One of the most memorable moments in world literature is when Captain Ahab nails a doubloon to the mast of the Pequod. Gold is a good argument, especially in desperate times. In Catalonia, the gold is the taxes, the nail is the term “fiscal deficit” (or “Spain steals from us”) and the mast’s new sails have “independence” written all over them. Money now being the driving force behind Catalan separatism does not take away one iota of its ethnic dimension. The referendum that is now envisaged, and to a lesser degree the upcoming regional elections, will split Catalonia between those who feel Catalan and those who feel Spanish. Both factors combined, the rise of nationalism in an economic … [Read more...] about Catalonia goes Kosovo
spain news
Socialism and the future of Catalonia
Snap elections in Catalonia will be held on the November 25; the key issue is what Catalonia will be in the future and how it will relate to Spain and the European Union. Artur Mas’s CiU, the party which governs Catalonia (with 38 percent of the vote in the 2010 election), will present a platform in favour of the “Estat Propi”. This formula, roughly translated as “Free State”, avoids the term “independence” which for Mas would signal not only a break in relations with Spain but also with the EU. Mas, who fully understands that isolation of Catalonia from Europe would be financially and politically catastrophic, is anxious to avoid the rhetoric of rebellion. Radical separatist party ERC … [Read more...] about Socialism and the future of Catalonia
San Sebastián Film Festival: understanding war and ethnic division
The first 40 minutes of Venuto al mondo (Twice Born), competing in this year's Official Section of the Zinemaldia festival, are, frankly, laughably bad. As well as a corny script and stereotyped characters, the action and events completely lack credibility. Directed by Italian Sergio Castellitto, the film stars Penélope Cruz as Italian beauty Gemma who is swept off her feet by Emile Hirsch's Diego, an American photographer and free spirit. The character of Diego is so full of energy and utter rapture about everything that he is incapable of entering a room without tripping up with excitement over the wallpaper. He and la bella Gemma are first introduced by their mutual, stereotypically … [Read more...] about San Sebastián Film Festival: understanding war and ethnic division
Forget police brutality, this was verbal brutality
Whether or not the police in Madrid during the September 25 “Surround/Occupy Congress” protest acted with wanton brutality depends on whom you listen to. If it’s Interior Minister Jorge Fernández, then you’ll believe that the forces of order acted “magnificently” and “extraordinarily well” in the face of violent provocation. Likewise, the government’s delegate for Madrid, Cristina Cifuentes, deemed their behaviour “very professional”. Leaders of the protest itself and some opposition parties have seen it rather differently, accusing the police of using disproportionate force. A look at some of the day’s video footage reflects badly on both sides in the sense that some protesters and … [Read more...] about Forget police brutality, this was verbal brutality
San Sebastián Film Festival: Snow White hits Andalusia
Not long after movie audiences made the pleasing discovery, thanks to last year's The Artist, that silent films can still be enjoyable, Pablo Berger's Blancanieves, competing in this year's Official Section, provides yet another silent revelation. The story of Snow White set in early 20th century Andalusia actually works. Berger's Blancanieves is Carmencita (played by Sofía Oria and Macarena García), born in Seville during the Belle Époque, a rose-tinted era of Spain's past that lends itself perfectly to silent cinema. Snow White's father is a handsome and celebrated bullfighter, her mother a famous flamenco dancer who dies in childbirth after seeing her husband gored and left paralysed … [Read more...] about San Sebastián Film Festival: Snow White hits Andalusia
San Sebastián Film Festival: Gere finds sinister charm in ‘Arbitrage’
The San Sebastian Film Festival got off to a cracking start on Friday with US film Arbitrage, starring Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon and Tim Roth and directed by Nicholas Jarecki. Opening the event’s 60th edition, Jarecki's film is competing in this year's Official Section. Arbitrage is a tense thriller, set against a corporate backdrop, with a tight script and an energetic pace that is largely down to script writer and debutant director Jarecki. Gere plays Robert Miller, a business magnate who is ready to sell up, supposedly to spend more time with his family. At first he looks as if he has it all: a loving wife (an excellent if little-seen Sarandon), a devoted son and a brilliant … [Read more...] about San Sebastián Film Festival: Gere finds sinister charm in ‘Arbitrage’
The Pep Paradox
August 2016: The newly-proclaimed state of Catalonia has separated completely from Spain, whose flags no longer fly anywhere in the city of Barcelona except on the flagstaff of the Spanish Embassy. The sports press is full of news about the recent “friendly” international between the Catalan and Spanish national teams, the first in history, which despite a few ugly incidents outside the stadium passed off without a hitch. A goalless draw was seen by many as a fitting result to symbolise the relations between Spain and the nascent Catalan Republic. And of course the main story for sportswriters, as always, is FC Barcelona – Barça – as they prepare for a new season… playing against Real … [Read more...] about The Pep Paradox
Santiago Carrillo: the nearly man
Santiago Carrillo, who has died at the age of 97, belonged to another time, or perhaps more accurately, and depending on one’s age, to a number of other times: the Civil War; the decades of exile during the Franco regime; the first years after the death of the dictator; but above all to a time when people still took Communism seriously. Despite his failure to secure a lasting place for the Spanish Communist Party (PCE) in Spanish political life, he managed to reinvent himself as one of the guardians of that most revered institution, the transition to democracy. While still in his teens, as a member of the Socialist Youth, Carrillo took part in the uprising in Asturias in 1934, and was … [Read more...] about Santiago Carrillo: the nearly man
Disability and Spain’s low-key Paralympics
On September 9, London bid a fond farewell to this year's Paralympic Games. A fact which, if you live in Spain, may well have escaped your notice. As fireworks exploded over the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, the closing ceremony of this major international sporting event was not covered by any of Spain's major TV stations. In a departure from previous years the 2012 Games did, however, receive comprehensive coverage on Teledeportes (although Spain's national sports channel, aimed at broadcasting news across the country, changed frequency in June 2011, and I doubt ours is the only household which still does not receive it.) A quick search for Paralympic news in the national and local … [Read more...] about Disability and Spain’s low-key Paralympics
Madrid’s Olympic bid: third time lucky?
On February 14 this year, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti pulled the plug on Rome’s bid for the 2020 Olympics. “The government doesn't feel that it would be a responsible gesture, taking into consideration Italy's current financial state”, he said. “If we find ourselves today in such a difficult financial position it is because similar decisions were made by previous governments without having considered the resulting impact in the following years.” But despite Spain’s dire economic problems, Madrid has pushed ahead with its own bid. According to La Razón, Madrid’s bid for the 2012 Olympics cost €60 million. The bid for the 2016 games cost €44 million. This time the process will … [Read more...] about Madrid’s Olympic bid: third time lucky?