The almost revolutionary situation that has developed in Greece for economic reasons has been starting to repeat itself from the beginning of this year in another country of the European Union - in Spain. The economic crisis in the country of matadors has passed from the stage of political collisions to the confrontation of the brave prime minister with the workers and civil servants of the country fighting for their right to work on the Iberian Peninsula.
The reason for the mass strikes and rallies in Spain was the country's difficult economic situation. The state of production was expressed in the figure of 8.9% - such was the deficit of the gross domestic product (GDP) in the year that ended. The country has the highest unemployment rate in Europe - at the beginning of the year it was 21%, and by summer it had grown to 24%. Economic problems led to the defeat in the election of the ruling party and the change of government. The new Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy, introduced a budget to parliament in spring, which included cruel austerity measures. In the process of its implementation, workers and employees in state-supported sectors — mining, healthcare, education, and others — will suffer greatly.
Of course, such measures could not but provoke the protests that have been taking place in Spain since the beginning of the year both in an organized form, under the leadership of trade unions, and spontaneously. One of the most high-profile actions of this kind - the indefinite strike of the miners - has already passed the stage of spontaneous protests and clashes with the police in the north of the country, a many-day procession of miners in the capital and a rally that brought together several hundred thousand people in Madrid. The Spaniards were most indignant at the beginning of the year that the European Union began financial assistance not from the public sector, but from the support of banks - the stability of the financial structure of ordinary Spaniards is less worried than the loss of their own work.
Meanwhile, the government is steadfastly continuing its previous course, despite massive protests. The financial situation of the population in the first quarter worsened by almost 10% compared to the same period in 2011, and nevertheless, in the summer, the Prime Minister announced an increase in the value added tax by 3% (to 21%), a reduction in unemployment benefits. decrease traditional christmas bonuses. There are no prerequisites for a decrease in the level of protests in Spain in the coming months.
