The media is the solution to 15-M

On May 15th 2011 a few people gathered on the central square in Madrid, Puerta Del Sol, to express their discontent prior to the election the following Sunday, as time has passed more and more people have joined the 15-M movement throughout Spain. But who are they, what do they want are two obvious questions.

The 15-M movement consists mostly of young people in their 20's and 30's but the demographics are changing, now all age groups are represented on Puerta Del Sol with all types of backgrounds. As such, in terms of the two previous questions who they are and what they want can be answered with one answer, they want change, they want the politicians to get their act together. As the people supporting the movement are very diverse so are the opinions on what needs to be done.

What motivated the 15-M movement
A more relevant question is what motivated the 15-M movement? With a general unemployment rate of 22% and even 45% among young people there is a discontent with the political system, which they feel has let them down. They do not point fingers at one specific party - though different media tries framing it as such - they are merely asking voters to consider an alternative to the two main parties, Partido Popular (PP) and ruling PSOE (Social Democrats). There is a wide range of alternatives to PP and PSOE and 15-M's spokespersons are asking people to consider these on the election day.

The problem with the two main political parties in Spain (PP and PSOE) is the importance the politicians put on self interest. Spanish politicians - as most politicians in the world - focus first and foremost on their own career and interest; hereafter they pay attention to the interest and wellbeing of their party; and any spare time left - should there be any - is devoted to the interest of the country. Consequently:

• Spain is among the European countries with the lowest productivity
• Spain has the highest unemployment rate in Europe (twice the average)
• Different Spanish governments have allowed the construction sector to make up 20% of GDP
• 20% of the Spanish economy is "black" (Spain is the world's 9th largest economy)

In Spain it is normal for people discuss and get into verbal fights over which party is more corrupt, PP or PSOE. Some people vote PSOE because they are less corrupt than PP, other people vice versa. How sickening is that? That is basically the same as accepting corruption among the political elite. Corrupt politicians, down to the value of less than one cent, should face the legal consequences and lose all legitimacy from the voters.

The media is key
Spanish politicians - as politicians in any country - have a tendency to say the right things prior to coming elections, and they have a tendency to forget all about it post-elections. Politicians are not from another planet they know what needs to be done to tackle the problems but once elected the political work logic kicks in and the problems and right solutions fade away until the next election.

What is needed is to turn the political work logic upside down, make sure that they put the interest of the country first, there after the party, then themselves. The media is key! They have the resources and obligation to research and publish any misbehavior among politicians. Besides from wrong doing the media should continuously confront the politicians with their pre-election promises, keep them in the spotlight.

One might argue that is taking it too far, to that I can only say have a look at Puerta Del Sol and the 166 other cities (as of May 21st) throughout Spain, the politicians have created this mess and they have lost all legitimacy - it is time for the Spanish politicians to prove through hard work, results and transparency that they can be trusted yet again.