(6 Feb 2012)
++NIGHT SHOTS++
1. Protesters holding banner, chanting slogans as they march in rain
2. Wide of protesters with umbrellas in rain, demonstrating outside Greek Parliament
3. Pan of protesters
4. Man waving Greek flag outside Parliament
5. People leaving demonstration, Parliament in background
6. Various of protesters leaving
7. Wide of police car and cordon blocking traffic
8. Poul Thomsen, International Monetary Fund mission chief for Greece, arriving at Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos's office for talks
9. Klaus Masuch, European Central Bank representative and Matthias Morse, European Commission director, arriving at finance minister's office
10. Cutaway of tree and rain falling
11. Greek Labour Minister Giorgos Koutroumanis arriving for talks
12. Bob Traa, senior IMF resident representative in Athens, arriving for talks
STORYLINE:
About 100 protesters braved heavy rain and winds in Athens on Monday evening as they protested against government austerity measures outside the Greek Parliament.
Unions have called a 24-hour general strike for Tuesday, in response to the new austerity measures.
Meanwhile, official representatives of Greece's creditors arrived for talks with the country's finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, as pressure mounted on Greece to agree to austerity measures needed to secure major new debt agreements.
Greece's coalition government earlier caved in to demands to cut civil service jobs, announcing 15-thousand positions would go this year.
The announcement signals a major shift in Greece's policy, as state jobs have so far been protected during the country's acute financial crisis, which started about two years ago.
Public Sector Reform Minister Dimitris Reppas said the job cuts would be carried out under a new law that allows such firings.
Greece is racing to push through painful reforms and clinch a 130 (b) billion euro (170 (b) billion US dollar) bailout deal from its European partners and the International Monetary Fund to avoid a March default on its bond payments.
Debt-ridden Greece has been kept solvent since May 2010 by payments from a 110 (b) billion euro (145 (b) billion US dollar) international rescue loan package.
When it became clear the money would not be enough, a second bailout was decided last October.
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