Greece eurozone bailout: Coalition hit by defections
The BBC's Mark Lowen says that social unrest is on the rise in Greece
Greece's coalition has been hit by the resignations of four senior politicians over the latest planned spending cuts.
The deputy foreign minister and three ministers from the far-right Laos party quit, amid protests and a 48-hour strike over the austerity proposals.
Greek leaders are trying to enact cuts demanded by the EU and IMF for a 130bn-euro ($170bn; £110bn) bailout.
The prime minister says he will do "whatever it takes" to get the deal approved in a parliamentary vote.
"We cannot allow Greece to go bankrupt," Lucas Papademos told his cabinet, according to comments translated by Reuters news agency.
"It goes without saying that whoever disagrees and does not vote for the new programme cannot remain in the government."
The Laos party complained that Greeks were being humiliated by Germany, and announced its 15 deputies would not back the austerity measures.
'Final choice'
Deputy Foreign Minister Mariliza Xenogiannakopoulou, who quit on Friday afternoon, is the most senior defection so far.
Her Pasok party, the largest in the coalition, also suffered the loss of a deputy labour minister on Thursday.
But analysts say the cuts package should still have enough support in parliament because Pasok and its other coalition ally New Democracy account for more than 230 deputies out of a total of 300.
Earlier, an estimated 17,000 union members and communists took to the streets of Athens, marching to mark the start of a two-day general strike.
Protesters also gathered near the parliament building.
Some demonstrators threw stones and petrol bombs at police, who responded by firing tear gas. A small number of people from both sides suffered minor injuries.
Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said it was time for Greece to make a "final strategic choice".
"If we see the future of our country within eurozone, within Europe, we should do what we have to do for the programme to be approved," he said.
Last night the Greeks presented their plans for austerity cuts to a meeting of eurozone ministers in Brussels.
Their proposals include:
- 15,000 public-sector job cuts
- liberalisation of labour laws
- lowering the minimum wage by 20% from 751 euros a month to 600 euros
- negotiating a debt write-off with banks.
But the ministers demanded a further 325m euros in savings for this year. It is thought that the shortfall came because the Greek coalition could not agree to restructuring pensions.
The eurozone and IMF are also insisting that Greek leaders give "strong political assurances" on the implementation of the packages.
The ministers said the conditions must be fulfilled by next Wednesday, in time for another eurozone meeting to consider releasing the bailout funds.
The BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says Greek politicians are frustrated that their planned cuts did not meet the demands of the eurozone and IMF.
But the government is likely to plough on, he says, because the prospect of bankruptcy and a potential exit from the eurozone strikes fear into the hearts of its leaders.
Greece cannot service its huge debt, and there are fears that a default could endanger Europe's financial stability and even lead to a break-up of the eurozone.
The country is already reeling from the effects of an earlier round of austerity that followed a previous bailout. Those cuts triggered widespread unrest and violent protests.
The country is deep in recession, with unemployment rising above 20%.