The Spanish know from their own experience what fascism is.
Spain Stands By Austerity
Spanish industrial production fell at an accelerated pace in February, the latest sign that the euro zone's fourth-largest economy remains mired in contraction, as Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy expressed renewed support for deep spending cuts
WSJ,
11 April, 2012
Industrial production declined 5.1% in February from a year earlier in calendar-adjusted terms after sliding 4.3% in January, because of lower activity in the construction and car-manufacturing sectors, statistics agency Instituto Nacional de EstadĂstica, or INE, said on Wednesday. Spain's industrial output hasn't posted growth in a year.
The latest sign of weakening economic activity in the country comes a day after investor concerns over Spain's ability to meet tough budget deficit-reduction targets amid a deep economic downturn led to a selloff of Spanish assets.
Spanish bonds and stocks recovered Wednesday from multimonth lows, shrugging off the data release, in what traders said was bargain-hunting. Spain's blue-chip IBEX-35 index rose 1.9%, following a 3% drop Tuesday, while the yield on benchmark 10-year bonds eased to 5.83%, down 10 basis points, or hundredths of a percentage point.
But in a sign that markets continued to be nervous about the government's ability to regain control of the country's finances, costs of protection against a Spanish debt default continued to soar. Spain's five-year credit default swaps were at 485 basis points, just off their Nov. 23 record of 487 basis points, according to data provider Markit.
Adding to worries over the effects of continued austerity on wobbly Mediterranean economies, the yield at an Italian Treasury bill auction rose from the previous auction on March 13, on sagging demand.
That contrasts with ever-stronger demand for German paper, widely seen as a haven for euro-zone investors, which led Wednesday to Germany offering its lowest yield on record for a 10-year bond.
This trend is pushing the risk premium between the market yield on 10-year German bonds, on one hand, and Spanish and Italian bonds, on the other, to around 4%—even as the skinny German yields led to demand at Wednesday's bond sale falling short of the amount on offer.
Mr. Rajoy on Wednesday defended big cuts recently announced to central government spending, as well as to the health-care and education systems managed by Spain's powerful regional governments.
"The situation is difficult, and complicated," he told reporters. "What we're doing is not going to have an immediate positive effect on the economy, but we have no other choice."
Enam Ahmed, an economist with Moody's Analytics, which is part of the same group of companies as credit-ratings firm Moody's, said February's industrial-output data were even worse than anticipated, and reinforce fears that Spain may be forced to seek a Greek-style bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
"Weak economic activity will also make it harder for the government to achieve its fiscal deficit targets," Mr. Ahmed said. "At this moment we cannot rule out Spain tapping into the EU-IMF sometime this year."
Raj Badiani, an economist at IHS Global Insight, said signs of trouble in the manufacturing sector—an important component of Spain's relatively healthy export sector—point to continued increases in unemployment this year, likely to a jobless rate above 24% from the current 23%, already a euro-zone record.
The Spanish government estimates the economy will contract 1.7% this year. Spain's government has committed to narrow the nation's budget gap to 5.3% of gross domestic product this year from 8.5% last year—amounting to tens of billions of euros in spending cuts.
Spain accused of 'draconian' plans to clamp down on protests
Spain has been accused of planning “draconian” new laws against street protests by curbing the use of social networking.
11 April, 2012
Jorge Fernandez Diaz, the Spanish interior minister announced in Congress on Wednesday that a reform of the penal code was planned to criminalise those involved in organising street protests that "seriously disturb the public peace".
Under the laws, a minimum jail term of two years could be imposed on those found guilty of instigating and carrying out violent acts of protest under a new package of measures unveiled on Wednesday.
But it has raised fears that the new measures could be used to stem the wave of protests that began last summer with the birth of what has been dubbed the "indignado movement", when tens ouf thousands of peaceful protesters camped out in squares across Spain.
Protest groups were quick to draw comparisons to the fascist dictatorship of Gen Grancisco Franco.
The measures come amid growing incidents of street violence in cities across Spain, most notably Barcelona where "anti-capitalist" groups were blamed for stirring tensions during last month's general strike.
The strike on March 29 was marred by clashes between police and individuals who torched bins, threw missiles at businesses including banks and vandalised the Barcelona Stock Exchange in the Catalan capital.
A Starbucks café was also torched during the protests when police fired rubber bullets and used tear gas as the protests spiralled out of control.
Mr Diaz said "serious disturbances of public order and intent to organise violent demonstrations through means such as social networking" would carry the same penalty as involvement in a criminal organisation under the new reform.
But he also said that the measures would extend authorities powers to deal with passive resistance as contempt of court.
The measures will make it "an offence to breach authority using mass active or passive resistance against security forces and to include as a crime of assault any threatening or intimidating behaviour," he said in Congress.
In addition attempts to disrupt public services such as transportation would also be made a crime. During the recent general strike picketers blockaded bus and train stations in an attempt to bring transportation to a halt.
"New measures are needed to combat the spiral of violence practised by 'anti-system' groups using urban guerrilla warfare," the Interior Ministry clarified in a later statement.
The measures brought swift criticism from protest groups and became a trending topic on Twitter. The terms "#soycriminial" (I'm a criminal) and "Holadictatura" immediately became popular trending topics.
Comparisons were drawn with Cuba, where peaceful protesters are routinely rounded up by the communist regime, and with Spain's dark days of the Franco dictatorship which ended with his death in 1975.
"We fought for freedom and civil rights during the dictatorship of Franco only to lose them now," one Twitter user, @Iaioflautas wrote.
Another, @Mordorpress said that the government of Mariano Rajoy was a step back to dictatorship. "Goodbye democracy, you only lasted 30 years," he wrote.
Protests against the reforms of the penal code have already been called for Saturday.
The new measures were announced just days after Felip Puig, the Minister of the Interior of Catalonia's regional government, called for measures to limit "social assemblies". They will be debated in parliament and voted on during the current parliamentary session.
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