Film and Discussion Event: What is happening in Europe? Privatizing profits and socializing losses.
What is happening in Europe? Privatizing profits and socializing losses.
The UK under Thatcher in the `80s was the first state in the EU that proceeded in massively privatizing public services and industries. Nowadays, privatizations stand at the core of the neoliberal policies that all European states adopt to confront the economic crisis. Along with austerity measures, budget cuts and the Memoranda, privatizations are advertised as part of the solution to the crisis. These policies which socialize costs and privatize profits are advocated by the majority of European states, from Germany to Greece and Spain, and are forcefully imposed by the European Commission against nation’s will.
The most representative example is the two recent Greek elections which delivered a clear message to end austerity and privatizations. However, EU-officials ignore the popular will and keep on interfering with Greece’s domestic politics by terrorizing the Greeks that if they don’t stick to austerity and privatizations their lives will be destroyed. And in Greece this propaganda which caused the fear prevailed. However, are these policies the way out of the crisis, or are they associated with the causes that lead to today’s social and economic conditions??
Catastroika is a documentary which investigates the effects of privatization programs in a number of countries, from Russia to the UK and today’s Greece. The documentary brings about a number of questions that can form the basis of an interesting open discussion: What is the role of the EU and Eurozone architecture and how is it associated with these results? Is the Eurozone crisis a problem of Greece and Spain or are there more important structural problems? Come and share your opinion about what is really happening in the European Union!
Place: Simplon, Boterdiep 69 (http://www.simplon.nl/)
Film: Catastroika
Date: Tuesday, 26.6
Time: 19.30
Language: English
Discussion will follow
Entrance: FREE
Real Democracy Groningen
http://realdemocracygroningen.nl/
