Madrid Pension Protest Draws Up to 50,000 Before Snap Election
(MENAFN) Tens of thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets of Madrid to defend Spain’s state pension system, with a snap election just weeks away.
Marchers crossed the capital demanding that pensions stay tied to inflation and that the gender pension gap be closed. Organizers put turnout at 50,000, while the government counted 25,000. According to a national newspaper, crowds chanted “pensions aren’t for sale, pensions are to be defended,” “widows and widowers will not be silenced” and “here they are, these are the ones fighting for your pension.”
Anxiety over the system’s future is running high because its fate could hinge on next month’s vote. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has charged that the right-wing Popular Party (PP) intends to scale back inflation-linked pension increases.
The financial strain is mounting. Spain’s monthly pension bill reached a record of roughly $16.2 billion this year, pushed up by an ageing population, a low birth rate and stagnant wages.
The Madrid march is the latest in a wave of unrest across Europe. Demonstrations have recently erupted in Italy, France and Belgium over issues including rising living costs and poor school conditions.
Marchers crossed the capital demanding that pensions stay tied to inflation and that the gender pension gap be closed. Organizers put turnout at 50,000, while the government counted 25,000. According to a national newspaper, crowds chanted “pensions aren’t for sale, pensions are to be defended,” “widows and widowers will not be silenced” and “here they are, these are the ones fighting for your pension.”
Anxiety over the system’s future is running high because its fate could hinge on next month’s vote. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has charged that the right-wing Popular Party (PP) intends to scale back inflation-linked pension increases.
The financial strain is mounting. Spain’s monthly pension bill reached a record of roughly $16.2 billion this year, pushed up by an ageing population, a low birth rate and stagnant wages.
The Madrid march is the latest in a wave of unrest across Europe. Demonstrations have recently erupted in Italy, France and Belgium over issues including rising living costs and poor school conditions.
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