There is a growing awareness throughout Europe where people are starting to see the damaging effects of EU imposed austerity…and just like a virus in the bloodstream – they’re beginning to detect the threat and reject it.  Europe doesn’t have a spending problem – it has a monetary policy problem.  It’s pretty clear that various European governments are bending over for various international bankers along with a capitulation to U.S. pressure.  But – throughout more and more countries throughout Europe – the people are either rising up in protest or simply voting in new people who will focus on growth and reject EU austerity.  Here are 7 EU member states where the people are standing up for their rights:

France

In the first round of presidential elections in France – the French gave a majority of the vote to Francois Hollande – a socialist who has proposed a 75% tax on personal earnings over 1.3 million.  We’ll know the winner in the next two weeks but Monsieur Hollande is not in support of austerity measures and is openly embracing proposals for growth.  This would put an emphasis on modifying the existing EU compact to ensure a more populist stance and if not supported by Germany (it isn’t)…then it could create a unique division in the Franco-German alliance and no one knows where that will lead.

Czech Republic

The NY Times writes:

In Prague, an estimated 90,000 Czechs took to the streets on Saturday to demonstrate their lack of faith in a government that has cut the budget while raising taxes, and that also faces accusations of corruption.

Greece

Greece’s central banker has hinted that Greece may exit the Eurozone away from harsh EU austerity measures – the Wall Street Journal has the story:

The warning from Mr. Provopoulos, who also sits on the governing council of the European Central Bank, brought a rare reference to the possibility that Greece may have to leave the euro zone and revert to a national currency. Senior European Union officials tend to avoid raising the possibility of any country leaving the euro bloc, fearing it could spook investors and trigger bank runs in other vulnerable euro-zone countries, like Spain or Portugal.

In March, Greece’s European partners and the International Monetary Fund agreed to a new €130 billion ($171 billion) bailout to help the country meet its financing needs to about 2014-15. But the conditions set under the loan have left deep scars in Greece’s social landscape, making the austerity debate central to coming polls.

Netherlands

The Dutch government collapsed today when government leaders were unwilling to come to agreement in cuts imposed by the EU.

Al Jazeera reports:

“I understand that you have to bring finances in order but you cannot cut rigorously because it hurts the economy and people. Three per cent is not feasible,” Emile Roemer, Socialist leader, said in parliament on Tuesday.

The country was thrown into political turmoil on Monday when the government tendered its resignation following an abrupt split with Geert Wilders’ populist Freedom Party.

The Netherlands must show how it will meet the European Union’s deficit limit or it risks creating new turmoil in
financial markets. It must also pick a date for new elections, the fifth in ten years.

The eurozone’s fifth-largest economy has been a haven of stability during the regional debt crisis and the officials criticised countries struggling to get their budgets in order.

Portugal

200,000 Portuguese protest; they are rejecting austerity imposed by the EU compact.  Reuters has the story:

Portuguese strikers halted trains, shut ports and paralyzed most public transport on Thursday in protest at austerity measures and labor reforms imposed as a condition of a 78-billion-euro ($103 billion) EU-IMF bailout.

Spain

Unions and student groups engaged in a General Strike protesting EU imposed austerity and budget cuts.

The Huffington Post reports:

Spanish workers enraged by austerity-driven labor reforms to prevent the nation from becoming Europe’s next bailout victim slowed down the country’s economy in a general strike Thursday, closing factories and clashing with police as the new-center right government tried to convince investors the nation isn’t headed for a financial meltdown.

Tens of thousands held protest marches in Madrid and other cities, and the demonstrations turned violent in Spain’s second largest city of Barcelona, where hooded protesters smashed bank and storefront windows with hammers and rocks and set fire to streetside trash containers.

Italy

Italy is rejecting EU imposed austerity measures this year.  They want to focus on growth.  This happens after the Italian people went out on the streets and protested against cuts to their pensions – video HERE.

Reuters explains:

Thousands of Italian trade unionists marched through Rome on Friday to protest against pension changes, the latest sign of mounting opposition to Prime Minister Mario Monti’s economic reforms.

The protesters say the new rules will catch tens of thousands of recently retired workers with no pension cover. Thousands braved the rain to attend the demonstration, many carrying the red flags of the CGIL, Italy’s largest union which organized the march with the more moderate CISL and UIL labor confederations.

The large demonstration underlined wider discontent with Monti’s unelected government of technocrats at a time when financial markets are on edge again as worries about Spain’s budget problems spill over into other euro zone economies, including Italy.

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