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| Europe | |
| Spaniards protest against economic cuts | |
| 2011-06-20 | |
| [Al Jazeera] Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Spain to march against the mishandling of the country's economic crisis. Protesters came out in force throughout the day on Sunday in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Seville.
In Madrid, Spain's capital city, marches began at six locations around the city. One at 6am (0400 GMT) from Leganes, 13km from the city's centre later convened at the Neptune plaza in front of the Prado art museum, a stone's throw from the parliament building, where demonstrators were met by various forms of police resistance, including 12 vans blocking several major roads. At 1200 GMT, police put estimates in Madrid at between 35,000 and 45,000 protesters, with no reports of violence, according to national radio. Later on, an estimated 50,000 people in Barcelona shouted, "The street is ours. We are not going to pay for their crisis," as they marched through Spain's second largest city. Earlier in the day, Barcelona demonstrators posted warnings on the organising group's Facebook page, saying that government infiltrators may try to incite violence in the protests. 'Not our fault' Demonstrations first began before the May 22 regional elections in response to the perceived failure of politicians to represent the electorate, and activists have taken to the streets regularly since then. Protester Antonio Cortes, 58, said Spain's workers were being asked to bear the brunt of the financial crisis. ''This crisis was created by the capitalist financial system and we are paying for it. All the cuts shouldn't be aimed at the working class,'' he said. "I'm here because this is a con," said Juanjo Montiel, 26, one of four blind protesters in Madrid who works in Information Technology for around 1,000 euros a month. "I'm lucky enough to have a job, but many don't and have no chance. And on top of that, the politicians want to make more cuts. This is not our fault - it's the system." Protesters call themselves the "indignados", meaning the "indignant" or "outraged". The politicians of the euro zone's fourth largest economy have worked hard to convince investors the country will not follow Greece, Portugal and Ireland in needing a bailout. Greece has seen major festivities with police over unpopular austerity measures, and protesters have kept up demonstrations for months, while the president has announced a government restructuring amid calls for stepping down. Spaniards say that while politicians distance their approach from Greece's, their own worries are being ignored. | |
| Posted by:Fred |