On last 15th of May it was 10 years since the citizens unhappy with the austerity policies took to the streets to say it is enough1. Not much remains of that movement but it marked a before and after in the political and social life of the Spanish state. This movement developed in a general context of contestation with the Arab Spring in Africa and the Middle East or the Occupy movement in North America.
That cycle began with the despair of the Tunisian people, plunged into a corrupt and authoritarian regime that drowned even the most humble peddler. The last straw was the suicide of a Tunisian merchant named Mohamed Buazizi2, who blew himself up in the small town of Sidi Buzid. The people of Tunéz took to the streets until they managed to overthrow the regime of dictator Ben Ali which unfortunately for the African country lasted 23 years.
Later other countries in North Africa and the Middle East joined the revolt: Yemen, Egypt, Bahrain or Syria among the most prominent. Unfortunately although some regimes such as Ben Ali in Tunisia or Mubarak in Egypt were ended most of the movements were taken advantage of by foreign economic or political interests to impose military dictatorships or raise terrorist groups, creating chaos and destroying the illusion of a democratic transition. This ended up being called the Arab Winter.
Tunisia, Egypt or Iraq are countries in which the echoes of that Arab Spring still live today, citizens are once again taking to the streets seeking to improve living conditions and defend human rights3. All these demonstrations once again have common demands: Democracy, an end to corruption, social justice … In addition, Southeast Asia goes through a similar process that includes territories such as Myanmar, Thailand or Hong Kong which once again share causes and they reinforce each other.
Now that a new political, economic, social and even cultural cycle is opening and as the pandemic ends, everything points to a generalized discontent throughout the planet over the adjustment measures that states carry out to make those of down the capitalist crisis. A clear example is the current movement in response to fiscal adjustment in Colombia4. The victory of the Colombian people invites optimism and indicates that a decade of new resistance is beginning.
1 https://www.publico.es/actualidad/cronologia-acampada-indignada-puerta-del.html 2 https://www.lavanguardia.com/internacional/20201220/6136061/primavera-latente.html 3 https://nuso.org/articulo/una-nueva-primavera-arabe/ 4 https://elpais.com/elpais/2021/05/02/album/1619918184_626851.html#foto_gal_1