Proteste di massa contro l’austerità nelle strade spagnole
+ Libération, 20.07, Gli spagnoli manifestano la loro esasperazione contro l’austerità
+ Wsj, 20.07, Le preoccupazioni spagnole alimentano timori globali
+Handelsblatt 19.07, Risparmi in Spagna – Le masse di Madrid nelle strade
● Il governo spagnolo di Rajoy ha approvato una mozione parlamentare che definisce la “violenza urbana” un crimine specifico che consente alla polizia la detenzione preventiva di sospetti prima di essere incriminati.
– Quasi tutti i settori hanno partecipato ad un’enorme manifestazione (centomila), giovedì sera a Madrid, contro le misure d’austerità varate come contropartita al salvataggio (€100MD) delle banche spagnole. Oltre 1 milione di manifestanti complessivamente in 80 città spagnole.
o Una marea umana, contro l’aumento dell’IVA (dal 18% al 21%, con entrate calcolare di €22MD entro il 2014),
o e tagli al bilancio che colpiscono PI (2,5 milioni di dipendenti) e disoccupati (attorno al 25%, oltre 5,6), con riduzione del sussidio di disoccupazione per i nuovi disoccupati, dopo sei mesi di disoccupazione. Tagli per ulteriori €65MD, dopo i precedenti tagli da €27,3 MD già varati nel 2012.
o Obiettivo ridurre il deficit di bilancio spagnolo dall’8,9% del 2011 al 2,8% nel 2014. L’opposizione ha votato unita contro.
o I sindacati (CCOO e UGT) avevano chiamato a manifestare in 80 città, parola d’ordine «Vogliono mandare in rovina il paese, occorre impedirlo»; le proteste sono state organizzate anche tramite network sociali. I sindacati minacciano nuovo sciopero generale a settembre.
o Tra i manifestanti anche poliziotti e pompieri.
– Dopo oltre una settimana di manifestazioni di protesta in tutto il paese, centinaia di migliaia di spagnoli hanno manifestato in tutte le maggiori città contro le ultime misure di austerità varate dal governo spagnolo,
– Alle proteste hanno aderito i lavoratori del PI, che nel 2010 avevano avuto una riduzione salariale del 5% (RT parla di perdite salariali tra il 10 e il 15%), poi il congelamento ed ora l’eliminazione della 13a, equivalente dal 3,5% al 7% del salario annuale; bloccate le principali vie di Madrid; le azioni sono state organizzate e coordinate tramite mail, spontaneamente.
– La protesta ha raccolto i gruppi più disparati, e visto l’appoggio degli “Indignados” ai lavoratori del PI.
– Scontri tra manifestanti e polizia a Madrid, Puerta del Sol, e a Barcellona. La polizia ha usato sfollagenti e proiettili di gomma. Secondo alcune agenzie stampa a Madrid gli arresti stati 15 e circa 40 i feriti, tra cui 10 poliziotti.
L’austerità colpisce anche i governi regionali, che controllano oltre 1/3 della spesa statale spagnola.
Mass anti-austerity protests on Spanish streets
By Feliciano Tisera and Clare Kane
– MADRID (Reuters) – Hundreds of thousands of Spaniards marched against the centre-right government’s latest austerity measures on Thursday evening, following more than a week of demonstrations across the country.
– Parliament on Thursday approved a package of 65 billion euros (50.87 billion pounds) of spending cuts and tax hikes as part of measures to avert a full European bail-out, bringing more hardship in a severe economic downturn.
Demonstrators took to the streets in towns and cities across Spain, thronging the thoroughfares of Madrid and Barcelona, waving flags and bearing banners decorated with scissors to symbolise spending cuts.
– In Madrid, crowds of firemen wearing helments and t-shirts with the slogan "Firemen in danger of extinction" blew horns and let off firecrackers. Earlier, policemen and members of the Civil Guard joined the protests.
"We have lived through bad times, but this takes the biscuit," said 58-year-old fireman Francisco Vaquero.
The sight of demonstrators on Spain’s streets is nothing new. Young "Indignados" (Indignants) protested in their thousands against unemployment last year. One in four Spaniards is without work.
– But since Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced spending cuts and tax rises last week there have been daily demonstrations drawing protests from public service workers like police that have previously stayed away.
Civil servants, whose pay was cut by up to 7 percent when their Christmas bonus was cancelled, have used their coffee breaks this week to protest outside the ruling People’s Party (PP) headquarters in Madrid.
"We have to make some noise, because they’re making fun of us and of all working people," said Iria, 34, an auditor in the treasury, during a rally outside the PP building on Wednesday.
– Public workers up to now had accepted several cuts or freezes in their salaries over the last three years with a sense of resignation. But the latest round of belt-tightening has spurred widespread anger.
"It has gone beyond an ideological issue … and it’s moved beyond the traditional groups that demonstrate. We have seen even the military threatening a demonstration," said Ramon Pacheco, a lecturer in Spanish politics at Kings College London.
– Rajoy announced the cuts as thousands of miners and supporters, some of whom had marched hundreds of kilometres (miles) from northern Spain to protest against a reduction in coal subsidies, staged a rally that ended with police firing rubber bullets and making arrests.
– Civil servants poured out of their offices to block Madrid’s main arteries following Rajoy’s announcement and have protested every day since, organising action through emails and by co-ordinating at work without any clear leaders.
– On Friday, the Indignados turned out in support of the civil servants, a sign that disparate groups with different complaints are uniting in a common cause. That protest ended with scuffles between police and protesters in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol, the centre of last year’s protest movement.
– Messages on social networks like Twitter and mobile messaging service WhatsApp call for impromptu demonstrations that attract hundreds of people in various cities every day.
One message doing the rounds urges citizens to gather in the main squares of their cities on July 27 and says: "The Spanish people are sick of all politicians. Let’s make history!"
The cabinet on Thursday approved a parliamentary motion categorising "urban violence" as a specific crime, which could empower police to detain suspects preventively before being charged with the offence.
The party has more than three years of its term left, but analysts warn that if the crisis continues to escalate, Rajoy will be threatened.
"It’s difficult to make predictions, but it’s more than likely that this government term could come to an end sooner than expected," said Fermin Bouza, a sociologist at Madrid’s Complutense University.
Sparen in Spanien – Madrids Massen ziehen auf die Straße
19.07.2012, 21:57 Uhr, aktualisiert 20.07.2012, 02:35 Uhr
– Spaniens Antrag auf Gelder aus dem EFSF hat neue Sparmaßnahmen nach sich gezogen. Gegen die Entscheidungen des Haushaltsministers protestiert die Bevölkerung in Massen. In der Nacht setzte die Polizei Gummigeschosse ein.
– Madrid Die spanische Polizei hat in der Nacht zum Freitag in der Hauptstadt Madrid Gummigeschosse gegen Teilnehmer eines Massenprotests gegen neue Sparmaßnahmen eingesetzt. Zudem trieb sie am Abend am zentralen Platz Puerta del Sol kleinere Gruppen von Demonstranten mit Schlagstöcken auseinander, wie Korrespondenten der Nachrichtenagentur AFP berichteten.
– Nach Polizeiangaben wurden sieben Demonstranten festgenommen und sechs Menschen verletzt.
– Bei der Großdemonstration in Madrid haben viele Spanier gegen die neuen Sparmaßnahmen der Regierung protestiert. Die Demonstranten versammelten sich unter dem Motto "Sie wollen das Land ruinieren, das müssen wir verhindern" im Zentrum der spanischen Hauptstadt.
Zahlreiche Demonstranten trugen bunte Fahnen bei sich und Banner mit Aufschriften wie "Wenn du gewinnen willst, höre nicht auf zu kämpfen" und "Rajoy beklaut uns".
– Die großen spanischen Gewerkschaften CCOO und UGT hatten für den Abend zu Demonstrationen in mehr als 80 spanischen Städten aufgerufen. Angaben zur Anzahl der Teilnehmer schwanken; es ist von Zehntausenden, auch von Hunderttausenden die Rede.
– Mit den Protesten wollten die Gewerkschaften die Mobilisierungsfähigkeit der Spanier prüfen. Die Gewerkschaften haben damit gedroht, zu einem neuen Generalstreik im September aufzurufen.
Die regierende Volkspartei von Ministerpräsident Mariano Rajoy, die im Parlament die absolute Mehrheit stellt, hatte am Donnerstag das umstrittene Sparpaket gebilligt.
– Unter anderem sollen die Mehrwertsteuer von 18 auf 21 Prozent angehoben, das Weihnachtsgeld für Staatsbedienstete für dieses Jahr gestrichen und die Arbeitslosenhilfe gekürzt werden. Die Opposition votierte geschlossen dagegen.
Der sozialistische Oppositionsführer Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba warf der Regierung Hörigkeit gegenüber der Europäischen Union[e] vor. "Nehmen Sie ein Flugzeug nach Brüssel und sagen Sie denen, dass die Kürzungen Barbarei sind", sagte er an das Kabinett gerichtet.
Welche Sparmaßnahmen die Spanier besonders heftig ablehnen
– Bereits vor einer Woche hatte Rajoy ein neues Paket angekündigt, mit dem der Haushalt bis Ende 2014 um 65 Milliarden Euro entlastet werden soll. Bereits in den vergangenen Tagen gab es zahlreiche Demonstrationen, an denen sich viele Staatsbedienstete wie Polizisten und Feuerwehrleute beteiligten.
Spaniens Haushaltsminister Cristóbal Montoro verteidigte die neuen Sparmaßnahmen am Donnerstag gegen Kritik. "Es gibt kein Geld in den öffentlichen Kassen für Leistungen des Staates", sagte Montoro vor dem Parlament in Madrid. "Wir müssen auf das verzichten, was wir nicht finanzieren können." Mit den Reformen werde Spanien künftig besser in der Lage sein, sich selbst zu finanzieren.
– Spanien hatte am 25. Juni offiziell Hilfe aus dem Euro-Hilfsfonds EFSF für seine Banken beantragt. Der Bundestag stimmte am Donnerstag dem Unterstützungsprogramm von bis zu 100 Milliarden Euro zu.
Spanien befindet sich in einer Rezession, mehr als 5,6 Millionen Menschen sind arbeitslos. Eine der am heftigsten kritisierten Sparmaßnahmen der Regierung sieht eine Kürzung des Arbeitslosengeldes vor.
© 2011 Handelsblatt GmbH – ein Unternehmen der Verlagsgruppe Handelsblatt GmbH & Co. KG
la polizia spara proiettili di gomma per disperdere la folla
Non si fermano le manifestazioni di protesta contro il piano di austerity del governo. Statali bloccano il traffico di diverse città
Spagna sull’orlo del default. E in migliaia scendono in piazza. Già dalle prime ore di venerdì migliaia di persone si sono radunate in centro a Madrid per protestare contro i tagli imposti dal governo di Mariano Rajoy. La polizia ha sparato proiettili di gomma contro i manifestanti per cercare di disperdere la folla. Sette persone sono state fermate, sei i feriti. La giornata si preannuncia, dunque, ad altissima tensione. Da una parte l’Europgruppo che dovrà decidere sulle sorti del Paese. Dall’altra almeno 80 manifestazioni indette dai sindacati.
A MADRID – La protesta dunque non si ferma. La settimana scorsa il primo ministro Rajoy ha annunciato una manovra da 65 milioni di euro per tagliare il disavanzo pubblico. Giovedì sera oltre 100mila persone sono tornate a Puerta del Sol. Medici, studenti, precari, pompieri. Durante la notte scontri con la polizia. Almeno 26 i feriti e sette arresti. Ma Madrid non è l’unica a scendere in piazza. Cortei anche a Bilbao e Barcellona. I dipendenti statali in diverse città del Paese stanno mandando il traffico in tilt con presidi spontanei.
Les Espagnols manifestent leur ras-le-bol face à l’austérité
20 juillet 2012 à 07:58
– Tous les corps de métier ou presque se sont rassemblées jeudi soir dans une manifestation monstre jeudi soir à Madrid, en réaction aux mesures d’austérité sévères appliquées en contrepartie du sauvetage des banques du pays.
– Dans une forêt de drapeaux multicolores, une énorme marée humaine a envahi jeudi soir le centre de Madrid, pour crier «non» au nouveau plan de rigueur du gouvernement espagnol, à la hausse de la TVA, aux coupes budgétaires qui frappent les fonctionnaires et les chômeurs.
– Des incidents ont éclaté après la fin de la manifestation, lorsque la police anti-émeutes a dispersé de petits groupes de jeunes à coups de matraques et en tirant des balles de caoutchouc. Six personnes ont été légèrement blessées et sept interpellées, selon la police.
– «Mains en l’air, c’est un hold-up», hurlait la foule qui s’était rassemblée quelques heures plus tôt, défilant lentement sur les grandes avenues, reprenant le slogan devenu le cri de ralliement des manifestations qui se multiplient depuis l’annonce, le 11 juillet, de ce plan destiné à économiser 65 milliards d’euros.
«Si tu veux gagner, lutte sans relâche», «Rajoy nous vole», «Je veux un Noël», proclamaient de petites pancartes. D’autre portaient ce seul mot «NO» illustré d’une paire de ciseaux, symbole de ces coupes budgétaires qui ont déclenché la colère de tout le pays.
– A Madrid, les manifestants étaient plusieurs centaines de milliers, selon des journalistes sur place.
– Les syndicats avaient appelé à manifester dans 80 villes, sous le mot d’ordre «Ils veulent ruiner le pays. Il faut l’empêcher».
Rajoy renonce à ses promesses
– Car le malaise des Espagnols, déjà soumis à de lourds sacrifices dans un pays en récession, étranglés par un chômage de près de 25%, est monté d’un cran face à ce nouveau tour de vis.
«Nous ne pouvons rien faire d’autre que de descendre dans la rue. J’ai perdu entre 10% et 15% de mon salaire depuis quatre ans. Et les nouvelles mesures ne serviront pas à résoudre la crise», s’indigne Sara Alvera, fonctionnaire de 51 ans à la Cour des comptes, venue manifester avec son mari, employé dans le privé.
– Le gouvernement cherche ainsi à redresser les comptes publics : le budget 2012, d’une rigueur historique avec 27,3 milliards d’euros d’économies, n’a pas suffi et l’Espagne s’est vu imposer par Bruxelles des conditions draconiennes, en échange d’une aide à ses banques et d’un délai, jusqu’en 2014, pour ramener son déficit public à moins de 3%.
– Pour renflouer les caisses, c’est cette fois le pays tout entier qui va payer : renonçant à ses promesses, le chef du gouvernement de droite Mariano Rajoy a décidé une hausse de la TVA, qui devrait rapporter 22 milliards d’euros d’ici à 2014.
– Les fonctionnaires, qui ont déjà vu leur salaire réduit de 5% en 2010, puis gelé, perdent en 2012 leur prime de Noël, l’équivalent de 7% du salaire. Et les nouveaux chômeurs verront leurs indemnités réduites au bout de six mois.
Enseignants, infirmières, architectes, policiers…
«Quel Noël fabuleux nous allons passer. Il n’y aura aucun extra cette année. Tous les ans, ils baissent les salaires, pendant que les prix montent, le métro, le bus…», s’inquiète Paloma Martinez, une fonctionnaire de 47 ans, une petite pancarte à la main portant les mots : «Si tu ne luttes pas, qu’auras-tu ?»
«Si nous n’achetons plus, les commerces fermeront, ils vont licencier encore des gens», ajoute-t-elle. «Les gens doivent sortir dans la rue, plus s’il le faut, tout le temps qu’il faudra.»
– Depuis la semaine dernière, répondant aux mots d’ordre des syndicats ou des «indignés», ou alertés par les réseaux sociaux, des Espagnols de tous horizons se rassemblent quotidiennement dans les rues, portant les t-shirts jaunes des fonctionnaires de la Justice, verts de l’Education ou les blouses blanches des infirmières.
– Les architectes, sous une banderole «Non à la précarité», les chercheurs, avec une pancarte «moins de science, plus de pauvreté», le monde du spectacle, promenant un mannequin noir pendu avec l’inscription «théâtre public exécuté» étaient au rendez-vous jeudi.
– Dans la foule encore, des policiers en chemises noires, des pompiers casqués, promenant la maquette géante d’un hélicoptère rouge sur un chariot.
«Ils dévalorisent notre travail, qui est un travail dur. Nous devons descendre dans la rue. Pompiers, balayeurs, infirmiers, pour dire "assez"», lance Manuel Amaro, un pompier de 38 ans.
Après le défilé qui s’est dispersé dans le calme autour de la place de la Puerta del Sol, au cœur de Madrid, un petit groupe de jeunes manifestants s’est massé face à un cordon de policiers qui gardaient les abords du Parlement.
Comme ils refusaient de s’éloigner, les policiers les ont repoussés à coups de matraques, tirant des balles en caoutchouc. Lançant quelques bouteilles ou canettes de bière, les manifestants se sont dispersés dans les rues alentour, allumant des feux de poubelles sur leur passage, se regroupant parfois pour défier encore les cordons de policiers.
Nouvelle marée humaine contre la rigueur en Espagne
Des centaines de milliers de manifestants ont dénoncé comme ici à Madrid le plan de 65 milliards d’euros d‘économies mis en place par le gouvernement Rajoy d’ici 2014. Ce plan comprend une hausse de la TVA et des coupes budgétaires supplémentaires frappant les chômeurs et les fonctionnaires. Un hold-up selon ces deux agents publics :
“Lorsque la crise a commencé ils ont baissé notre salaire. Nous avions compris que nous devions faire un effort et nous n’avions pas protesté. Mais maintenant, il continue à demander des efforts alors que nous ne sommes pas responsable de toute cette situation. C’est injuste, c’est pourquoi nous sommes venus ici”, explique cette fonctionnaire au service des impôts.
“Nos dirigeants devraient revoir leurs salaires, leurs avantages et leurs dépenses de voyage. Et les gens riches devraient voir combien les dépenses publiques ont déjà été réduites. Non seulement les fonctionnaires qui travaillent beaucoup, ont des droits limités mais en plus leur salaires augmentent rarement”, dénonce ce pompier catalan.
– A Barcelone aussi la mobilisation a été forte ainsi que dans 80 villes du royaume. Des incidents ont eu lieu en marge de certains cortèges à Barcelone et à Madrid. La police anti-émeutes a dispersé de petits groupes de jeunes à coups de matraques et en tirant des balles de caoutchouc. Six personnes ont été légèrement blessées et sept interpellées.
Le malaise des Espagnols déjà soumis à de lourds sacrifices est encore monté d’un cran alors que le chômage touche déjà plus de 25% de la population active et un jeune sur deux.
– At least 15 people have been arrested and around 40 injured in central Madrid after police used force to disperse hundreds of thousands of angry protesters that flooded the streets in outrage against the country’s latest austerity package.
– Over a million public employees, trade union[e] members and fed-up citizens have taken to the streets in over 80 Spanish cities.
– Violence erupted in Madrid around midnight after dozens of protesters reached the city’s Puerta del Sol square and clashed with riot police. Security forces used batons, rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowd as it tried to enter the congress building located on the square. Some of the protesters lobbed bottles at officers. At least 10 policemen were injured during the clashes in the capital.
In some urban areas, activists set trash cans on fire and tried to block police vehicle access with barricades of plastic bins and cardboard boxes.
– Demonstrators carried flags and banners decorated with scissors, symbolizing the country’s harsh spending cuts. The streets of Madrid were paralyzed by the boundless crowds of people bellowing “Hands up, this is a robbery!” An estimated 100,000 people participated in the demonstrations in the capital.
– In Barcelona, similar scenes were reported. About a dozen protesters were arrested outside the local parliament building.
Eight firemen stripped naked in the northern town of Mieres near Oviedo. "With so many cuts we have been left naked," declared a banner on the wall above them.
– The demonstrations were organized by unions who have been outraged by the government’s new measures. One such measure is an end to Christmas bonuses for civil servants, which amounts to a 3.5 to 7 per cent reduction in annual pay.
– "There’s nothing we can do but take to the street. We have lost between 10 and 15 per cent of our pay in the past four years," demonstrator Sara Alvera, 51, a worker in the justice sector, told AFP.
"We are two and a half million votes. I hope they are thinking about that," said Jose Luis Martinez, 52, who works at the interior ministry, told Reuters.
"We have to make some noise, because they’re making fun of us and of all working people," said Iria, 34, an auditor in the treasury.
– Earlier Thursday, Spanish Parliament approved a new package of spending cuts and tax hikes aiming to save $80 billion in a bid to take a bite out of the budget deficit. Since the measure was announced last week, Spain has witnessed a series of daily demonstrations, some of which have erupted into violence.
– Europe’s fourth-largest economy also has the EU’s highest unemployment rate. About a quarter of working-age Spaniards are unable to find work.
– Meanwhile, Germany’s lower house approved a $122 billion rescue package for Spanish banks in a bid to help the country cope with "excessive" market fears and prevent the eurozone’s debt crisis from spreading further.
Spanish Worries Feed Global Fears
By ILAN BRAT, DAVID ROMÁN and CHARLES FORELLE
MADRID—Concerns that Spain won’t be able to meet its funding needs helped to spark a global selloff in financial markets Friday, as the government warned the country’s economic contraction would drag into next year, and one of its most indebted regional administrations asked the central government for help refinancing its debt.
The market slump underscored fears that Spain’s finances are spiraling out of control and could require the country to seek a full rescue from the European Union.
– Euro-zone finance ministers provided relief for Spain’s beleaguered banking sector on Friday, signing off on a bailout loan of up to €100 billion ($123 billion) for troubled banks, with about €30 billion available immediately in case of urgent financing needs. But the agreement stipulates that Spain ultimately would be on the hook for the aid, dashing Madrid’s hopes that the deal would help break the link between sovereign and bank debt. EU finance ministers also stressed that Spain needs to radically overhaul its financial sector and implement tough austerity measures.
– Amid the renewed worries about the health of the euro zone’s fourth-largest economy, Spain’s benchmark stock index lost 5.8%, the most in a day since May 2010.
The country’s long-suffering government bonds were pummeled, driving yields to 7.28%.
– The pain was shared with Italy—the next-most-worrisome country for investors. Italian bond yields also shot up, and the stock market slumped 4.4%. The euro depreciated against the dollar and was trading at $1.2158 late Friday in New York. Equities were lower across most of the Continent, and investors flocked to the safe embrace of German government debt: The yield on the 10-year Bund slid to 1.17%, near record lows.
Madrid sharply lowered its economic forecasts for the next several years. Budget Minister Cristóbal Montoro said Spain’s gross domestic product now is likely to contract around 0.5% in 2013, compared with a forecast of 0.2% growth given earlier this year.
– The government also cut its forecast growth rate for 2014 to 1.2% from a previous 1.4%. However, it upgraded this year’s forecast to a contraction of 1.5% compared with a previous estimate of a 1.7% contraction, though Mr. Montoro gave few details explaining why.
– Spain is striving to shrink its budget deficit to 2.8% of gross domestic product in 2014 from 8.9% last year. In that vein, Mr. Montoro said new 12% cuts in funding for central-government ministries will help Spain’s government lower the spending ceiling—excluding interest payments and funding for social security—for next year by 6.6% from this year, to €73.3 billion.
"These steps are not negative, they simply seek to lower the deficit, because there is no alternative to lowering the deficit," Mr. Montoro said.
– But many analysts worry that Spain’s steady stream of austerity cuts is doing further harm to an already weakened economy. The cuts are making it impossible for government spending to offset private-sector demand that is lost as households and corporations face tax increases and try to reduce their indebtedness after a decade of aggressive borrowing.
– The austerity is also hitting Spain’s regional governments, which control more than a third of all government spending, including health care and education, but have few taxation powers.
– The government of Valencia, Spain’s second-most-indebted region, which has been slammed by a five-year property slump, said Friday it intends to tap a fund with up to €18 billion that Spain’s central government launched last week for regional governments that are unable to refinance debt.
– Other regional governments are also struggling to raise cash. Murcia, in southeastern Spain, put six landmark buildings up for sale on Friday, including the offices of the regional president. It is planning to sell moorings for boats. "We’re selling the things that are easy to trade first," a spokeswoman said. She added that it is also considering applying for central government aid.
– In exchange for accessing the money, regions must agree to additional austerity commitments. The regional loan facility will be partially funded via the national lottery, which is taking out a loan for €6 billion against future income to help fill the fund.
The creation of the new fund addresses a request made by the regions, all of which run significant budget deficits and have been pressuring the central government to help them secure funding. These factors have further complicated the delicate balancing act the national government must perform between supporting its regions and protecting its own credit-worthiness.
– The exact amount of the bailout Spanish banks will receive from its euro-zone partners will be calculated in September, after a detailed bank-by-bank assessment of capital needs that will also determine which Spanish financial institutions are viable and should be rescued.
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said "the implementation of these measures will contribute to significantly strengthen Spain’s financial system, an essential step in restoring growth and prosperity in the country."
The Spanish bailout is the first one that the IMF isn’t cofinancing alongside the euro zone, after the fund put cash into Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
The IMF will still have a role in Spain, monitoring and sending expert staff there for regular reviews.
—Christopher Bjork in Madrid and Matina Stevis in Brussels contributed to this article.
Write to Ilan Brat at ilan.brat@wsj.com , Charles Forelle at charles.forelle@wsj.com and David Román at david.román@dowjones.com