“I don’t remember who mentioned the name of Rafael Sánchez Mazas or how it came up […], but I do remember Ferlosio telling us: ‘They shot him not far from here, at the Collell Sanctuary.’” This passage near the start of Javier Cercas’ novel Soldiers of Salamis (Soldados de Salamina, in the original Spanish) is pinpointed by the first-person narrator as the starting point of an obsession, a quest. Before the 2001 publication of Cercas’s first masterpiece (he has written another since, The Anatomy of a Moment, on the failed Tejero coup attempt of 1981), local writing on the Spanish Civil War was conspicuously rare. The task had largely been left to foreign historians, writers and … [Read more...] about In praise of ‘Soldiers of Salamis’
About James Badcock
Spain’s Socialists scuttle the ship
The legislature is limping to a close. Since José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's conversion to market orthodoxy in the spring of 2010, the prime minister has made no secret of the fact that his sole obsession is to sail the Spanish ship clear of the turbulent waters of a bailout, and he seems set to succeed. But his government's final manoeuvres have unfortunately had the effect of scuttling the lifeboat of Socialism driven by the party's chosen candidate for the November 20 elections. Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba is an able seaman, but he is navigating into an electoral storm made even worse by the last acts of his former Cabinet colleagues. First came the tawdry deal with the Popular Party (PP) … [Read more...] about Spain’s Socialists scuttle the ship
Two, four, six, eight, let’s hope they don’t emigrate
In light of the worrying rise of the xenophobic Plataforma per Catalunya in the recent local elections, and the dabbling in similarly anti-immigrant rhetoric by some Popular Party (PP) candidates in the same region and elsewhere, it is useful to read some hard facts about the impact from the strong pulse of migration to Spain in the first decade of this century. The report Inmigración y Estado de bienestar en España (Immigration and the welfare state in Spain), which can be found here,was published last month by La Caixa’s social foundation, and busily sets about laying to rest a whole series of misconceptions about the impact of immigration on the economy while highlighting a growing … [Read more...] about Two, four, six, eight, let’s hope they don’t emigrate
Bombing the road to democracy
It was the biggest terrorist attack on Moroccan soil since 12 suicide bombers killed 33 people in distinct locations in Casablanca eight years ago. Since the carnage on April 28, Moroccan police have arrested three men, and according to the information so far released by the Interior Ministry, the main suspect, believed to be a Moroccan man in his twenties, had planned to experience jihadist combat abroad in places such as Chechnya and Iraq, before turning his attention to a home-made bomb which he apparently took six months to construct. The location of the café made it certain that most of the victims would be Westerners, as was the case. But was this just a desire to spill … [Read more...] about Bombing the road to democracy
Spain’s Zapatero embraces short-lived Libya foray
“Just look at you now,” sneered the United Left’s Gaspar Llamazares during Tuesday’s congressional debate on the military intervention in Libya. He was staring at the man who opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq, into which then-Prime Minister José María Aznar pitched Spain at the famous Azores summit. But today’s Socialist Spanish premier, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, said this was not Iraq, and when he had proclaimed “No to war!” he was saying not that war. Exactly what the multi-named Libya operation is remains far from clear, as NATO allies squabble over the organisation’s degree of involvement and even Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin dispute whether the bid to bomb Muammar Gaddafi … [Read more...] about Spain’s Zapatero embraces short-lived Libya foray
Morocco’s Mohammed VI treads a fine line with reforms
Morocco’s king has decided to do the right thing. Whether purely out of a perceived need to save his own skin or because the Arab uprisings have reminded Mohammed VI of his cherished pretensions to be a reforming monarch, it is hard to say. Maybe a bit of both. But his surprise announcement on Wednesday of constitutional reforms was both wise and prudently timed. On February 20, tens of thousands of Moroccans gathered in dozens of cities to call for a loosening of the kingly grip on power and the introduction of truly representative democracy. The state did not suppress the protests and a further show of popular force has been planned for March 20. Mohammed VI said he would not be pushed … [Read more...] about Morocco’s Mohammed VI treads a fine line with reforms
Morocco’s Mohammed VI must decide
February 20 was Morocco’s “Day of Dignity” but it ended in violence and ignominy as five people died engulfed by flames in a ransacked bank after what had begun as a protest against a rigid political system turned violent in some of the North African country’s most deprived urban areas. The contrast between the orderly demonstrations in many cities including the capital, where banners were raised and slogans in favour of greater democracy were chanted without causing incident, and the rampaging mobs in the streets of many northern towns such as Alhucemas, where the fatalities occurred, could not be more stark. And, given the broader context of revolts sweeping the region, King … [Read more...] about Morocco’s Mohammed VI must decide
Morocco: the next North African revolution?
So has the European Union actually backed a winner in Morocco? As the shockwaves from the unexpected uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt spread across the region, Morocco –the only North African country with advanced EU neighbour status– has seen relatively little unrest. The cynical and ultimately short-sighted European approach to the regimes facing its southern flank was exposed when Tunisians exploded in outrage against a government Brussels had looked on kindly. The French, Italian and Spanish governments were all lobbying for Ben Ali's regime to be given preferential partner status. Morocco, meanwhile, has made a number of strides towards democracy during King Mohammed VI’s 11-year … [Read more...] about Morocco: the next North African revolution?
Camp mentality reflects Western Sahara’s new dissidence
At first glance it seems surprising that representatives of Morocco and the Polisario were negotiating the future of the disputed Western Sahara region while the territorial capital of Laâyoune and the protest camp erected outside the city were shrouded in smoke after security forces had violently dispersed demonstrators. But the two sides talking on November 8 and 9 under the auspices of the UN in Manhasset, near New York, may for once have had some motivation to accelerate the process towards the resolution of a 35-year-old impasse. A new force appears to have been born made up of disaffected Sahrawis who have other things on their minds besides the status of their land and the colours … [Read more...] about Camp mentality reflects Western Sahara’s new dissidence
Spain and Morocco’s annual spat over for another year
It has become a summer classic; argy-bargy across the Strait of Gibraltar. With the arrival of September’s UN gathering in New York, the Spanish prime minister and Moroccan king have drawn an apparently effortless line under several weeks of apparently simmering tensions, blazing front-page headlines and much talk of a diplomatic crisis. “The photograph is the main thing,” José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero muttered toward Mohammed VI in New York as the pair smiled amid the camera flashes, the Spaniard later explaining that there had been little in the way of details included in their discussion. There was no need, he said; that was what the upcoming summits and ministerial meetings would deal … [Read more...] about Spain and Morocco’s annual spat over for another year