Young people have been taking to the streets across Europe, including in Spain, France and Portugal. They are protesting against the state of schools and the wider cost-of-living crisis.
The trade unions in these countries have joined the young, calling for higher wages, better pensions, stronger public services and measures to protect purchasing power in the face of inflation.
In France, secondary school pupils have clashed with police in some violent protests over long hours, missing teachers, dilapidated classrooms and an opaque university admissions system. Some pupils say they have missed months of teaching because staff absences have gone unfilled.
In Spain, activists took to the streets in September over housing prices and rents. The protests were triggered by the eviction of an 87-year-old woman from her Madrid home after an investment firm raised her rent by 230%. Maricarmen Abascal died in hospital a fortnight later.
In neighbouring Portugal, hundreds gathered in central Lisbon. Official data shows housing prices more than doubled between 2015 and 2024, rising by 124% – roughly twice as fast as the EU average.
A pattern of injustice
A closer look at the grievances of students and unions reveals an underlying reality overlooked by some European elites. Some political leaders have sought to frame the unrest as the work of far-left ideologues.
But the protesters’ documented grievances point to a structural pattern of injustice that needs to be addressed.
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Structural injustice occurs when social, economic or political systems systematically harm or disadvantage specific groups of people. Everyday institutional rules can do the same, even when no single person intends to discriminate or act maliciously.
The protesters are asking their leaders for a better quality of life.
The authorities must address the systemic issues behind this structural injustice: the apparent inequality in fiscal priorities, markets, laws and cultural norms. These have affected education, healthcare and income.
The effective and efficient delivery of these services is the foundation of human development and progress.
The quality of life is not fixed by material conditions alone. It matters in the past, the present and the future.
It is about satisfaction and happiness. These, not merely growth in gross domestic product, should be the measure of progress.
For example, Nordic countries continue to lead happiness rankings. This is because of strong social support systems, high trust, generous welfare networks and healthy life expectancy, which carry a moral element of social security.
The moral dimension
The quality of life does not revolve only around material or psychological needs. It has a broader moral dimension.
Elites and demonstrators alike have to come to terms with this. People in Europe have been steeped in a relativistic, secular culture that tends to pick and choose moral values to suit the state and individuals.
To improve the quality of life, it is vital to understand the true nature of people, who have purpose and meaning in life.
Cognitive scientist Justin Barrett argues that all people are “born believers”, naturally attuned to agents, teleology (the idea that things have a purpose) and purpose.
We are not ‘blank slates’. Our minds instinctively detect agency in the world, seek patterns and purposes in nature and imagine powers beyond the visible.
This is not superstition to be overcome but a fundamental feature of human cognition – one that shapes how we encounter reality itself. In other words, people begin life not as little materialists but as seekers.
The mystery surrounding creation and life itself inspires people to seek the divine and the moral laws that humanise humankind, and to live in harmony with nature’s goods.
In this regard, people possess an inherent, unchanging dignity, an immortal soul and a shared purpose oriented towards truth, goodness and love.
This means the quality of life is not the ability to do whatever one wants. It is the capacity to choose what is truly good, noble and aligned with moral values. It does not end with material or psychological issues. We have within us a moral imperative of purpose and meaning that craves a dignified life in society.
That begins with improving the quality of essential services such as education, healthcare, housing and income. This is something that a responsible government should provide.
The moral good inspires the common good.
For peace to reign in these nations, the affected parties need to hold a dialogue. This requires a shared understanding that the quality of life cannot be resolved in an ideological cocoon or through violence. It needs a broad moral approach that addresses the complexity of structural injustice.
Hopefully, peace will prevail in these nations, with a principled moral understanding of structural injustice and solutions that improve the quality of life.
The views expressed in Aliran's media statements and the NGO statements we have endorsed reflect Aliran's official stand. Views and opinions expressed in other pieces published here do not necessarily reflect Aliran's official position.
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
