ATHENS: Voters in crisis hit European country Greece have decisively rejected the terms of an international bailout in the referendum.
The final result in the referendum, published by the Greek interior ministry, was 61.3% “No”, against 38.7% who voted “Yes”.
The referendum – Greece’s first in more than four decades – came amid severe restrictions on financial transactions in the country, imposed last week to stem a bank run that accelerated after the vote was called.
Thousands of jubilant government supporters celebrated in Syntagma Square in front of Parliament, waving Greek flags and chanting “No, no, no!”
“Together we have written a bright page in modern European history,” an elated Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told the nation in a televised address.
“This is not a mandate of rupture with Europe, but a mandate that bolsters our negotiating strength to achieve a viable deal,” he added.
European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker had said a Greek No would be “no to Europe”.
As the result became clear, former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, who had campaigned for a “Yes” vote in the referendum, resigned as leader of the centre-right New Democracy party.
