G20 marches begin week of protests in Europe

LONDON/BERLIN (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of  people marched in capital cities across Europe yesterday to  protest about the economic crisis and urge world leaders to act  on poverty, jobs and climate change at a G20 summit next week.

Chanting “tax the rich, make them pay,” protesters marched  through London waving banners saying “People before Profit,” at  the start of a week of protests that reflected growing public  anger over bankers’ pay and their role in the crisis.

Leaders from the world’s 20 biggest economies meet in London  on Thursday to discuss how tighter regulation of financial  markets, billions of dollars in stimulus measures and credit  lines for international trade can help the world economy recover  from the deepest recession since the 1930s.

In Britain, trade unions, aid agencies, religious groups and  environmentalists joined together under the slogan “Put People  First” to demand reforms to make the world’s economy fairer.

One group carried a traditional Chinese dragon with the head  of a devil papered with dollar bills, calling it “The G20  Monster.” Others waved signs reading “Jobs, Justice, Climate.”
While the atmosphere was generally carnival-like, some  marchers jeered when they passed British Prime Minister Gordon  Brown’s Downing Street offices. Police said up to 35,000 people  took part in the march and subsequent rally in Hyde Park.

“This is going to be a summer of rage for the working  class,” said marcher Bryan Simpson, 20, a clerk from Glasgow.

US Vice President Joe Biden said the protesters should  “give us a chance” and listen to what politicians plan to do.

“Hopefully we can make it clear to them we are going to walk  away from this G20 meeting with some concrete proposals,” he  told reporters in Chile.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he understood  people’s concerns, adding, “That is why the action we want to  take (at the G20) is designed to answer the questions that the  protesters have today.”

The British protest was mirrored in other major EU nations.

About 15,000 people marched through Berlin with black-clad  protestors throwing rocks and bottles at police, setting off  fireworks and smashing a police car window. Police said several  arrests were made.

Up to 14,000 assembled in Germany’s financial capital  Frankfurt, police said, as part of a two-city demonstration.

About 6,000 demonstrators, mostly students and trade union  members, marched in Rome to protest about a meeting of G8 labour  ministers in the city.

Most of the marchers were peaceful, carrying placards and  chanting “We won’t pay for the crisis” and other slogans, but  one small group smashed the glass front of a bank, and daubed  “give us our money back” on the wall in red paint.

Fire-crackers were let off and banks, insurance companies  and estate agents were also covered in paint.

“There has been a total failure of creative finance and of  an economy based on the exploitation of workers, financial  speculation and tax evasion,” said protester Mario Giannini.

In Vienna, police said some 6,500 marched through the  Austrian capital under slogans such as “Make The Rich Pay” and  “Capitalism Kills.” There was no violence.a