As rumours that next year’s general election will be brought forward to the autumn intensify, so does the realisation that by the end of the year, Mariano Rajoy could be prime minister. The strange thing is, judging by his party’s recent behaviour, this doesn’t seem to have dawned on him. If he had fully grasped the reality of his situation, you would think he would tone down the talk of Spain being an economic basket case. But his opposition Popular Party (PP) is determined to hint, suggest, or just plain decry, that the country is in real trouble. Since last year, the PP has been openly wondering whether Spain deserves to be in the same bracket as Greece, Portugal and Ireland. In … [Read more...] about Rajoy approaches the big job with his head down
Iberoblog
Franco and the red pen
One of the upshots of the recent furore surrounding the recently published Diccionario Biográfico Español has been how it has highlighted the decrepit and ideologically questionable nature of the Spanish Royal Academy of History (RAH). Of its 36 members, 15 are over 80 years old, only three are women and among its many right-leaning experts, several are seemingly pro-Franco. The most obvious example is Luis Suárez, the historian who wrote the now-notorious dictionary entry on Francisco Franco, painting the dictator in a flattering light. Clearly, the RAH has a problem in terms of its personnel, which makes providing objective and serious accounts of Spanish history difficult, if not … [Read more...] about Franco and the red pen
How police brutality helped Spain’s 15-M protests
In recent days, music fans and political activists in Spain have been remembering Gil Scott-Heron, the singer-songwriter who died last Friday. The ongoing sit-ins and protests that started across Spain in the lead-up to May’s local elections have seen inevitable links being drawn between Scott-Heron’s anthem The Revolution Will Not Be Televised and the 15-M/Democracia Real Ya movement. But the day after Scott-Heron’s death, when the TV showed images of Catalonia’s mossos d’esquadra local police force brutally charging into a crowd of unarmed, peaceful demonstrators in Barcelona, it seemed more fitting to think of another seventies cultural touchstone: Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork … [Read more...] about How police brutality helped Spain’s 15-M protests
Roll up, roll up, for the Socialist horror show
“In the last few days, the party’s unity, the authority of the prime minister and party leader, our collective image as a party, and even the stability of the government have all been put at risk.” This was the verdict of Defence Minister Carme Chacón on Thursday, as she made the surprise announcement that she will not be standing as a candidate in Socialist Party primaries to choose a new candidate for the general election. It’s shocking to hear a senior Socialist politician speak in such starkly honest terms, but her words reflect how bad things have got for the party. It’s been a truly torrid week for the Socialists. First, they are one of the main targets of nationwide protests by … [Read more...] about Roll up, roll up, for the Socialist horror show
All too predictable
Under the Greece-evoking headline, ‘Hidden’ debt raises Spain bond fears, Financial Times Madrid correspondent Victor Mallet proceeded to outline the hypothesis of Spanish Cato Institute fellow (and vocal political activist, if it need be said given the company he keeps), Lorenzo Bernaldo de Quirós, that the probable overturning of many regional and local governments in the upcoming vote would result in 26.4 billion euros of concealed debt – specifically attributable to the myriad government-owned corporations conjured into existence for a variety of motives - being brought out into the open. Ignoring for the moment how Mr. Bernaldo de Quirós might have come up with so specific a figure … [Read more...] about All too predictable
A lurch to the right that cost Zapatero dear
Spain’s political map was redrawn on Sunday. A devastating defeat for the Socialist Party saw the Popular Party win the most votes in 11 of 13 regions and open up a two-million vote advantage in the municipal elections. However you look at it, this was an utter disaster for Zapatero. This may not have been his fight, strictly speaking, because of its local nature. But having been his party’s chief electoral asset for several years, the prime minister has now become its albatross – something he tacitly admitted several weeks ago by deciding not to run for a third term. However hard his regional barons and municipal candidates tried to distance themselves from their national leader, … [Read more...] about A lurch to the right that cost Zapatero dear
Fancy a sexual fling? Dating agency will help you cheat on your partner
The latest dating agency to hit the internet caused a stir in Madrid earlier this month, the main reason being because its advertising campaign was aimed at married women, though the agency, Victoria Milan, claims to cater for both sexes. We all know, of course, that neither sex needs an agency in order to be unfaithful. The agency says it offers ‘Married and Attached Dating – Free and Anonymous’. A further look at its website reveals that its main headquarters are in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. One can’t help but wonder whether this is a case of the more liberal attitudes generally displayed in the Nordic states coming into conflict with the Catholic principles held by many … [Read more...] about Fancy a sexual fling? Dating agency will help you cheat on your partner
Camp outs and protests spread nationwide
The tent area began to expand Friday evening as people set up camp for the weekend in front of the Zaragoza town council. A makeshift stage with microphones and speakers located in the middle of the square was the platform used by all who wanted to share their opinions with the crowd gathered near the Basilica del Pilar. “I’m here to show the politicians that we’re not idiots. All they do is make noise. They don’t say anything, they’re just like dogs, wolves and hens and I don’t want animals representing me,” Cristian Alcala, 31, said. Alcala, unemployed, was volunteering at the improvised childcare area. He explained that he would stay “as long as [his] body could take it,” and … [Read more...] about Camp outs and protests spread nationwide
It’s the economy, stupid
The young protestors who have converged on Madrid’s Puerta del Sol square – and, increasingly, on squares in cities across Spain – under the banner of the 15-M Movement have myriad demands. They want political change, a more open participative democracy, corrupt politicians out of office, the repeal of “unjust” laws, a reform of benefits for the political class, tax reform, a referendum on the monarchy, a higher minimum wage, the full separation of Church and state… the list goes on. But although the protestors’ demands are heartfelt and sweep across many socio-political areas, it is ultimately – and understandably – the protestors’ wallets that have driven them to camp out in Madrid and … [Read more...] about It’s the economy, stupid
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