The trail of troika

What is happening in Europe in the name of the troika? A must-see for anyone who wants to understand the situation in Greece and find out why the austerity policy imposed by Germany has failed. The European Union and International Monetary Fund have lent more than €400 billion to Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Cyprus to keep these countries solvent. The lenders granted enormous power to the three institutions of the so-called troika: the IMF, the European Central Bank and the European Commission. Without any public accountability, the troika is forcing the crisis states to implement policies that are tearing the social fabric of their countries apart. German journalist and best-selling author Harald Schumann traveled to Athens, Lisbon, Dublin, Nicosia, Brussels, Washington, New York and London, in order to find out who has actually benefited from austerity measures. He puts this question to ministers, parliamentarians, economists, bankers, doctors and also to the victims of these policies, the unemployed and the ill. Among the many people he meets are Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman, IMF Director Paulo Batista and Yanis Varoufakis, the newly elected Greek finance minister. Schumann’s revelations are often devastating and shocking. Given the negotiations currently taking place between the newly elected Greek government and their European partners, this film is of great political and economic relevance.

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