Not a single politician in Cyrpus's parliament voted for a brutal austerity deal that would see the government receive bailout funds in return for direct taxes on ordinary people's savings when it was put to legislators on March 19.
After days of angry protests on the streets and furious negotiations behind closed doors between the "troika" of the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary and Cyprus's government, a new deal for a 10 billion euro bailout was finally secured on March 24.
Cyprus
A program for cultural transformation is being developed by ordinary Cypriots after the islands politicians have proved unable to resolve the Cyprus problem, which has figured in international politics for over half a century.