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Europe

Spain’s conservatives earn resounding election victory

2011-11-21

MADRID — Spanish conservatives won a resounding mandate at the polls Sunday, freeing them to make deep austerity cuts as they struggle to pull the country’s economy out of a tailspin. In an election marked by bitter disappointment and desperation over the euro zone’s highest unemployment rate, the Socialists who have led the country since 2004 were cast from office in their worst showing in the modern era of Spain’s democracy. Conservatives won 186 of the 350 seats in parliament; the Socialists won 110. But the sharp swing was more a result of millions of voters abandoning the Socialists for smaller parties, not conservatives picking up new voters, suggesting a country more dispirited with the policies of the past than excited about the future. The leader of the conservatives, Mariano Rajoy, 56, will not take over for another month, but he is widely expected to announce his economic team and strategy in the coming days. “It is times like these that measure what men and societies are made of,” Rajoy said Sunday in his victory speech. “Our destiny is to play a big role in and with Europe. We will be more loyal but also more demanding. . . . There aren’t going to be any miracles, but we didn’t promise them.” Sunday’s vote gives Europe another leader closely aligned with the austerity-based consensus that the continent’s strongest economies say is the solution to what plagues the weaker ones. In recent weeks, leaders in Italy and Greece have been forced from their perches. Still, Rajoy may have limited influence over problems that have spread to France, Austria and the Netherlands — countries long associated with fiscal discipline and economic power — which saw their borrowing costs spike last week. France has called for continent-wide solutions more radical than those applied so far, including the printing of more money to prop up struggling countries, something Germany staunchly opposes. In Spain, Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero had abandoned many of his party’s historic positions to implement budget cuts aimed at getting the country’s finances under control. But they did little to head off the nation’s 22.6 percent unemployment rate. Last week, Spain’s borrowing costs spiked to their highest level since 1997, and one of Rajoy’s first tasks will be to soothe investors’ fears about his country’s viability. Rajoy’s challenger, Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, 60, seemed to accept defeat long before the election was held. Zapatero decided earlier this year not to stand for reelection. “Countries like Spain are on the brink,” said Fernando Fernandez, an economist and former International Monetary Fund official who teaches at IE Business School in Madrid. “This government will have the moral authority” to make changes, he said. Fernandez said that in addition to another round of budget cuts, he expected the new government would overhaul the labor market to make it easier to hire and fire workers, which could help create jobs in the long term but might add to joblessness in the immediate future. Voters Sunday had little enthusiasm for the election, and many said they saw little difference between the two main parties. The Socialists had 4 million fewer votes than in the 2008 election. The conservatives gained just over 500,000 compared with their previous results.

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Europe

Spain opposition ahead in polls

2011-10-17

Spain’s center-right opposition People’s Party (PP) is on track to win a convincing absolute majority in the Nov. 20 general election, two newspaper polls showed on Sunday. If the election were held tomorrow, the PP would get 45.5 percent of the vote, 15.8 percentage points ahead of the ruling Socialists, the PSOE, a poll published by the center-left El Pais showed. A poll published by the right-leaning paper El Mundo put the PP’s lead at 17.2 percentage points, the party’s biggest lead since January. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has been in power since 2004, but his popularity has plummeted as a result of a recession which has seen unemployment rise to the highest level of any industrialized nation. The Spanish socialists have been beneficiaries of some 'fortunate' terrible events just before the polls in the last couple of elections. Not that we're cynics at the Burg, but I'd ask the police to be extra-careful these next few weeks... According to both polls, the PP, led by Mariano Rajoy, would secure 185 to 196 seats in the 350-seat parliament, handing the party a strong mandate to govern. Rajoy is better able to tackle the economy and markets and inspires more confidence than Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, the veteran PSOE politician running for the Socialist ticket, according to those polled by Metroscopia on behalf of El Pais.

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Europe

Parliament dissolved in Spain, polls on Nov. 20

2011-09-27

MADRID: Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero dissolved Parliament on Monday, but pledged to adopt new measures to tackle an economic crisis if needed before a November election that is expected to hand power to the conservative opposition. Zapatero has called elections for Nov. 20, four months earlier than originally planned, in the hope that faint signs of an economic recovery could offset unpopularity after years of deep austerity measures in a country where one in five is unemployed. He may also be hoping for a terrorist attack to be timed just before the election. Not like it hasn't happened before. Zapatero has been criticized for reacting too late to Spain’s economic turmoil after a burst property bubble, and polls show the conservative People’s Party (PP), led by Mariano Rajoy, likely to defeat the Socialists with an absolute majority in November. The Gesop opinion poll for Catalonian daily El Periodico showed on Monday a total of 46 percent of voters intend to choose the PP. It also showed the Socialists, led into the elections by former Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, obtaining 31.4 percent of votes. The election campaign will officially start on Nov. 4.

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Europe

Mass protests continue in Spanish capital

2011-07-25

[Al Jazeera] Thousands of Spain's "indignant" protesters - including hundreds who crossed the country on foot - marched through Madrid and once again filled the downtown Sol square to demonstrate against high unemployment and the economic crisis. Six columns of more than 500 protesters who marched for weeks from cities across Spain formed the core of Sunday's demonstration. The protesters who call themselves the "indignados" meaning the indignant or outraged, began converging on Madrid a day earlier, two months after they launched their movement. A more accurate term would be "idiots who continuously vote for socialism". But that doesn't fit well on a t-shirt. They hiked across the country for two months? All that fresh air and sunshine, the camaraderie and freedom from care... We can only envy the experience. It's awfully hot on the central plateau in Summer, tho. On Sunday, they were joined by protesters who arrived in Madrid by bus from over 30 cities as well as residents of the Spanish capital. "Politicians don't represent us! No! no! No!" the crowd chanted, with some waving handmade banners reading "It's not a crisis, it's the system that's wrong". So true... Some protesters began their march 34 days ago and walked 650km from the southwestern city of Cadiz. Physiotherapists and masseurs accompanied demonstrators to treat them for aching legs and blistered feet. I thought these were the poor and unemployed? Massage therapists cost $65/hour around here, and physical therapists considerably more. D'you suppose Moses and the Israelites took masseuses with them when they fled the flesh pots of Egypt? And they wandered forty years, not a mere month or two. Protesters outraged Protesters said they were outraged with politicians for failing to solve Spain's high unemployment and accuse them of being uncaring, corrupt and inept. They first began demonstrating before the regional elections in May in response to the perceived failure of politicians to represent the electorate. Demonstrators had set off from cities across the country at the end of June, including Barcelona, Malaga, Valencia and Bilbao. Many used the opportunity to stop on the way to Madrid by holding public meetings to spread their message of outrage. On Saturday, several dozen demonstrators stopped outside Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's official residence just north of Madrid to wave banners and chant slogans. I see no mention of giant puppets. It isn't a proper demonstration without giant puppets. "We're here to keep up the momentum of the protests," said Ivan Gracia, a student who came by bus from the northern city of Zaragoza and planned to spend the night in the square. The protesters have won broad public support in their fight against austerity measures introduced by the Spanish government, with 200,000 people attending rallies across the country. Too vague The movement, although it has been able to gather large numbers of supporters, has been criticised for being too vague in its demands - but demonstrators say there are issues that everyone agrees on. "In two months, we have had some good responses," said demonstrator Fernando Carasa."We have stopped about 60 expulsions, created social pressure and achieved a bigger mobilisation than any political party." Golly. Congratulations on putting off the inevitable for a little longer. Don't forget, you all need ponies: pretty pink ponies with sparkly tails! The politicians of the eurozone's fourth largest economy have worked hard to convince investors the country will not follow Greece, Portugal and Ireland in needing a bailout. But Spaniards say while this has been happening, their own worries are being ignored. Unemployment has soared to 14-year highs and almost half of under-25s are out of work. Banks have cut off credit lines, consumer prices are rising faster than the regional average, investment has been slashed and house prices have plummeted. Earlier this month, the socialist government set new limits on the amount of money that banks can reclaim from mortgage defaulters in what was seen as an effort to appease the protesters. Please don't treat us like Mubarek!

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Africa North

Arab uprisings are opportunity for democracy - Clinton

2011-07-03

(KUNA) -- US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ... sometimes described as the Smartest Woman in the World and at other times as Mrs. Bill, never as Another Elihu B. Washburne ... said that the Arab Spring Uprisings represent a true opportunity for democracy in the Arab region, noting the need for international support of these changes. The remark was made during a meeting on Saturday between Clinton and Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who both, discussing the latest events in the Arab region, expressed their continued commitment to practice pressure on the Libyan regime, for its required implementation of UN Security Council resolutions, said a US official statement. The two officials expressed anxiety over the unfolding events in Syria, calling for the start of a comprehensive national dialogue. They also urged the need for a solution to the Israeli-Paleostinian struggle, noting the urgency to return to the negotiating table as fundamental to any such efforts. Separately, Clinton applauded the level of economic reforms taken by the Spanish government, calling to enhance them and pledging US commitment to these efforts. Spain still faces huge economic challenges, mainly limiting unemployment and restructuring its financial sector, she said, expressing confidence Zapatero's government would be able to overcome these obstacles. In another meeting with Spanish Foreign Minister, Trinidad Jimenez, the US official had said that NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the style of the American pants... was involved in the major task of limiting the attacks of Libyan forces on its people, and in the jumpstarting of a democratic transition process that would achieve the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people, granting them their right to live in peace. The US and Spain both agree that the sole solution to the Libyan crisis, is for Ghaddafi to abandon his post and stop his attacks on civilians, she added. Clinton, who arrived in Madrid on Friday, had earlier met King Juan Carlos. Her visit to Spain is the first since assuming office back in 2009.

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Europe

US Sec. of State arrives in Madrid in her 1st visit to Spain

2011-07-02

(KUNA) -- US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ... sometimes described as the Smartest Woman in the World and at other times as Mrs. Bill, never as Another James Baker ... arrived in Madrid Friday on her first official two-day visit to the country with the aim of boosting bilateral ties in various domains. Clinton was received upon her arrival to Torrejon Air Force Base in Madrid by US ambassador to Spain Alan Solomont, and high-profile Spanish and US figures, and she will embark upon discussing political topics on her agenda with holding a meeting with her Spanish counterpart Trinidad Jimenez. It is scheduled for Clinton to meet King Juan Carlos, and Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero in order to mull with them a number of issues, particularly the military intervention in Libya, war in Afghanistan, and the Middle East upheavels. Further, discussions will tackle the latest developments in Latin America, particularly in Cuba and Venezuela, besides thrashing out the ways of boosting bilateral ties in the domains of trade, economy, and investment. Clinton's visit is her first to the country since taking over her office in 2009, and within a tour which will take her to Hungary, and Lithuania, while this is the first visit paid by the top US diplomat to Spain in two years. Jimenez considered yesterday the visit of her American counterpart as a proof of deep-rooted ties between the two countries, expressing hope that such visit will further boost ties, and bring political stances closer, besides opening up new horizons for cooperation in various political, economic, and military fields. This is the third meeting between Clinton and Jimenez as the two ministers met last January in Washington, and before this in Lisbon on the sidelines of NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the style of the American pants... summit in November 2010.

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Europe

Anti-govt. protests injure 120 in Spain

2011-05-29

[Iran Press TV] Spaniards continue protests against the government's austerity measures and growing unemployment rate despite heavy police presence. Violent festivities erupted on Friday as anti-government protesters had their sit-in in the Catalunya square in Barcelona, Spain. The number of injured during the festivities reached over 120 as coppers swiped at protesters with batons, dragged them on the ground and even fired rubber bullets at them, aiming to disperse demonstrators and dismantle the camp they had set up in the square. "As soon as police entered Catalunya square, they used excessive force to clear a makeshift camp set up there," Jordi Relano, a protester in Barcelona, told a Press TV correspondent on Friday. He also denied that the protesters did anything to provoke police forces. "Police entered the square only to stop our movement," he said. "What police did today was simply meant to break up our gatherings. They just entered the square and started beating us," Hector Huerga, another protester, told our correspondent. Police said they had to clear the square for the celebrations that will spark if Barcelona beats Manchester United in the UEFA Champions League's final match on Saturday. This is while activists say cleaning the square was only a pretext to violate their democratic rights and have vowed to come back. "They are making us leave because of the match but we will come back again here or somewhere else because our match is more important," 42-year-old Albert Bonet, who took part in the protest, said. Similar festivities were also erupted in the northeastern city of Lerida. Since mid-May, Spain has been witnessing nationwide demonstrations against the government's austerity measures and economic policies. The protesters form part of the M-15 movement, which brought thousands of people to the streets ahead of Sunday's local and regional elections. Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's ruling Socialist Party suffered heavy losses in the elections. Massive protests sparked across Spain after the government of Zapatero introduced a slew of drastic austerity measures, including the cutting of civil servant wages, as part of its plan to curb the budget deficit from 11 percent a year earlier to within three percent of the GDP by 2013. Spain has the highest jobless rate in the eurozone with 21.3 percent and is saddled with a record 4.9 million people unemployed. Although Spain has so far managed to stave off a bailout, economists expect that the eurozone's fourth largest economy will inevitably follow Portugal, Ireland and Greece, and will be forced to accept a financial rescue package.

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Africa North

Spain Receives Libyan Ceasefire Proposal

2011-05-27

[An Nahar] Spain's government said Thursday it had received a message from Libyan Prime Minister al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi seeking a ceasefire. Spain said it was standing with other European governments, however, in seeking a set of conditions for such an agreement. "We have received a message from the Libyan government seeking an accord for a possible ceasefire," said a front man for the office of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. "Spain has to say the same on this as the other European governments," he added. "Of course we are all in favor of there being a ceasefire in Libya but for this there has to be a series of conditions, political circumstances," the front man said. Further details about the content and format of the message were not available. The news followed a report in British daily The Independent that the Libyan premier was sending international leaders a message proposing an immediate U.N.-monitored ceasefire in Libya. According to a letter seen by the Independent, Libyan leader Moammar Qadaffy's regime was ready to enter unconditional talks with rebels, declare an amnesty for both sides and draft a new constitution. NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the style of the American pants... Arclight airstrikes intensified in Tripoli this week but U.S. President Barack B.O. Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron ... has stated that he is certainly a big Thatcher fan, but I don't know whether that makes me a Thatcherite, which means he's not. Since he is not deeply ideological he lacks core principles and is easily led. He has been described as certainly not a Pitt, Elder or Younger, but he does wear a nice suit so maybe he's Beau Brummel ... both warned Wednesday that victory did not seem likely in the near future. Both Obama and Cameron on Wednesday stated after talks in London that Qadaffy must leave the country. In the message seen by the Independent, the Libyan prime minister reportedly departed from previous policy by not declaring that Qadaffy be a part of the country's future. The prime minister promised to appoint an executive committee to "foresee the ceasefire and propose a mechanism for a political dialogue", according to the leaked letter. "A process of reconciliation will be initiated which will include amnesty and compensation to all victims of the conflict," he continued. "We are ready to talk to help mediate a ceasefire and to initiate discussions on the future form of constitutional government. "Let us create a road-map to the future," he urged. "What has occurred in Libya is part of a wider series of events throughout the Arab world. We understand this. We are ready and we know what is required of us." Libya has been mired in a conflict pitting Qadaffy's forces against opposition rebels since the eruption of massive anti-government protests in mid-February. An international coalition intervened on March 19, launching air raids and missile strikes under a U.N. mandate aimed at protecting civilians from Qadaffy's forces. NATO took command of the air campaign on March 31.

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Europe

Nationwide protests continue in Spain

2011-05-21

[Iran Press TV] Tens of thousands of students, social groups and unemployed people have taken to the streets across Spain to protest against the financial crisis in the country. Countrywide peaceful protests have been organized through social media networks such as Twitter. Hundreds of demonstrators have been camping out at Madrid's Puerta del Sol square since May 15 to demand a 'real democracy' and political and social change in Spain, The Guardian reported on Friday. Other similar protests have been held in Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao, Zaragoza and other Spanish cities. "The economy and unemployment are key to the protest because that binds all of us together," Jon Aguirre Such, a front man for the Real Democracy Now movement, said. "In this crisis, while some have gotten rich, most people have less income," he added. The protests come in the closing days of the campaign for local elections set for Sunday. The ruling Socialist party is widely expected to suffer heavy losses over its inefficient management of the economic crisis. Speaking in an interview with Cadena Ser radio station on Friday, Spain's Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said that ongoing youth protests across the country are "understandable." However, The essential However... he said that Spain must stick to its austerity measures and continue with its economic policies. Spain has the highest jobless rate of 21.3 percent in the eurozone and has a record 4.9 million people unemployed. Although Spain has so far managed to stave off a bailout, economists expect that the eurozone's fourth largest economy will inevitably follow Portugal, Ireland and Greece, and will be forced to accept a financial rescue package.

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Europe

Spain protests persist ahead of polls

2011-05-20

[Iran Press TV] Thousands of Spanish protesters have camped out in Madrid and several other cities to demand jobs as well as political change ahead of weekend local elections. Outraged by Spain's economic crisis and soaring jobless rate, demonstrators defied a ban by authorities and poured onto Madrid's central Puerta del Sol square and in several cities, including Granada, Seville, Barcelona, Valencia, Zaragoza and Palma de Majorca, AFP reported on Wednesday. Many protesters held up placards reading "Make the guilty pay for the crisis" and chanted "They call this democracy but it is not", as they tried to draw attention to their economic hardships ahead of the regional and municipal elections on Sunday. Disgruntled Spaniards, who began their protests on May 15 to demand jobs, housing and "real democracy," have vowed to stay until Sunday elections if police try to use force to disperse their peaceful protest. Reports indicate that about 15 police vehicles took up positions in and around the emblematic square in the capital Madrid on Wednesday evening. Meanwhile, ...back at the hoedown, Bob finally got to dance with Sally... opinion polls by the centre-left El Pais and the conservative El Mundo portend humiliating losses for the Socialist candidates in the forthcoming regional and municipal elections, as voters are expected to punish them for the government's handling of the economic crisis, including the failure to curb high employment rates. Spain's unemployment rate soared to 21.29 percent, with 4.9 million jobless for the first quarter of 2011, according to the government statistics published in late April. In May 2010, the government of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero introduced a slew of drastic austerity measures, including cutting civil servants pay as part of plans to curb budget deficit from 11 percent a year earlier to within the 3 percent of GDP limit set by the European Union by 2013.

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Europe

Spanish PM says won't contest 2012 election

2011-04-03

[Pak Daily Times] Spain's embattled prime minister announced on Saturday he will not seek re-election at general elections in 2012 as his country grapples with debt, high unemployment and a faltering economy badly hit by the international financial crisis. Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero told a party meeting he would limit his time in office to two terms, opening a process of primaries to elect his successor at the helm of the Socialist Party. "I will not be a candidate in the forthcoming general elections," he said, adding it was the right decision for the country, his party and his family. A tired-looking Zapatero said he had been convinced that two terms as leader of the government was enough seven years ago when he first took office, and he remained convinced of that decision today. Zapatero, 50, was elected to office in 2004 in the wake of terror attacks on Madrid's trains that left 191 dead and 1,800 injured, and a wave of public disapproval at the previous government's involvement in the Iraq war. At the time, Spain's economy was one of the most dynamic in Europe having recorded continuous growth for around a decade. But the credit crunch and subsequent financial crisis has dogged Zapatero's second term and immersed Spain in debt and a eurozone-high unemployment rate of 20 percent. The Socialist Party faces regional and municipal elections on May 22 and then must build toward nationwide general elections with a new leader. The most likely candidates are current Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba and Defence Minister Carme Chacon, who would become Spain's first female premier if elected. The Socialists must choose their new candidate in March 2012 for national elections at an as-yet unspecified date later that year. Rubalcaba, 59, is seen by many as a very experienced politician who has acted as Zapatero's hard man against the violent Basque separatists of ETA.

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Africa North

Spain Says Libya Military Intervention Must Be 'Last Resort'

2011-03-09

[An Nahar] Any military intervention in Libya should be the "last resort" and with the approval of the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said Tuesday. "Before any possible intervention in Libya, we must note the principles to follow, firstly the (approval of the U.N.) Security Council," he said. But before that, what is the shape of the table? After which, of course, comes the color of the tablecloth... So true. White or cream, damask, embroidered linen, or lace... Is this a serious discussion or posturing? That must be decided before any other decision can be made. "Any intervention should be a last resort," he told a joint news conference with visiting Chilean President Sebastian Pinera. Western powers meet in Brussels from Thursday to assess their options for military intervention in Libya as the country slides into civil war. Top of the talks will be a British-French call for a no-fly zone over Libya which could go before the Security Council as early as this week. Other options include arming the rebels and strangling Gadhafi financially by tightening sanctions. The New York Times reported Sunday that U.S. defense planners were preparing a range of land, sea and air military options in Libya in case Washington and its allies decide to intervene there.

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