Portugal political crisis talks break down
no author given
last updated July 19th 2013
click here to read this article
President Anibal Cavaco and their government has led Portugal through a period of austerity as requested from the EU and IMF in exchange for bail out. The opposition disagrees with the government's austerity policy. They have given several alternatives, none of which have been taken. As a result, they have said it is up to the president to deal with the situation. The crises began three weeks ago when the finance and foreign ministers resigned. Foreign minister Paulo Portas resigned due to the extent of the austerity measures and Finance minister Vitor Gaspar resigned due to lack of support for his approach. Lisbon has requested a delay in the review of the bailout by its creditors. Analysts say that the president could still avoid the problem by keeping the coalition in place rather than calling an immediate election. The austerity cuts are widely blamed for the continuous Portugal recession over the past two years.
This article is interesting to me because both sides of the argument are being stubborn over the issue and cannot work together to solve the problem. If they would work together, the problem could be solved more efficiently and most likely with a more peaceful outcome between the two groups. The president should listen to and consider the oppositions alternative ideas. In my opinion, arguing is making it worse. As far as the austerity policy goes, I agree with it to an extent. I think that Portugal should cut back on its spending, but not to the point of a two year and continuing recession.
This article is strongly tied to the political life of the country. In this case, the government is affecting the economy in the country. The county is in need of bailout from other countries and attempts to get the bailout are leading to recession. The coalition government and the opposition cannot agree on a solution to this problem and is leading to further issues. This is important to politics in the government because ultimately, if they don't work together, it won't end well for one of the political parties and this will have an affect on Portugal.