Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Aug 20)

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Sun Sep 24, 2017 1:13 am

Eurozone sees 'burst of activity' in September
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-41359891
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Sun Sep 24, 2017 2:37 am

Spain’s constitutional crisis

Catalonia’s unconstitutional means to an undesirable end

There are better ways than a referendum to address the region’s legitimate grievances


SPAIN has known tumultuous times: civil war in the 1930s, dictatorship until 1975, a failed coup in 1981, a financial and economic crash in 2008-13, and terrorism of the nationalist and jihadist sorts. Now it faces a constitutional crisis that threatens its unity.

The Catalan government plans to hold a “binding” referendum on independence on October 1st. If a majority votes yes—regardless of the turnout—then Carles Puigdemont, the Catalan president, will unilaterally declare independence.

The Spanish constitutional court has declared the vote illegal, and the conservative government of Mariano Rajoy has taken control of the region’s finances to try to block the ballot.

The Guardia Civil has raided Catalan government offices and a private delivery firm to seize posters and ballot papers, and arrested at least 12 officials. The Catalan government has called for “peaceful resistance”.

The crisis is snowballing into a serious threat to Spain’s democracy. Solving it sensitively matters to the rest of Europe. The precedent set in Catalonia will affect other would-be separatists, from Scotland to the Donbas region of Ukraine.

Catalonia enjoys a standard of living higher than the average in both Spain and the European Union and more self-government than almost any other region in Europe, including powers to protect the Catalan language.

It is, to outward appearances, a lovely and successful place. Yet a majority of Catalans are unhappy with their lot, feeling that Spain takes too much of their money and fails to accord respect to their identity (see article). Mr Rajoy has been wrong to assume that time and economic recovery would cure Catalans’ discontent.

The Spanish constitution, adopted by referendum in 1978—and backed almost unanimously in Catalonia—proclaims the country’s “indissoluble unity”. It vests sovereignty in the Spanish people as a whole, not in the inhabitants of its constituent parts.

The Catalan government claims the right to self-determination. But international law recognises this only in cases of colonialism, foreign invasion or gross discrimination and abuse of human rights. These arguably do apply to the Kurds, who are planning to hold a disputed referendum on secession from Iraq on September 25th (see article).

Catalonia, however, hardly counts as colonised, occupied or oppressed. Many Spaniards worry that its secession could swiftly be followed by that of the Basque country. If the rule of law is to mean anything, the constitution should be upheld. Mr Puigdemont should thus step back from his reckless referendum. Opponents are unlikely to turn out, so any yes vote he obtains will be questionable, not just legally but politically.

That said, by playing cat-and-mouse with ballot boxes Mr Rajoy has needlessly given Mr Puigdemont a propaganda victory. A big majority of Mr Rajoy’s voters in the rest of Spain support him in part because he refuses to yield to Catalan nationalism. But something important is wrong in Spain, and it is his duty to try to fix it.

Democracy requires consent as well as the rule of law. Constitutional change, especially the right to break away, should be difficult—but not impossible. In Scotland and Quebec, allowing people to have a say did not lead to breakaway.

Mr Rajoy should be less defensive: he should now seek to negotiate a new settlement with Catalonia, while also offering to rewrite the constitution to allow referendums on secession, but only with a clear majority on a high turnout.

Damage to Catalonia

Many Catalans want the right to decide, but polls suggest that only around 40% want independence. Most would probably be satisfied with a new deal that gave them clearer powers, let them keep more of their money and symbolically recognised their sense of nationhood. The tragedy is that neither Mr Puigdemont nor Mr Rajoy seems interested in putting such an offer on the table.

Source: The Economist
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Wed Oct 04, 2017 2:32 pm

Catalan referendum: Region's independence 'in matter of days'
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41493014
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Sat Oct 07, 2017 6:19 pm

Separatism in Catalonia

It is not too late to stop the break-up of Spain

To avoid calamity, ask Catalans what they really want


WHEN a democracy sends riot police to beat old ladies over the head with batons and stop them voting, something has gone badly wrong. Catalans say that almost 900 people were hurt by police in the referendum for independence on October 1st.

Whatever the provocation from Catalan leaders in staging an unconstitutional poll, the reaction of Mariano Rajoy, the prime minister, has thrown Spain into its worst constitutional crisis since an attempted coup in 1981.

If Mr Rajoy thought that cracking heads would put a stop to secessionism, he could not have been more wrong. He has only created a stand-off that has energised his enemies and shocked his friends (see article).

On October 3rd Catalonia, one of Spain’s richest regions, was paralysed by a protest strike. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators have marched to express their outrage.

Secession would be a disaster for Spain. The country would lose its second city and risk the further loss of the Basque region. Secession would also hurt Catalans, which is why a majority of them probably oppose it. And Catalan independence might stir up separatism elsewhere in Europe—in Scotland again, no doubt, but also in northern Italy, in Corsica, perhaps even in Bavaria.

To prevent the crisis deepening, both sides need to seek a new constitutional settlement. Instead, they are digging in and Catalonia is on the brink of unilaterally—and illegally—declaring independence.

After Franco

Spain has a historical fear of dismemberment. Catalan secessionism was one of the factors that brought about the Spanish civil war of the 1930s. Many Spaniards no doubt share the anger of King Felipe who, in a rare televised speech, denounced Catalonia’s leaders for irresponsibly and disloyally tearing up the constitution of 1978.

After all, Catalans overwhelmingly endorsed that settlement, which entrenched democracy, brought prosperity and granted a large dose of autonomy to Spanish regions, including Catalonia.

A well-run democracy must abide by the rule of law. That is what protects democratic liberties, not least the freedom of minorities to express discontent. Until referendum day, nobody who experienced the vibrancy of Barcelona could seriously claim that Catalonia was oppressed. With few exceptions, notably when empires collapse, the world generally favours national unity over self-determination by subnational groups.

Many of the states liberated by the break-up of the Soviet empire joined the European Union, but these days the EU is wary, warning would-be secessionists that new states have no automatic right to join. Without Spain’s support, Catalonia would find itself on the wrong side of a new customs wall.

For all these reasons the Catalan leader, Carles Puigdemont, does not have a strong case for independence. Nor can he claim a real mandate. He rammed the laws authorising the referendum through the Catalan parliament with a narrow majority and without proper debate. Those laws have no formal legal standing.

Before his referendum, opinion polls suggested that only 40-45% of Catalans wanted to break away. The 90% vote to leave was 90% of an unregistered turnout of well under half, because Catalonia’s Remainers mostly declined to take part.

As with populists elsewhere, Mr Puigdemont has offered a simplistic vision, without explaining the costs of independence or how it might come about.

But that is not the end of the story. Democracy rests on the consent of the governed. Even some who disagree with Mr Puigdemont’s methods believe Catalonia has a case for nationhood.

It could survive economically. A lot of its people think it constitutes a nation. Under autonomy, Catalan leaders have promoted their language and their nationalist creed.

The pain in Spain

Whatever the legality of separatism, once the desire for independence reaches a critical point, governments must deal with it in three ways: crush it, bow to it, or negotiate in good faith, knowing that separation may still be the outcome.

Mr Rajoy has failed to grasp the nature of this choice. First he blocked the nationalists in the courts and, last weekend, he resorted to force. His deployment of policemen to suppress the Catalan vote was not only a propaganda gift to them but, more important, crossed a line.

Aggression against crowds of peaceful citizens may work in Tibet but cannot be sustained in a Western democracy. In the contest between formal justice and natural justice, natural justice wins eventually every time.

Constitutions exist to serve citizens, not the other way around. Rather than uphold the rule of law as he intended, Mr Rajoy ended up tarnishing the legitimacy of the Spanish state.

Will Mr Puigdemont declare independence? That would be reckless and irresponsible but, if he does, Mr Rajoy should resist the temptation to arrest Catalan leaders and, for the time being, avoid using his power to suspend regional rule. Just now, either measure would only compound his mistakes.

Only a negotiation can restore calm and it should start immediately. Even now most Catalans can probably still be won over with the offer of greater autonomy, including the power to raise and keep more of their own taxes, more protection for the Catalan language and some kind of recognition of the Catalans as a “nation”. Mr Rajoy might even take up the opposition Socialists’ idea of turning Spain into a federal state.

Any settlement, though, must include the option of a referendum on independence. Separation would be a wrenching change for Catalonia and the rest of Spain, so should not be done lightly. A majority of Catalans eligible to vote should be the minimum threshold for independence. A follow-up vote on the terms of a separation might be wise, too.

For all his deficiencies, David Cameron, the former British prime minister, was right about allowing a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014. He made the case for Scotland to stay, and won the vote convincingly. Mr Rajoy should do the same.

The case for the unity of Spain is strong. But it must be won by force of argument. By using force alone, Mr Rajoy is not preventing the break-up of Spain, but hastening it.

Source: The Economist
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Thu Oct 19, 2017 5:31 pm

Spain moves to suspend Catalan autonomy
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41678086
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Sat Oct 28, 2017 3:11 pm

Catalonia independence: Spain strips police chiefs of powers
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41785292
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby winston » Tue Oct 31, 2017 6:18 pm

Europe Is Doing So Well Even Politics Can’t Drag It Down

By Viktoria Dendrinou

German coalition talks, Brexit, Italy likely risks to EU
Elections in Czech Republic, Austria highlight anti-EU support

Source: Bloomberg

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... mpaign=bop
It's all about "how much you made when you were right" & "how little you lost when you were wrong"
User avatar
winston
Billionaire Boss
 
Posts: 118528
Joined: Wed May 07, 2008 9:28 am

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Tue Nov 21, 2017 5:12 pm

血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 17)

Postby behappyalways » Fri Dec 22, 2017 9:31 pm

Catalonia election: Puigdemont calls for talks with Spain
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42451100
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

Re: Europe - Economic Data & News 13 (Dec 16 - Dec 18)

Postby behappyalways » Tue Jan 30, 2018 8:25 pm

Eurozone growth hit 10-year high in 2017
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-42870993
血要热 头脑要冷 骨头要硬
behappyalways
Millionaire Boss
 
Posts: 39914
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:43 pm

PreviousNext

Return to Archives

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests