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Europe is Revolting
From Edinburgh to Paris to Kiev, Europe is revolting
THE signs are everywhere, from smashed windows in the mansion of a British banker to the thousands who took to the streets of Kiev to decry pay cuts: Europe is rebelling.
As world leaders strut the stages of Washington, New York and soon, London, in a bid to forge a united response to the global financial crisis, the rising cost of living, mortgages heading skywards, job losses and a tide of home repossessions have sparked a chilling fear of the future and propelled the citizens of Europe into open uprising.
These isolated brushfires of civil unrest could ignite what Superintendent David Hartshorn of London's Metropolitan Police warned could become a "summer of rage" - with the city's G20 meeting the focus of widespread dissatisfaction.
Police are bracing for the first round of demonstrations and protests today in the British capital as trade union bosses from around the world converge on Hyde Park to lead a "People First" demonstration before Thursday's G20 meeting.
ACTU president Sharan Burrow, who is also president of the International Union Confederation, will speak at the protest. "Workers around the world in rich countries have lost jobs and homes while those in developing countries face further poverty," she said. "All are the innocent victims of this crisis and their anger is growing. This is understandable as more and more discover that their jobs, their houses, and their income security in retirement have been stripped away by a crisis which was precipitated by greed, incompetence and a blind faith in the market."
Next week, the so-called G20 Meltdown campaign - an informal group - is expected to set off from four sites in London and converge the day before the summit on the Bank of England, marching behind one of the "four horsemen of the apocalypse". A separate group intends to set up camp outside the European Climate Exchange in Bishopsgate while more protests are expected to focus on the ExCeL centre in east London where the leaders will meet. The 60th anniversary meeting of NATO next weekend in Strasbourg is expected to attract big protests too.
So far, an additional 2500 police have been attached to the London summit and the security bill for the ExCeL centre is estimated at $15.5 million.
Bank officials say they are taking seriously the safety and wellbeing of London staff and have suggested working from home next week during the G20 meetings. Some have advised workers to "dress down" to avoid being targeted as financial workers.
Iceland, Italy, Spain, France, Latvia, Hungary, Greece and Bulgaria have already felt the force of civil unhappiness since the economic crisis began to destroy the hopes and security of their young people and middle classes. Farmers, truck drivers, teachers, transport personnel and public servants have taken to the streets to protest. In Eastern and Central Europe, years of boom after the fall of the Iron Curtain have made the recession even harder to bear.
In France, the Elysee Palace is still reeling after a "bossnapping" - manufacturer 3M improved the severance packages for more than 110 workers in exchange for the liberty of manager, Luc Rousselet, who spent more than 24 hours as prisoner of his own furious employees.
The brazen stunt followed the nationwide strike last week that drew 1.2 million people onto the streets in peaceful protest. It came just days after it was revealed that the departing boss of car parts supplier Valeo, Thierry Morin, left the company with $6.2 million even though the company had been given a state bail-out. It is to slash 1600 positions in France and reported a fourth-quarter loss of $607 million.
French union official Bruno Lemerle said: "Those who sow misery reap fury. The violence is done by those who cut jobs, not by those who try to defend them."
In Scotland, vandals smashed windows of the home of Sir Fred Goodwin, former boss of the beleaguered Royal Bank of Scotland, and vandalised the black Mercedes in the driveway of the affluent Edinburgh home. The first direct attack on an executive since the financial crunch began, it elicited horror in Britain's business community.
Sir Fred kept his pension, worth $1.45 million a year, despite a series of disastrous acquisitions that ended up with the nationalisation of the bank. He steadfastly refused to give up the payments despite demands from the Government.
Two senior bosses have resigned from AIG in Paris, citing a "hostile" environment as the insurer faces a public backlash over multimillion-dollar bonus payouts made to executives using government bail-out money.
Documents released under the US Freedom of Information Act reveal the degree of vitriol in emails sent to AIG.
One says: "The family members of your executives are not safe. Your blood will run through the streets."
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