Sep 26, 2012

"Occupy Congress": Thousands of Spaniards Surround Parliament in Madrid

By icarus / classwarfareexists.com

“Democracy has been kidnapped. On 25 September we are going to save it.”
~Occupy Congress

Everything you see in the video was organized through social media.  A few facts:

  • Tens of thousands of protesters
  • Unemployment in Spain is nearly 25%
  • At least 1,300 police were on hand to handle the protest
  • Leaders of protests outside of parliament can be jailed up to one year
  • At least 60 protesters injured, 26 arrested

From my vantage point – I’m with the Spanish people.  The country is at 25% unemployment and in order for Spain to pay its bills … they are asking for a bailout from the EU which is funded by European bankers.  The conditions of such a bailout come at a steep cost to Spaniards as they will be cutting pensions, tuition assistance for students, government services etc.  European countries who have joined the Euro currency are screwed unless their name is Germany.  Having adopted the Euro – Spain can no longer control its own currency needs and thus it can not manage the cost of its exports through inflation… and thusly it remains mired in high unemployment.

Spain is experiencing a Great Depression right now.  The people are fighting it and the government is looking for further cuts which will only make the problems worse (think about our history with the Great Depression).  International bankers, hedge fund managers and private equity groups now control the Spanish currency because they control the Euro.  Spain should follow Iceland’s example and leave the European Union … make the bankers “persona non gratis”, throw out their leaders and rewrite a new constitution.  Iceland is the model for this kind of thing and you can read more about that HERE.

Spain is no longer a country; it is a state that has been neutered and under the thumb of the European Union.  If Spaniards don’t do something soon … they will seal the fate of Spain as a permanent, indentured state of the European Union without the ability to control its own fate.  P.S. These austerity measures are the kind of measures that conservatives espouse as solutions for America.  We would quite literally be experiencing something like this if America had followed the conservative model which ironically is what Europe chose to do … and now they’re going back into recession with political and economic turmoil.

The BBC has the story HERE:

The “Occupy Congress” protest came as the government prepares to unveil further austerity measures on Thursday.

It is attempting to shrink its budget deficit, with the country in its second recession in three years and unemployment near 25%.

The government will unveil the draft budget for 2013 on Thursday and is expected to present new cost-saving reforms to reassure lenders about the state of the country’s public finances.

Forbes explains the details behind Spain’s request for a bailout and the strict austerity that would come with it HERE:

Draghi’s strict conditionality meant any sovereign asking for aid would be committing to austerity and Troika oversight.  Spanish officials who once begged for the ECB to buy its bonds now had to think twice, as they considered whether a population already suffering a deep recession was ready for more austerity, and whether those people would vote them into office again.

The parts are falling into place, though, for Spain to go ahead with its formal request.  While pressure has been mounting on Rajoy and his cabinet, the Spanish Prime Minister has been working on a new structural reform package with Brussels and a 2013 Budget.  The latter will be presented to Parliament on Friday (September 28), while news on the former is expected this week.

You can see a whole host of pictures on the “Occupy Congress” protests from today HERE.

AFP Photo/Pierre-Philippe Marcou

Reuters/Andrea Comas

Protestors gather close to Spain′s Parliament ahead of a demonstration in Madrid September 25, 2012. (Screenshots from AP video)

Madrid, September 25, 2012. (Screenshots from AP video)

Reuters/Andrea Comas

Reuters/Paul Hanna

The poster reads "This certainly is Madrid without hope". (Reuters/Sergio Perez)

Madrid protests : Madrid anti-austerity protests

Madrid protests : Madrid anti-austerity protests

Madrid protests : Madrid anti-austerity protests


Follow us: classwarfareexists on Facebook 

WRITTEN BY ICARUS

I have always had a dream of flying as a young boy; the trick is to fly just high enough for it to matter and yet not so high that you get burned by the sun. I'm also reckless. And I care about truth.
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