Greek Man: Why I Set Myself On Fire As Austerity Drives Up Suicide Rate in Debt-Ridden Greece (375 hits)
As Greek people laid flowers in tribute to an elderly man who took his own life, citing debt worries, Apostolos Polyzonis tells CNN why he too became so desperate that he set fire to himself.
(CNN) -- When Apostolos Polyzonis's bank refused to see him last September, the 55-year-old Greek businessman had just 10 euros ($13) in his pocket. Out of work and bankrupt, he thought all he could do with his remaining money was to buy a gas can. Desperate and angry, Polyzonis stood outside the bank in central Thessaloniki, in northern Greece, doused himself in fuel and surrendered to the flames.
"At that moment, I saw my life as worthless, I really didn't care if I was going to live or die," recalls Polyzonis, who says he was hit by financial troubles after the bank recalled a loan given to him for his business. "My sense of living was much lower than my sense of self-respect and pride, the fact that I had lost my right to be a free Greek," adds Polyzonis.
@Jen, "I" never 'block ' anyone...I went to put a delete and realized I had hit block...as soon as I learn how to unblock you, I shall do so. thanks for your patience. As 'I' AM AlMOST AS computer brain dead as I am math brain dead.(smile)
Thursday, April 10th 2014 at 6:47PM
ROBINSON IRMA
