"I'm here to fight for my children's future," exclaims one father as Spaniards rallied in Madrid against poverty and EU-imposed austerity. As Reuters reports [7], the largely peaceful protest later marred by violent clashes in which police fired rubber bullets. The so-called "Dignity Marches" brought hundreds of thousands to the capital with banners making it clear what their feelings about record 26% unemployment were - "Bread, jobs and housing for everyone" and "Corruption and robbery, Spain's trademark." One protester summed up the people's views of the government, "I'm sick of this system they call democracy... I want things to change."
[8]
Via Reuters, [7]
The so-called "Dignity Marches" brought hundreds of thousands to the capital, according to estimates of Reuters witnesses. Travelling from all over Spain, they were protesting in support of more than 160 different causes, including jobs, housing, health, education and an end to poverty.
[9]
...Spaniards rallied in Madrid on Saturday against poverty and EU-imposed austerity in a largely peaceful protest later marred by violent clashes in which police fired rubber bullets.
[10]
Some protesters started to throw stones and bottles at the large numbers of riot police present and attacked cashpoints and hoardings. The police fired rubber bullets to disperse them, according to video footage seen by Reuters.
Central government representative Cristina Cifuentes said 19 protesters had been arrested and 50 police officers had been injured, one of them very badly, in the clashes.
Once again the issue is government corruption combined with austerity (or at least slowing growth in spending to be perfectly clear) - a combination that we have discussed numerous times tends to end in social unrest...
A housing bubble burst more than five years ago, forcing a 41-billion euro ($56 billion) bailout of Spain's banks, squeezing homeowners and throwing millions out of work.
[11]
The government introduced public sector austerity to whittle down the deficit, provoking widespread anger amongst middle- and low-income families as dozens of cases of corruption in the ruling class are investigated by judges.
The people's feelings were clear as the OECD says the economic crisis has hit Spain's poor harder than in any other country in the euro region.
Banners urged the conservative government not to pay its international debts and to tackle Spain's chronically high unemployment of 26 percent.
"Bread, jobs and housing for everyone", read one banner, "Corruption and robbery, Spain's trademark," said another.
"I'm here to fight for my children's future," said Michael Nadeau, a 44-year-old entrepreneur.
"For those who are in power we're just numbers. They value money more than they value people," he said, shouting to be heard above the din of chanting, whistling and drumming.
"(I'm here because) I'm sick of this system they call democracy," said Jose Luis Arteaga, a 58-year-old teacher whose wage has been cut 20 percent. "I want things to change."
It seems that almost record low bond yields and high stock market levels did not appease the people of Spain either...Time for that IMG income inequality equalizing wealth redsitriburion it would seem...