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| Van Rompuy and Barroso both struck a softer tone |
In the wake
of massive protests across Europe and the world against the financial sector,
EU leaders have said they understand the frustration and that greater financial
regulation is necessary.
European
Union leaders on Monday made conciliatory remarks in response to the weekend's
global protests against corporate greed and unemployment, using the opportunity
to push for stricter financial regulation.
"The
concerns of those young people on growth and employment are totally
legitimate," EU President Herman Van Rompuy told reporters after meetings
with business and union leaders. "But our responsibility is to go through
this unpopular period in order to safeguard a better future."
Hundreds of
thousands of protesters, many of them youths, marched through cities across
Europe, the United States, Latin America and Asia over the weekend in
demonstrations sparked by the Occupy Wall Street protests in New York City.
 |
| Protests across Europe included one at the European Central Bank in Frankfurt |
The protests
were an expression of anger at the banking and financial sectors blamed for
causing an economic crisis that has forced governments to cut budgets and roll
back social welfare programs.
Van Rompuy
said such budget cuts were an unfortunate necessity to restore confidence in
European government debt, but he also said that austerity measures "must
be as growth- and jobs-friendly as possible" and that the burden should
not fall solely on the backs of the poor
EU-wide
financial crimes
European
Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso echoed Van Rompuy's sentiment, saying
he could "very much understand the frustration and indignation of so many
people in our societies."
The
European Commission, the EU's executive branch, plans on introducing
legislation on Thursday that would penalize insider trading and market
manipulation with fines or jail time across the 27-country bloc.
"Some
of the behavior you have seen in the financial sector was completely
irresponsible, sometimes... of criminal nature," Barroso said, adding that
the financial sector must "make a fairer contribution to the common
good."
Merkel
downplays summit expectations
Meanwhile,
as about 200 people continued to camp outside the European Central Bank in
Frankfurt, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman Steffan Seibert said the
protests expressed "a legitimate demand for justice," but that they
should not "place all the blame for the current financial crisis on the
banks," when governments spending beyond their means were also to blame.
 |
| Lenders may be asked to take a greater loss on their Greek government bonds |
Leaders of
EU member states are to meet in Brussels on Sunday to discuss how to solve the
bloc's debt crisis. They are expected to ask private lenders to take an even
bigger loss on Greek government bonds, which have already lost 20 percent of
their value under an agreement made in July.
Seibert
sought to lower the expectations of the summit, saying the problem was too big
to be solved quickly.
"Dreams
that everything will be resolved and dealt with by next Monday cannot be
fulfilled," Chancellor Mekel's spokesman said. "These are important
steps on a long path, a path that will certainly continue far into next
year."
Author:
Andrew Bowen (AFP, dapd, dpa)
Editor: Mark Hallam
Related Articles:
Analysis: Wall St. action part of global "Arab Spring?"
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| Other protests have been held in Boston, Los Angeles and Chicago |
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