Dear Mr. Draghi
Como celebração dos dois anos de credibilidade crescente que este governo, com um esforço considerável, conseguiu para Portugal junto dos mercados financeiros, partilho a carta que hoje enviei, em meu nome e de outros cidadãos preocupados, por correio, ao Presidente do BCE, Mario Draghi:
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Lisbon, Portugal, June 5, 2013
Dear Mr. Draghi,
last July, you pledged in a press conference to do “whatever it takes” to save the Euro. From that moment on, interest rates for the peripheral countries have consistently gone down.
Although we’re sure that it was necessary at the time to calm down turmoil in the markets, this presented a problem for some countries, and Portugal in particular. As you are surely aware, our country is currently in the middle of a painful but necessary adjustment, which all european institutions have recognized that has so far been very successful in restoring the necessary credibility to stand on our own feet, and ensure a smooth transition from the assistance program to the normal market financing of our debt.
However, we feel that, because of the pledge made by you and the ECB last July, this credibility and the scope of our efforts has not been fully recognized by the financial system. There is some talk, particularly by those opposed to the necessary reforms and adjustments, that the only reason the rates for portuguese public debt have been going down is because of that particular pledge. We find this misleading and unacceptable, especially since our efforts, and the sacrifices that the portuguese citizens have made, were so big, and our enthusiasm for reform is second to none.
So here’s our request: in your next press conference, please inform the financial markets that your pledge to act as a “buyer of last resort” does not apply to portuguese bonds, since we don’t need it, given the extent of our adjustment and the credibility our government has gained. Please let us stand on our own two feet, and give the markets a chance to evaluate our efforts fairly and according to free market rules. We believe this is a necessary step to show the world just how far we’ve come, and given that our economy is now entering the investment stage, this would also be invaluable in proving to potential investors that the portuguese economy is exiting the painful adjustment with regained credibility and is now ready for a sustained, and well deserved, growth.
Our best regards
For a group of concerned citizens
Nuno Salgueiro
