preparing for a referendum on July 5 that will see the debt-ridden country either accept or reject punishing austerity measures imposed by international creditors amid a serious cash crisis, street protests and increasing threats from global institutions. 

The polls ahead of the referendum have showed that the number of "yes" and "not" voters has been very close to each other. A new survey on July 3 showed a swing against the government to a "yes" result, amid a sense of crisis fuelled by cash rationing and burgeoning protests, as reported by AFP.

The poll by Greece's Alco institute said 44.8 percent of Greeks intend to vote "yes" and 43.4 percent are for "no" - making it the first published survey to give a lead to the "yes" vote ahead of the July 5 ballot.

However, the survey's margin of error of 3.1 percentage points meant the end result was still too close to call.

Stakes are high in the plebiscite, with EU leaders warning a "no" would jeopardize Greece's place in the 19-nation eurozone. But Greece's radical left government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras fiercely rejects that, and says the referendum is only about whether Greeks are willing to accept tougher austerity in return for international bailout funds, as underlined by AFP. 

Although Greece's European creditors have signaled there would be no talks until they see the referendum results, Greek officials said there is still hope of reaching a deal even ahead of the referendum. 

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said July 3 that it was not "too late" for Athens to reach a deal with its international creditors ahead of the referendum.

"Whether there is a 'yes' or a 'no,' an agreement is in the offing," Varoufakis told the Irish...