“They have gathered 30,000 signatures but have forgotten what they are for.” Besides being purely mischievous, there is also a shade of truth behind this headline from satirical website El Mundo Today. Over the last month, Spain has seen a swelling of civic outrage at its dysfunctional political system, expressed through the 15-M, or Democracia Real Ya, protest movement, whose members have occupied squares around the country. Those sleeping-bag protests are now ending and the most symbolic one of all, that in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol, has voted to pack up and move on. Now, still bristling with outrage, 15-M is organising neighbourhood assemblies and one-off demonstrations, such as … [Read more...] about What will follow the Spanish Spring?
Politics
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
Thrifty newcomer may be just the ticket in profligate Portugal
Pedro Passos Coelho, Portugal’s prime minister-elect, does not like wasting money. Both in his professional career and personal life, he has been described as thrifty, frugal, even tight-fisted. He currently lives in a standard apartment block in the none-too-fashionable Lisbon district of Amadora, but if he moves into the prime minister’s residence near the São Bento Palace his stinginess may come in handy in solving Portugal’s debt and deficit crisis. That, at least, appears to be what many Portuguese were thinking when they handed victory to Passos Coelho’s centre-right Social Democrats (PSD) in last Sunday’s general election, coupled with a desire to get rid of the Socialist … [Read more...] about Thrifty newcomer may be just the ticket in profligate Portugal
Spain’s conflicting memories refuse to fade
The now infamous entry in Spain’s recently published biographical dictionary describes General Francisco Franco as a courageous figure who set up an “authoritarian, but not totalitarian” regime. Written by 86-year-old historian Luis Suárez, the entry paints Western Europe’s longest-serving dictator in a favourable light, extolling his military prowess. This account of Franco’s reign differs sharply from that outlined by British historian Paul Preston in his latest book, The Spanish Holocaust: Inquisition and Extermination during the Civil War and After. In fact, Professor Suárez makes no mention of Francoist atrocities at all. The furore sparked by Suárez’s dictionary entry is … [Read more...] about Spain’s conflicting memories refuse to fade
15-M: Spain’s lost generation finds a voice
They toughed out heavy rainfall on their flimsy tarpaulin roofs, they defied the electoral authorities’ prohibitions of their demonstrations, they even stole the limelight from Spain’s campaigning politicians, but can the 15-M movement survive and make a difference? Many – probably most – of the hundreds of protesters camped out at Puerta del Sol, and also those demonstrating in the centres of other Spanish cities, are educated twenty-somethings, a common profile of those who vote for the governing Socialists or the United Left. But radical, or even moderate, politics is not what is fuelling this movement; instead, economics and disenfranchisement are. “What is driving this is the … [Read more...] about 15-M: Spain’s lost generation finds a voice
Spanish TV journalism’s identity crisis
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero visits the Canary Islands and the sound of onlookers booing him is edited out of the evening news; the prime minister and opposition leader Mariano Rajoy both speak on the same issue, yet Zapatero gets half a minute more TV coverage; Popular Party (PP) number two María Dolores de Cospedal gets interrogated on a breakfast-time show over her party's attacks on the public broadcaster. It's quite clear, isn’t it? Televisión Española is a puppet of the Socialist government. At least, that’s what the PP is alleging. The party charges that the public broadcaster, which Zapatero pledged to depoliticise and free of government intervention, is more susceptible to … [Read more...] about Spanish TV journalism’s identity crisis
A bitter celebration as Portugal remembers the Carnation Revolution
Thirty-seven years ago today, a swell of disenchantment with the Portuguese government of Marcello Caetano, a continuation of the regime of long-time dictator António Salazar, prompted a group of army officers to lead a coup. Word spread, resistance was virtually non-existent and in the space of a few non-violent hours, the regime was on the verge of being ousted. The putsch culminated in a strange scenario in which Caetano locked himself inside the National Republican Guard building in Lisbon’s Carmo Square as a massive crowd – including armed soldiers and curious men, women and children from the neighbourhood – gathered to watch. After several hours, Caetano gave in and signed a … [Read more...] about A bitter celebration as Portugal remembers the Carnation Revolution
A shift in the Basque Country despite Sortu’s prohibition
On the face of it, the Supreme Court’s March 23 decision to deem the new Basque nationalist party Sortu illegal was yet another instance of Spain’s justice system refusing to give an inch to those it suspected of having links to the terrorist group ETA. Sortu had hoped to represent the birth of new hope for those wanting an independent Basque Country. The new formation unveiled itself in February, insisting it was not simply a continuation of Batasuna, ETA’s outlawed political wing. To prove this, the party’s statutes explicitly rejected the use of violence, including that of ETA, an unprecedented move for a group representing the izquierda abertzale, or radical Basque left. But on … [Read more...] about A shift in the Basque Country despite Sortu’s prohibition
Garzón appeals to Strasbourg over prosecution for Franco-era probe
Judge Baltasar Garzón has filed a case to the European Court of Human Rights challenging the lawfulness of his prosecution for opening an investigation into crimes committed during the Franco era. Judge Garzón was suspended from his position in the High Court in May of 2010 pending the outcome of his trial for abuse of power. No date has been set. In 2006, in line with his role as one of six investigating judges at Spain’s High Court, Garzón began a preliminary investigation following requests by the families of victims of repression by the Franco regime to ascertain the legality of a prosecution. His analysis of Spanish law, as well as the body of developed international law in this … [Read more...] about Garzón appeals to Strasbourg over prosecution for Franco-era probe
Sex for money… but don’t advertise it
“Bulgarian girl, 21 years old, available at homes and hotels from 12am to 9pm.” “Alina, all services €30, no limits.” “We are a couple of friends willing to give you pleasure and relaxation with utmost discretion.” For decades adverts for sexual services - ranging from the tactful to the graphically explicit - have filled the classified ads pages of Spanish newspapers. In a country where prostitution is neither legal nor illegal the personal ads sections of local tabloids, national dailies and magazines have long been the preferred medium for prostitutes and brothels to publicize their services. But under new proposals recently unveiled by the government, such adverts could soon be … [Read more...] about Sex for money… but don’t advertise it