The European Parliament has taken a closer look the Troika. According to the Parliament, the triple team of delegates from the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission has designed unilateral economy measures and has neglected to induce growth impulses. Cuts in social welfare benefits and increasing unemployment would have increased poverty in those countries, where the Troika had operated. The majority of the delegates of the European Parliament declared that minimum wages should not be frozen, retirement pays should not drop beneath the poverty level, the access to medical devices and pharmaceutical products should not be restricted and accommodations should remain affordable.
At least one third of the increase in unemployment in Europe has been caused by the austerity policy. It is a disastrous strategy to expect an improving economic situation when loans are reduced. The majority of commodities and services produced in Europe are sold within Europe itself and not somewhere else in the world. 90% of all goods are circulating within the domestic markets. And because loans constitute the most common income for people in Europe, cuts in social welfare benefits as well as the decrease of wages lead to a drop in demand within the home markets, to the contraction of economy and to drops in investment and employment. Europe is becoming impoverished, not wealthier, when all countries reduce wages.
The philosopher Jürgen Habermas expresses his concerns about the “authoritarian” and “post democratic” project Europe and the financial crises in an essay. Taking the same line, the European Parliament has doubted the “democratic legitimacy” of the Troika. It has been created without legal basis and lacks every “democratic control”. With its report, the European Parliament touches the sorest points: It is missing a relation between the programs and the European fundamental rights. Many of the reform proposals of the Troika clearly come into conflict with European law, especially the European Social Charta. Such as the deteriorated medical supply, resulting from an imbalanced savings policy, and the strong dismantling of the tariff system, caused by the labour market reforms. Europe is more. The initiative of the European Parliament makes clear how important more democracy and a social balance would be within Europe.
Martin Schenk
Social expert at Diaconia Austria (Eurodiaconia member)