Finally, Europe

By María Dolores Corujo The recent ruling of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, which declares several aspects of the current Spanish mortgage law abusive, represents an immense breath of fresh air in the form of renewed strengths emanating from Europe ...

April 4 2013 (15:15 WEST)
By María Dolores Corujo
The recent ruling of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, which declares several aspects of the current Spanish mortgage law abusive, represents an immense breath of fresh air in the form of renewed strengths emanating from Europe ...

The recent ruling of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, which declares several aspects of the current Spanish mortgage law abusive, represents an immense breath of fresh air in the form of renewed strengths emanating from the real Europe.

I am talking about the Europe dreamed of by its founding fathers, the one that is embodied with the letter of progress in the Treaty of Lisbon and the same one that the Canary Island socialists defend and support with all our energies: the Europe of the people, of citizens, of its institutions and of its democratic ideals.

Why so much optimism in the midst of so much despair? Because the community judges have forcefully told the politicians of the Spanish Popular Party and the banking leaders of our country that the tragedy of evictions for non-payment of mortgages has a limit.

The Court of the European Union assures that certain clauses contained in mortgage contracts are harmful to the signatories, succulent for the banking entity and clearly abusive. The judges say that the drama of eviction, which in Spain has claimed several victims in the form of suicides, is over. And they point to bankers as the main culprits.

In addition to the satisfaction implied by the fact that the first practical application of the European Court has taken place in Lanzarote - in the form of due diligence and rapid praxis by a judge from Arrecife and a lawyer practicing on our island - the highest judicial authority in Europe delivers a harsh reprimand to the Rajoy government: it punishes its actions by accusing the Platform of People Affected by Mortgages of friendship with ETA; censures its refusal to process the Popular Legislative Initiative signed by more than one and a half million people in Congress in the morning, and rectify in the afternoon; and unmasks the PP's practice of introducing amendments in the parliamentary process to water down the ILP as much as possible.

The entire strategy of the right wing collapsed in seventy-two hours. Europe emitted signs of life and the authentic community spirit emerged, beyond Merkel's threats and Rajoy's shameful servility. Civic Europe appeared, the defender of human rights, the freest territory on the planet, the living example of the preponderance of people and their social organizations over the savage capitalism so loved by Guindos, Montoro or Soria.

It is everyone's Europe, the Europe of freedoms, of solidarity and of tolerance. The Europe for which the socialists of the Canary Islands will continue to fight tirelessly.

*María Dolores Corujo, general secretary of the PSOE in Lanzarote.

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