“In Spain…what happens is that sometimes we have a certain tendency to talk about the things that aren’t the best and sometimes we should be talking about the things that are important.” This comment, delivered at an Opel car factory in Zaragoza, is vintage Rajoy. The abstract language, the circumventing of the subject at hand, the use of “sometimes” or “a certain tendency” in order to avoid concrete terms. And, of course, complete avoidance of the word “Bárcenas”: the elephant in the room. Rajoy’s point was that, instead of talking about the corruption scandal engulfing his conservative Partido Popular (PP) due to increasingly detailed allegations of an illegal slush fund from which … [Read more...] about Maybe Rajoy is right: deny everything and it’ll go away
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A slow death in the afternoon
When Spain joined the European Union in 1986, many people thought the death knell for bullfighting had sounded. The modernising effect of membership of the bloc would stretch beyond the confines of the national economy and infrastructure, they reasoned, to the more ethically charged area of los toros. But the doomsayers were wrong – or at least partly so. The late eighties and early nineties saw something of a resurgence of interest in bullfighting, reflected both in opinion polls and the number of bullfights being staged. And yet, nearly three decades on, the writing really does seem to be on the wall for the fiesta: fewer than 500 bullfights will be held this year, compared to 2,700 … [Read more...] about A slow death in the afternoon
Tales for Tapas: Leaving Spain
People have been leaving Spain – the prime minister to attend the European Summit, large numbers of Spanish and foreign citizens to seek their fortunes elsewhere, and at least one police patrol-boat (reportedly) to explore the waters off Gibraltar. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy set off for this week’s European Council meeting in Brussels with an unusually strong mandate to “fight for Spain” (the striking expression sprinkled liberally into media statements by government spokespeople) having secured cross-party support for a ten-point negotiating platform. The platform is not substantially different from what Madrid and other capitals on the EU’s troubled periphery have been demanding … [Read more...] about Tales for Tapas: Leaving Spain
Spain ahead of the US in bankers’ prosecution
Spain has prosecuted more bankers, imposed more restrictions on their “golden parachutes” and seems to have hit failing institutions with higher fines for misleading investors than the United States since the outset of the financial crisis. Although Miguel Blesa, the former president of Caja Madrid, which was later merged into Bankia, was released from prison without charge last week, 89 of his colleagues were awaiting sentence for alleged wrongdoing during their tenures at the helms of nine savings banks. Meanwhile, in the United States the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has filed fewer than 50 lawsuits against officers and directors of failed institutions since 2010 and none … [Read more...] about Spain ahead of the US in bankers’ prosecution
Madrid 2020 and the cult of the mega-event
On September 7 this year, when the delegates from Madrid, Tokyo and Istanbul gather at the International Olympic Committee headquarters (IOCHQ) in Lausanne to hear the name of the city chosen to host the 2020 Games, the scenes will play out as they always have. The “winners” will cheer wildly in the Swiss auditorium and on the chosen city's streets, and the “losers” will shrug and take it like sportsmen, choking back tears and grinning stoically. But you have to wonder... Will the “losers” be secretly relieved at avoiding the massive financial burden of hosting global events like the Olympics or the FIFA World Cup and will the “winners” be quietly counting the number of schools, hospitals … [Read more...] about Madrid 2020 and the cult of the mega-event
Tales for Tapas: The right lines
Perhaps the most notable aspect of Monday’s opening of the high-speed train link between Madrid and Valencia was not the protest against Prince Felipe (reflecting the ebbing popularity of the Royal Family) or against Alicante Mayor Sonia Castedo (currently experiencing corruption-related issues) or against Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (for whom no new reason is apparently needed in order to prompt a demonstration). The notable thing was that the protests – and, coincidentally, the celebrations – were so modest. Prince Felipe pointed out that Spain’s high-speed rail network (which every report on the event conscientiously pointed out is the world’s second largest after China’s) is “an … [Read more...] about Tales for Tapas: The right lines
How EU austerity is falling foul of the law
German magistrates, who questioned and later approved the rescue of Greece in 2011, have this month started to review the constitutionality of the bond-buying programme of the European Central Bank (ECB) at the request of over 35,000 citizens. They allege that it is an instrument to provide struggling countries with easy money from German pockets. According to many experts, this policy helped Spain and Italy avert disastrous defaults by preventing bonds’ interest rates from escalating to unaffordable levels, which was what was happening until the ECB president Mario Draghi threatened to do “whatever it takes” to protect the euro in July and subsequently launched the bond-buying programme … [Read more...] about How EU austerity is falling foul of the law
Desperate Zaragoza fan seeks solution in the crowd
Like most Real Zaragoza fans José Antonio Visús is fed up. Since Agapito Iglesias, the team owner, bought the club in 2006, fans have suffered one season in second division and have consistently finished near the bottom of the table. Now it’s back to second division. While most supporters are pessimistic and flat out angry, Visús actually wants to do something about the situation. He’s rallying the club’s fans and asking them to contribute whatever they can to try to get rid of Iglesias. His solution? Crowdfunding. Iglesias isn’t selling, but Zaragoza fans want to buy. Visús, a relatively unknown lawyer until recently, figures that if he can get €2 million in crowdfunding from fan … [Read more...] about Desperate Zaragoza fan seeks solution in the crowd
Tales for Tapas: Japanese lessons
Good news from Tokyo this week, where French President François Hollande used the occasion of a state visit to Japan to announce that the Eurozone crisis is over. So, that’s alright then. Mr Hollande developed his up-beat thesis by asserting that the recent unpleasantness will result in long-term benefits, as it has led to banking union, as well as better economic governance and better intra-government coordination. At which point less ebullient observers might be forgiven for sounding a cautionary note – that it may lead to these desirable things but hasn’t conclusively done so, at least not yet. The worst (if you take a very optimistic view) could be over, but basic disagreements … [Read more...] about Tales for Tapas: Japanese lessons
The end of ETA…still?
At the beginning of June, dozens of white dove-shaped balloons were released into the sky above the Basque city of Bilbao. The gesture was to mark the end of Gesto por la Paz, a platform of peaceful anti-ETA campaigners, who after 28 years believed their work had been done. As a symbol of optimism and peace in the Basque Country it could hardly have been more striking. ETA has not killed on Spanish soil since 2009 and in October 2011, it declared a “definitive” end to a campaign of violence that started in the late 1960s. And yet, the weeks both leading up to and since Gesto por la Paz’s closure have somehow cast doubt on the idea that the Basque Country is enjoying a new era of peace. … [Read more...] about The end of ETA…still?