As Spain has moved closer to what looks increasingly like economic disaster, there have been a couple of surprising - even heartening - moves by the country’s senior politicians lately. One was the announcement made by Socialist leader Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba that his party offered its full support to the conservative government going into the key European summit in Brussels on June 28. This rare instance of political unity was accompanied by an unusual show of stark public honesty by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. “We can’t finance ourselves at these levels of interest much longer,” said the man who had denied that Spain would request a bank bailout days before it did so, and who said he … [Read more...] about Spain’s true crisis isn’t economic, it’s institutional
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Why I no longer love Spain’s tiki-taka
“Since the Brazil team of 1970, I can’t remember a side that thrashed and thrilled in virtually all its games – the closest thing to that I have seen is this Spanish team.” (José Sámano, El País) When world and European champions Spain play Portugal for a place in the 2012 European Championship final on Wednesday night, part of me will be rooting for Cristiano Ronaldo and the Portuguese. And if I don’t punch the air when Andrés Iniesta (or one of the other seemingly countless pixie-like midfielders) scores Spain’s first goal, it’s because I’m bored of tiki-taka. First of all, I should explain that I deeply admire what Spain have achieved over the last four years. Having struggled for … [Read more...] about Why I no longer love Spain’s tiki-taka
Spain’s Basque Country glimpses peace despite political barriers
As citizens of Barcelona recently commemorated 25 years since ETA's bombing of Hipercor supermarket, which killed 21 and injured 45, there is a glimmer of hope on the horizon that the Basque Country is entering a new, if somewhat arduous, era of peace. Following ETA's announcement of a permanent end to armed activity in October last year, earlier this month the group considered to be its youth wing, SEGI, also disbanded. The arrests of 90 of its members in the space of three years, as well as the increased difficulty of entering the ranks of ETA, undoubtedly contributed to SEGI's decision to fold. Tuesday June 19, 1987 is a day that would go down as the bloodiest in ETA's history. The … [Read more...] about Spain’s Basque Country glimpses peace despite political barriers
Ronaldo plans to cap a magic year by sinking Spain
Cristiano, nos vemos pronto (“Cristiano, we’ll see you soon”) screamed the front cover of Marca on Friday, such was the confidence that Spain would brush aside the French in Saturday’s European championship quarter-final and meet Ronaldo’s Portugal in the semis. And brush them aside they did, with little difficulty, despite La Roja’s unconvincing win in the final group game against Croatia. The France team – which before the 2-0 defeat to Sweden in their final group game had been on a 23-match unbeaten streak – produced very little in the game. Any hope for the French disappeared after the Sweden loss, when dressing room clashes involving Hatem Ben Arfa and Samir Nasri were widely … [Read more...] about Ronaldo plans to cap a magic year by sinking Spain
Payback time for Spain’s top judge Carlos Dívar
Carlos Dívar, the president of Spain’s Supreme Court, finally resigned on June 21 after allegations last month that he used public money to pay for up to 32 private trips to Marbella and other destinations. But the 70-year-old has refused to accept the misconduct accusations, simply telling the 20 members of the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ), the judicial oversight board of which he was appointed president in 2008 — and from which he will also be standing down — that he was “unaware of any wrongdoing”, acknowledging instead that the situation had become “unbearable”. Fellow judge José Manuel Gómez Benítez accused Divar on May 8 of spending €5,000 from his expenses account on … [Read more...] about Payback time for Spain’s top judge Carlos Dívar
Willy Toledo: The reasons for being a rebel
Willy Toledo – you either love him or you hate him. He made his big break as an actor on the TV show 7 Vidas alongside Paz Vega and Toni Cantó, but he is better known for his political activism. Guillermo Toledo Monsalve, now 42, had an unusual upbringing. Christened by a left-wing priest in the final years of the Franco regime, Toledo’s father came from a working class family who managed to finance his degree in medicine and his mother is from an upper-class family. Despite his relatively privileged background, Toledo received an unorthodox education, studying at the Colegio Estilo, a school based on the principle of constant creative stimulation, which was popular with the members of … [Read more...] about Willy Toledo: The reasons for being a rebel
Euro thriller against Croatia highlights Spain’s need for goals
It took a whole 88 minutes and a careful finish by Jesús Navas, but Spain have qualified from their group to advance to the quarterfinals and keep alive their dreams of winning three major international tournaments back-to-back. Just. The relief was palpable. Before the breakthrough came, with Italy winning against the Republic of Ireland in the tightly contested group, a Croatia goal would have sent the reigning European and world champions home. The Spanish TV commentators insisted that everything was fine and going according to plan, but a nation was biting its nails, hurling abuse at the screen and collectively holding its breath as Iker Casillas was forced to make two crucial … [Read more...] about Euro thriller against Croatia highlights Spain’s need for goals
A turbulent history of Madrid’s towers of crisis
With the Spanish government accepting an EU bailout offer of up to €100 billion to recapitalize its ailing banking system, images of the country’s major financial institutions have been flashed repeatedly across global news reports. Perhaps the most displayed image has been that of the headquarters of Realia and troubled bank Bankia: a pair of towers that lean dramatically over the Paseo de la Castellana, a major Madrid thoroughfare. The Puerta de Europa towers were designed by the American firm of Johnson/Burgee Architects. Philip Johnson (1906-2005) had been an early proponent of the International Style, introducing Americans to European architects such as Mies van der Rohe and Le … [Read more...] about A turbulent history of Madrid’s towers of crisis
“Our forgotten Spanish reality…”
It’s not often that I’d applaud the broad array of opinions published in El Mundo newspaper. During the government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, its op-eds ranged, utterly predictably, from anti-Zapatero to rabidly anti-Zapatero. But with a Partido Popular government, things seem to be getting more interesting, especially given that while El Mundo has supported the cause of Spain’s conservatives, it has not been a consistent cheerleader for Mariano Rajoy himself. So it was fascinating to see just a couple of the opinions published by the paper in the wake of the announcement of Spain’s financial bailout. The general consensus in Spain is that Rajoy committed a major error by not … [Read more...] about “Our forgotten Spanish reality…”
Bailout? What bailout?
“It’s not a bailout…it’s a credit line with very favourable conditions.” (Luis de Guindos.) “It’s a victory for the euro…If we hadn’t done what we have done in the past five months, the result would have been a bailout of the kingdom of Spain.” (Mariano Rajoy.) You’d hardly imagine, from listening to Spain’s prime minister and his economy minister, that the country has joined the list of nations that are receiving rescue packages from the European Union. Offering up to €100 billion for a banking sector crippled by toxic assets is clearly a major step for the EU, although whether it’s the “victory” Mariano Rajoy talks about is still uncertain. One thing the EU’s fourth bailout has … [Read more...] about Bailout? What bailout?