Feature: Greeks with mixed feelings about call for referendum on debt deal

With only a week ahead of the July 5 critical referendum on the debt deal called by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on early Saturday Greek citizens are divided over the government's decision and feel uncertain for the result and the day after.

"This is not the solution," Dimitra Karamanli, a 31-year-old bank employee told Xinhua in Athens on Saturday. "People in Greece have been hit severely since the start of the debt crisis with wages cuts, high unemployment rates and taxes. The majority of voters elected the Radical Left SYRIZA party in January to manage the crisis. The government should decide on this and not the people," she said.

In line with Karamanli, Nikos Ioannou, a 87-year-old pensioner, who will participate for a second time in his life in a referendum after the 1974 ballot which decided that Greece should be a republic, disagrees with the referendum. He fears political instability which would only worsen Greece's financial situation.

Time was pressing anyway. On Tuesday expires the extension of the current bailout and without a reforms-for-cash deal with lenders to secure more aid, Greece is left without a lifeline to repay a loan installment to International Monetary Fund on the same day and other financial obligations in July. The risk of default and a possible Grexit seemed to be growing each hour passing by.

"The Greek Prime Minister should bring the debt deal at the parliament and the lawmakers should approve or not the measures proposed by the international lenders. Otherwise, we should head to elections," Ioannou said.

He argued that the referendum call effectively was leading Greeks to make a choice between sticking with the euro under painful conditions or return to drachma and try to stand on their feet on their own.

For Danae Iliopoulou, a 30-year-old business consultant, Tsipras acted in the right manner. "From the beginning of his campaign, he said that his government would not accept anti-popular measures to be imposed on the Greek people. With his announcement he seems to stay firm to that promise," Iliopoulou argued.

Fearing that banks will remain closed on Monday and the country will run out of cash, anxiety prevailed on Saturday with people queuing in front of cash machines in the Greek capital and across the country and some Greek banks reporting problems with cash transactions.

"I went to the bank to take money for my weekend needs as usual. But, let's be pragmatists, if the country defaults, my extra 500 euros in my wallet would save me?" Karamanli told Xinhua.

Neither Ioannou rushed to the bank to withdraw his money on Saturday. "The government has stated that pensions and salaries would be paid without any disruption on Monday, I will wait and see," he said.

According to the Greek prime minister's announcement, the government did its best to reach a viable solution to put an end to austerity after the Jan. 25 general elections.

An overwhelming majority of 70 percent of voters supported the government's stance in negotiations, according to latest opinion polls.

"The deal proposed is very hard, the measures were to be taken would have severe social, financial and political impact on Greeks," Ioannou explained, adding that he would not like to see a Grexit though.

But for Nikos Pazaropoulos, a 36-year-old accountant who feels rather uncertain for Greece's future, the Greek government lost precious time and did not press enough the international lenders but only in the last week.

"They should press their case the day after the elections and not at the last minute when the program of international financial support expires and we are left with no choices," he told Xinhua. Endit