Spanish government looks beyond Bush to improve relations with US

Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs rules out US visit while Bush still in power

Following a meeting with the US Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice, in Washington Houston, Miguel Angel Moratinos, the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs has ruled out any meeting between Zapatero and George Bush at the White House.

The Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs emphasised that the Spanish government was now looking at building a new relationship with the next US president following the general elections due to be held in November this year.

Moratinos met with officials running the leadership campaigns for all the White House hopefuls - John McCain, Barack Obama all Hillary Clinton and confirmed that all of them want to have better relations with Spain.

During the meeting with Rice, Moratinos underlined the will of the Spanish government to work very closely with the US in areas of mutual interest such as the Middle East and Latin America. Moratinos said that Rice had expressed her hope over the possibility of a peace agreement being reached between Israel and Palestine. Moratinos underlined that he had seen goodwill on both sides to reach an agreement before the end of 2008 following his recent trip to Israel and Egypt.

Moratinos and Rice also talked about the situation in Lebanon where Spain has deployed 1,100 soldiers along with other NATO peacekeeping forces. The expansion of NATO to include Georgia and the Ukraine was also a topic of conversation.
The two also spoke about Cuba, an area of contention between both contries. While the Spanish government favours dialogue with Cuba the US refuses to establish any diplomatic relations with the Cuban government until democratic elections are held.

The Spanish Foreign Affairs Minister told Rice that Spain wants to build a new relationship with the US and said that Madrid was an ally, partner and friend of the US.

Spain's first female Defence Minister

Troops line up for the first female Minister for Defence in Spain

For the first time a woman has been given the role of Defence Minister, not only that, a woman who is 7 months pregnant. Although this has raised eyebrows in some quarters Carme Chacón has received the full backing of many of her colleagues in Zapatero’s new government including that of her predecessor José Antonio Alonso.

Chacón has described her position with Zapatero’s government as ‘proof of integration and identification between the armed forces and society’. Today the troops lined up for her inspection, an act seen by many as a milestone in Spanish history and many of her cabinet colleagues such as Rubalcaba, Moratinos, Blanco, Alonso and De la Vega were present to witness the first female in charge of Spain’s armed forces carry out her first official duty.

Chacón started her speech by paying homage to the Spanish military who ‘defend peace and to those who have given up their lives for a greater cause’. She said that she felt ‘proud and moved by the love for Spain that she had always had since being a child’. She also added that she would continue the magnificent work done by Alonso and that ‘work, discretion and efficiency’ would form the foundations of her ministry.

Chacón also spoke of her objectives as Defence Minister which were firstly to reinforce the presence of women in the armed forces, perfect procedures and improve motivation with the development of the law on a professional armed forces.

The modernization of the armed forces and its adaptation to new times also appeared to be one of Chacón’s main concerns and during her first speech she highlighted the profound and positive change that Spain’s military had experienced over recent times. She said that ‘the army had never been as prepared to guarantee the sovereignty and independence of Spain’.

Chacón’s appointment has been the most surprising out of the whole of Zapatero’s cabinet. However, the decision to appoint a woman as Defence Minister was described by Alonso as ‘absolutely normal’. He also reminded critics of this appointment that there were also women in charge of the armed forces in countries such as Norway and the Czech Republic. Alonso described Chacón as an ‘intelligent person with good sense and political experience’ which would make her an ‘excellent minister’.

See Carmé Chacon's first inspection of the troops on this youtube video:

Ministers in the Spanish Government

This weekend José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero named his Cabinet and there were a few surprises. This is the first government in Spanish history to have more women ministers than men. Another first is that a woman has been appointed to head the Defence Ministery. Seven-months pregnant Carme Chacon was Minister of Housing during the last legislature and she told reporters it was an honour to have been made Minister of Defence in this one. She defines herself as a pacifist and her appointment is bound to have raised a few eyebrows among the Spanish military.

Zapatero said the new cabinet reflected the nature and objectives of his government and he also announced the creation of an Equality Ministry aimed at furthering women's rights in Spain and fighting domestic violence. This is a break down of the new Spanish Government

María Teresa Fernández de la Vega – First Vice-president and Presidency
First Vice-president and Minister of the Presidency. Spokesperson for the government during the last legislature. She has occupied various positions within the Justice Ministry; Secretary of State for Justice (1994); Magistrate (1989). She has also been a member of parliament in various legislatures.

Pedro Solbes – Second Vice-president and Economy and Treasury
The Second Vice-president and Minister for the Economy during the last legislature. Delegate for Economic and Monetary Affairs for the European Commission (1999-2004). Minister for the Economy (1993-1996); Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1991-1993). Member of parliament in various legislatures

Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba – Home office Minister
During the last legislature he took over as Minster for the Home Office in April 2006. Before occupying this post he was both the Spokesperson for and President of the Socialist group in parliament. During Felipe González’s last government (1993-1996) he was Minister of the Presidency. Previously he occupied several other distinct positions within the government: Secretary of State for Universities, Secretary of State for Communication and Minister for Education and Science (1992). Professor of Organic Chemistry in the Complutense University of Madrid.

Elena Salgado – Public Administration Minister
During the last legislature she was the Minister for Health (until April 2006). Later on she went on to occupy the portfolio of Public Administration. She occupied various positions within the governments of Felipe Gonzalez: General Secretary for Communication for the Ministry of Public Works (1991-1996). From 1996 to 2004 she worked in several companies within the private sector.

Carme Chacón - Defence Minister
During the last legislature she took over from Trujillo as Minister for Housing in April 2006. In 1999 she was chosen as a councillor for the town hall of Esplugues de Llobregat and became the deputy mayor. She was a member of parliament in 2000 and 2004. She is a Professor of Constitutional Law in the University of Gerona.

Celestino Corbacho – Work and Immigration Minister
Involved in local politics since 1983 in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat and mayor of this locality since 1994. Regional councillor for Barcelona and president for the regional government of this area since 2004.

Mariano Fernández Bermejo - Justice Minister
He substituted López Aguilar in the Ministry of Justice in 2007. A lot of experience working in public prosecution. When PSOE took power in 2004 Bermejo was named the top Public Prosecutor in the High Court, the highest post within public prosecution. Previously he was in charge of public prosecution in Madrid from 1992 to 2003, a post which he left following his confrontations with the then Minister of Justice, Michavila. He was public prosecutor for the Supreme Court between 1989 and 1992. He also worked as an assessor in antiterrorist activities for the Ministry of Justice between 1986 and 1989. He has also worked as a public prosecutor in various courts.

Bernat Soria - Health Minister
Named as Minister for Health in April 2006. Until then he was the Director of the Andalucian Centre on Regenerative and Molecular Biology. He has spent a long time researching stem cells. Professor of Physiology in the Miguel Hernández University in Elche. He became the first president of the European Network for Stem Cell Research, created in 2004.

Miguel Ángel Moratinos – Foreign Affairs Minister
Minister for Cooperation and Foreign Affairs during the last legislature. European Union special ambassador for the peace process in the Middle East from 1996 to 2003. During the last 6 months of 1996 he was the Spanish Ambassador for Israel. Previously he was the General Director of Foreign Policy towards Africa and the Middle East, General Director for Cooperation in the Arab world as well as occupying various other posts within the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Miguel Sebastián - Minister of Industry, Tourism and Commerce
Director of the Economics Office in Zapatero’s last government until October 2006 when he was designated as a candidate for mayor of Madrid. Following being defeated he gave up his post as councillor and returned to lecturing in the Complutense University in Madrid. He also worked as an advisor to Zapatero when PSOE was in opposition. Director of Study Services for the BBVA since 1999.

Mercedes Cabrera - Minister of Education, Social Affairs and the Family
Member of Parliament in the 8th and 9th legislature. Minister for Education from 2006 to 2008. She only entered the world of politics two years ago when PSOE placed her number in second place on the electoral lists for Madrid for the March 2004 elections. She has worked as Co-Director of the magazine History and Politics. Member of the governing board of the Pablo Iglesias Foundation. Cabrera collaborated with PSOE in 1998 in the commission responsible for the Socialist’s electoral programme for the 2000 general election. Following PSOE’s victory in the 2005 elections Cabrera was named as the President of the Commission on Education and Science in the Spanish parliament for which she had the support of all parliamentary groups except for the PP.

César Antonio Molina - Minister of Culture
Member of Parliament for Coruña for the 9th legislature. Minister for Culture between July 2007 and March 2008. Between May 2004 and July 2007 he was the director of the Cervantes Institute. Between 1996 and 2004 he was the director of the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid and between 1985 and 1996 he was in charge of the Cuture sections for the Cambio 16 and Diario 16 newspapers. Before this he was a professor in the Complutense University in Madrid. He has also worked in the faculty of Journalism and Humanities in the Carlos III University in Madrid. He has published more than 30 books including plays, prose and poetry many of which have been translated into different languages. His lastest book, El rumor del tiempo was published in 2006.

Elena Espinosa - Minister of Agriculture and the Environment
Member of Parliament for Orense in the 9th legislature. Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food between June 2004 and March 2008. From May 2002 until June 2004 assistant to the presidency of the Rodman group. Before joining the company she worked in the Galician Institute for Technical Medicine for two years. Between 1988 and 1996 she was the president of the Port authority in Vigo and between 1985 and 1988 she was responsible for the Urgent Reindustrialisation Zone of Vigo.

Cristina Garmendia – Research and Development Minister
President of the Spanish Association of Biocompanies (Asebio). In 2000 she founded Genetrix, a private company in the biotechnology sector. She is also president of the Inbiomed Foundation.

Magdalena Álvarez – Transport and Construction Minister
Member of parliament for Málaga in the 9th legislature. In the last government she was also the Minster for Transport and Construction (2004-2008). Member of parliament in the 8th legislature. Member of the Federal Committee of PSOE. Between 1994 and 2004 she was the advisor on the Economy and Treasury for the Regional Andalucian government. Previously she was a councillor for Malaga in the Andalucian parliament. She has been a professor of Economics in various educational institutions from 1977 to 1989. In 1979 she became a Financial Inspector for the State where she has occupied diverse posts in the Treasury Ministry and later on in the State Agency for Tax Administration. She was in charge of the Treasury in the local government of Malaga from 1987 to 1989, General Director of Regional Economic Incentives (1989 -1993) and Director of the Department of Tax and Financial Inspection for the State Agency on Tax Administration.

Bibiana Aido - Minister of Equality
The youngest minister in the Spanish government, 31-year old Aido was chosen as member of parliament for Cádiz in the 2008 elections. Secretary for Equality in the Executive Provincial Commission for PSOE in Cádiz. Until now she has been the Director of the Andalucian Agency for the Development of Flamenco. Between 2003 and 2006 she was the regional delegate for the Andalucian Advisory Board on Culture. Previously she has worked for the University of Cádiz, Unicaza, Iturri S.A. and Caja San Fernando.

Beatriz Corredor – Housing Minister
Until now she has been PSOE’s municipal spokesperson for Housing in the town hall of Madrid. She has been a property registrar since 1993 and before this she was the Director of the Property Register Studies Service for Castilla La Mancha between 2002 and 2006.

Zapatero fails to win overall majority in opening session

The opening sessions held in the Spanish Parliament today and yesterday designed to elect the new President of Spain were, to the relief of many, a much more civilised affair than the same sessions held four years ago. The Popular Party, leadership has recognised the need to distance itself from its hardline image in order to attract votes from center voters and this was reflected in the more measured tone adopted by its leader yesterday. While both party leaders did not miss the chance to criticise eachother and get the occasional dig in yesterday, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and Mariano Rajoy underlined their intention to cooperate on the major challenges facing Spain. However the leader of the Popular Party also confirmed his party's intention to vote against Zapatero's presidency proposal, and Zapatero did not get the absolute majority of parliamentary votes required in the first vote held this morning. He will be voted in the second round on Friday, when a simple majority is sufficient in order to be able to form Government.

In yesterday’s investiture debate Rajoy said that cooperation was an essential condition given that together both parties represent 92% of the Spanish population.
The leader of the PP said that he believed in agreements and pacts which was why he was willing to work with Zapatero. He also said that both parties should aim for ‘consensual, stable decisions’.

In reply to these words José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero emphasised that the biggest pact of state is the constitutional pact. Zapatero also said that one of the successes of the last 30 years of democracy in Spain was that it was ‘inclusive of all identities in our country’. He said that he had the special responsibility of ‘trying to be as inclusive as possible’.

The acting president reminded Rajoy that in 1996 the PP only made a pact with CiU when they needed to reach a majority. He said the difference between PSOE and the PP was that since 1977 up to the present his party had always favoured consensus.
Zapatero expressed his hopes of being able to reach agreements with the PP over important issues such as regional finance, justice and foreign policy.

However, Mariano Rajoy clearly stated that he would not be supporting Zapatero in the investiture because he said that he did not have his confidence or that of many millions of Spaniards. Rajoy said that Zapatero had a past and that he has seen him govern over four years. Zapatero replied to this by saying that ‘his credentials were those of democracy and of the support of the Spanish population for his policies’.

Zapatero also said that Rajoy had only spoken about the past without giving a single proposal for the future. To this Rajoy said he was sorry that he could not set out his legislative programme and that he would like to do so because it would mean that he had won but that this wasn’t the case’.

Rajoy said that Spain’s economy was in a very vulnerable position with high inflation, less competitiveness and loss of jobs. He said that the key to a good economy was confidence but that Zapatero’s proposals lacked this and that he was more interested in hiding problems than recognising them.

On the issue of the economy Zapatero reminded Rajoy of his challenges over the economy at the beginning of the last legislature and said that he hadn’t dared to give him more challenges because all the previous ones had been met successfully.
Zapatero, while acknowledging the adverse conditions in the world economy, also said that Spain’s economy was strong enough to get over the present situation and that the economic slowdown was affecting all the members of the EU.

Rajoy demonstrated that he would be prepared to reach agreements with PSOE with regards to anti-terrorist policy. Although he also said that this depended on there being no negotiations with ETA. Zapatero said that he wanted all Spaniards to be aware that his party was willing to forget the past and work with the PP over this issue because his party was more interested in putting an end to ETA than gaining political points.

Spanish priests protest at politicised courses

The new Archbishop, Rouco Varela, reported to be organizing training courses for priests with leading PP leading members of the PP

Details of further links between the President of the Episcopal Conference, Antonio María Rouco Varela, and the Partido Popular have emerged in reports in the Spanish media today. Apparently, the diocese of Madrid together with leading members of the PP is organizing training courses for priests. However, the Forum of Madrid priests have denounced this as "political indoctrination".

This Forum, which has been created recently and is made up of around a hundred priests from various parishes in Madrid has referred in particular to a course entitled ‘Political, economic and social challenges’ that leading members of the PP such as Jaime Mayor Oreja, Gustavo de Arístegui or the Immigration advisor for the Comunidad de Madrid, Carlos Clemente, are involved with.

The course is registered in the Permanent Training Seminary that trainee priests in Madrid attend. According to Agustín Rodríguez, a member of the Permanent Commission for the Forum of priests, political representatives should not be involved in training priests.

The Forum of Madrid priests considers that this to be political and ideological indoctrination of priests and evidence of the connections between Cardinal Rouco Varela and the PP. The forum has written to the Cardinal to express its disapproval.

The Socialist party wins Spanish election

Rodriguez Zapatero wins second term but not absolute majority.

The Socialist party won the elections held yesterday in Spain by a narrow margin as predicted in the pre-election polls. Turnout was over 75 percent and both PSOE and PP improved their electoral performance with respect to the last elections in 2004 at the cost of the smaller and nationalist parties. The Socialists won 169 seats (compared to 164 in 2004) and the Popular Party won 153 seats (148 in 2004).

In his victory speech José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero paid tribute to Isiais Carrasco, murdered by ETA on the final day of the election campaign, and to all the victims of terrorism and their families.

The socialists did particularly well in the Basque Country and Cataluña where they took votes from the Basque PNV separatists and the left wing Catalan regionalists ERC who dropped from 8 to 3 seats. The only small party to improve on their last result was the Catalan conservative CiU which won one seat more than in 2004.

The leftwing party Izquierda Unida had their worst ever result winning just 2 seats and their leader, Gaspar Llamazares announced his intention to resign last night.

Zapatero wins Spain's first election debate with opposition leader

Spain's first electoral debate for fifteeen years was held yesterday evening, and according to the polls published this morning, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero beat Mariano Rajoy by a small margin. The debate was marked by accusations from both leaders on the subjects of terrorism and immigration.

The first part of the debate centred on the economy, social policy and terrorism. The second half was on institutional politics and challenges for the future.
As far as the economy was concerned the leader of the PP talked about rising prices and the cost of housing to which Zapatero replied that the economy had grown by 3.7% above expectations and that his government presided over the lowest unemployment rate ever. He also reminded Rajoy that in the yearly State of the Nation parliamentary debate, the Popular Party leader had dedicated just three minutes to the issue of the economy.

When it came to the subject of immigration Zapatero talked about integration and equality. He also said that the government was working with the EU to tighten border controls. Rajoy accused the government’s law on dependants as being a complete failure. Zapatero replied to this saying said that while the PP were in power they didn’t invest any money in dealing with immigration. Moreover he pointed out that while Rajoy was Home Office Minister he attempted to control immigrants by legalising their situation in Spain on the strength of whether or not they possessed a bus pass, whereas the Socialist government required immigrants to have a legal work contract in order to legalise their residence in Spain.

One of the most tense moments during the debate was on the subject of terrorism. Rajoy accued Zapatero’s government of giving oxygen to ETA who were at their weakest when PSOE took power. He also accused Zapatero of politically negotiating with ETA. Zapatero replied saying that it had been the PP who had played politics with terrorism when in March 2004 they lied to the Spanish people about who they believed to be behind the M-11 bombings. He also went on to point out that he had supported Aznar in his fight against ETA and now the PP was the only political party in the world that didn’t give its backing to its national government the fight against terrorism. When Rajoy accused Zapatero of attacking the victims of terrorism Zapatero repeatedly replied that he would not tolerate this remark.

The debate ended on the topic of challenges for the future. Rajoy said the biggest challenge for any Spaniard was to buy their own home. In reply to this Zapatero reminded Rajoy that house prices rose by historic levels while the PP were still in government.

Zapatero talked about education and said he was proud of having increased grants to students and invested money in research projects. He said that there were now 40,000 more researchers in Spain than when the PP were in government.

Spanish election campaign begins

Tense atmosphere for Spanish Election Campaign which begins at midnight

The Spanish president, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, and the leader of IU, Gaspar Llamazares, will begin their parties’ respective election campaigns in Madrid while the leader of the PP, Rajoy, will start his party’s campaign in Cádiz.

Pre-election campaigning ended with tension rising on both sides when when Rajoy and Zapatero crossed words. Rajoy accused Zapatero of creating a tense situation and blamed him for the verbal attacks and interuptions suffered by opposition members Rosa Díez, María San Gil and Dolors Nadal when visiting various Spanish universities over the last few weeks.

Official campaigning for the general election begins at midnight tonight and will continue until March 7th, leaving the traditional one day of reflection before the general election which is due to take place on 9th March. According to the latest polls there is no clear leader and a significant percentage of the electorate remains undecided.

The socialists will begin their campaign in the Palacio Municipal de Congresos del Campo de las Naciones, in Madrid with Zapatero together with the minister for Education, the PSOE candidate Mercedes Cabrera and the general secretary of PSOE in Madrid, Tomás Gómez.

Today PSOE presented their three new election campaign videos which can be seen in Cadenaser.com. In one of them a man collects his mother from a village to take her to vote even though she is a PP supporter, in another a young voter is excited about having the right to vote for the first time and in the last one an elderly member of the population is pleased that Zapatero has raised Spain’s profile.

Rajoy will begin the PP’s election campaign in Càdiz together with the PP candidate for presidency of the Andalucian regional government, Javier Arenas, and the PP candidate Teófila Martínez.

Cádiz has a special symbolic meaning for the PP for several reasons. Rajoy has called the city a modern symbol of Spanish constitutionalism due to the fact that the constitution was signed there in 1812. In addition, Rajoy began the PP’s campaign for a national referendum on the Catalan statute on 31st January 2006.

Gaspar Llamazares, the leader of IU will open his party’s campaign in a former abattoir in Arganzuela, Madrid. The IU candiates Joaquín Nieto, Montserrat Muñoz and Marisa Castro, will also take part.

Zapatero creates committee of intellectuals

Zapatero to consult committee of intellectuals over PSOE’s electoral programme

The International Committee of Progressive Intellectuals that advises José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the General Secretary of PSOE and presidential candidate for re-election, is due to begin discussions today in order to draw up draft proposals for the socialist’s electoral manifesto. Decisions over the final content of the manifesto will be made later on this month.

The Committee of Intellectuals consists of experts in the economy, politics, communication, education, climate change, energy, peace and international relations. The job of the committee is to come up with ideas in order to help PSOE write its manifesto for the general elections due to be held later this year.

Personalities such as two Nobel Prize winners Helen Caldicott and Joseph Stiglitz are members of the committee as well as other well know personalities like André Sapir, Maria Joao Rodrigues, Wolfang Merkel, Jeremy Rifkin, George Lakoff and Nicholas Stern.

The members of the committee will participate in various round table discussions that will be chaired amongst others by Cristina Narbona, Juan Fernando López Aguilar and Miguel Ángel Moratinos.

Spanish abortion laws debated in parliament

Izquierda Unida, the Spanish communist party, is due to present a motion in parliament today calling for reform in Spanish abortion laws. This move comes at a time when the debate over Spanish abortion laws has been reopened due to the controversy over the investigations into illegal abortions being carried out in a number of clinics in Madrid in Barcelona. Gaspar Llamazares, leader of Izquierda Unida, has accused the government of not fulfilling its electoral promises over this issue.

The present law Spain only legally allow abortion in 3 cases – when the woman has been raped and has reported it to the police then an abortion is allowed during the first 12 weeks of the pregnancy, if serious physical abnormalities have been detected in the foetus then an abortion can be carried out up to 22 weeks into the pregnancy or the pregnant woman faces serious risks to her health or possible negative psychological problems due to the pregnancy (no time limit is in place under these circumstances).

Yesterday José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the Spanish president admitted that this issue would have to be addressed in time, but he did not specify whether or not decriminalisation of abortion would be included in their election manifesto. It is understood that the women members of Zapatero's Gabinet are pushing for reform.

Maribel Montaño the PSOE secretary in charge of Equality said in an radio interview broadcast on Cadena Ser that the present laws governing abortion in Spain were made 25 years ago and that now was the time to modify the law and adapt it to the new social reality of today’s Spain. She confirmed that any supposed changes to the law would be included in PSOE’s next electoral programme. She said the double objective of this would be to defend the rights of women to control their maternity and give more legal backing and clarification on this issue.

Bill Clinton visits Spain

Rodriguez Zapatero and Clinton make joint statement against Climate Change and Poverty

The Spanish President José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, agreed a new phase of collaboration with the Global Clinton Foundation initiative in a meeting with Bill Clinton which took place in the Moncloa Palace on Monday.

In a joint declaration to the press following their meeting which lasted an hour and a half Zapatero said that this cooperation would be ‘extraordinarily important’ although he didn’t give any figures and added that he had asked Bill Clinton for ‘help’ in mobilizing financial resources and citizens to work against the challenges of climate change and the struggle against poverty, especially in the area of education.

Zapatero described Clinton as one of the best presidents that the US had ever had and a great ex-president for his commitment on the most essential issues that confront humanity.

Clinton whose foundation has the capacity to manage a budget of around 30,000 million dollars thanked the Spanish government’s collaboration saying that ‘Spain could serve as an example’ in convincing other nations that the struggle against climate change makes economic sense.

He went on to explain that he was pleased to be working with the Spanish government which was responsible for creating 3 million jobs over the last few years and whose economy had grown by 3.8% and which had become the second largest producer of wind power and had managed to reduce its green house emissions by 4%.

Clinton said that ‘investing in development politics was worth it’ and praised Zapatero’s government for its promise to introduce a law on donating 0.7% of GDP. He also considered that Spain didn’t make empty promises when it came to UN objectives on reducing poverty and hunger by 2015.

After the meeting, Bill Clinton had lunch with King Juan Carlos in the popular Casa Lucio restaurant in Madrid

Tapes of meeting between Aznar and Bush

In the tapes Aznar asked Bush to help sway public opinion in Spain

El Pais has published the transcript of conversations held between the then President of Spain, José María Aznar, and the President of the United States, George Bush, in meetings held on 22nd february 2003, just a month before the invasion of Iraq, in the US President's ranch in Texas. The main topic of the meeting was the possibility of a war against Sadam Hussein.

According to El País, Bush indicates in the tapes his disposal to invade Iraq in March 2003 whether he had a UN resolution or not. Bush is quoted as saying that it was necessary to get rid of Sadam’s regime and that the US military would be ready within two weeks. According to the newspaper the two men discuss a supposed offer by Saddam Hussein to step down and go into exile one month before the invasion.

Meanwhile José María Aznar is said to have highlighted the importance of gaining a UN resolution and asked Bush to make sure that everything was properly in place before invading Iraq. According to the report, he told the US President that Spanish backing for US action was a momentous step for Spain and was something that would change the direction that Spanish politics had taken over the last 200 years.

It is also reported that José María Aznar asked Bush for help in swaying Spanish public opinion in favour of intervention in Iraq. It has also come to light that in the meeting neither Aznar or Bush expected much to result from the work of the UN weapons inspectors that had been sent to Iraq to look for weapons of mass destruction.

El País, also states that during Aznar’s visit to the Texan ranch a fourway telephone conversation took place between Aznar, Bush, Tony Blair and the Italian president at the time, Silvio Berlusconi.

Javier Rupérez, who acted as Aznar’s interpreter and was present during the meeting is the source of the above information which until now has been kept secret by the Spanish Embassy in Washington.

Subsidies for renting accommodation in Spain

The Spanish Government Announces 210 euros a month subsidy to those under 30 years old who rent
T
he Spanish President, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, has announced that as from 1st January those under 30 years old who rent a house or flat to live in will receive a government monthly grant of 210 euros towards the cost of their rent as well as a government guarantee for 6 months.

In a press conference in the Spanish Parliament Zapatero explained that all those between the ages of 22 and 30 years old who are employed with incomes under 22,000 euros would be entitled to the grant as well as a 600 euro loan to help pay a deposit. The grant will be available for a maximum of 48 months. If there is more than one person eligible for the grant living in the same house or flat then the grant will be apportioned.

Zapatero also announced a second measure that all those renting with incomes under 24,000 euros will be able to get the same tax rebates as people with mortgages as from 1st January 2008.

These measures are to be included in a new law and are expected to cost the government 348 million euros per year in tax rebates and 436 euros in grants. Around 361,000 young people are expected to benefit from these grants in the first year and 700,000 families are expected to be eligible for tax rebates on the rent they pay.
Carme Chacón, the Housing Minister said that these measures were drawn up together with the Spanish Treasury headed by Pedro Solbes.

The government sees the new measures as an important step towards achieving the objective of increasing the number of people who rent their first residence in Spain which is only 11% at the moment, a figure well below the European average.

Related: Renting property in Spain

Ryanair withdraws advert uses Spanish PM

Ryanair withdwaws Zapatero publicity campaign after the advert published in the Spanish press yesterday received wide criticism

Spanish president José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero was for one day the star of the latest Ryanair publicity campaign. In allusion to the Spanish government's recent decision to give mothers 2.500 euros per newborn, the full-page advert, published in several national newspapers yesterday, had a photo of the Spanish Prime Minister and the slogan: What is better? Two million free flight seats or 2500 euros for every newborn baby?.

The advert was received with general surprise in Spain yesterday, and Ryanair was criticised by some analysts for using the image of Zapatero without his consent. Government sources confirmed that they were "surprised" that the company had used a photo of the Spanish PM without having sought permission beforehand, but they said that the government did not find the advert offensive and would not be taking legal action against the cheap flight company.

Maribel Rodríguez, the head of Rynanair in España and Portugal told media yesterday that the company just wanted to make a joke which is why the image of Zapatero was used, but that it was not their intention to ridicule the Spanish president or government policy, nor to offend anyone. In the press note released in the morning, Rodriguez wrote: ‘we don’t want to make fun of anyone and we just wanted to have an amusing advertising campaign to publicise a fantastic offer". Rodríguez said that she was sorry that the advertisement had been misunderstood by some and seen as making fun of the government’s economic assistance and said that ‘we are an airline not politicians’.

Later on in the day, Ryanair said it would be withdrawing the advert and said that its objective - to catch people's attention with a bit of humour - had been fulfilled (which is putting it mildly - even we've published it!!).

Political reaction to ETA's ceasefires

A Spanish blog published an interesting comparison of reactions of the then main opposition party (PSOE) to the news that ETA had decided to break the 1999 ceasefire after holding talks with Aznar's PP government, with reactions of the PP, now opposition, to the announcement that ETA was breaking its 2006 ceasefire made public two days ago.

President Zapatero has repeatedly asked the PP opposition to join all other political parties in their support for Government policy towards Basque terrorism and to give their support to the peace process. The following comparisons offer an interesting contrast in reactions of the respective oppositions to the 1999 and 2006 ceasefire break announcements.

Comparison of Opposition Reactions to the end of the ETA Ceasefire both in 1999 and 2007 according to Spanish blog A la Sombra del Tomate

PSOE Socialist Party - then opposition - reactions to ETA's announcement in 1999:

JOAQUÍN ALMUNIA - Then leader of the PSOE party, then opposition to the PP
29th November in to EFE
"It is clear that the only group responsible for the end of the ceasefire is ETA. We are facing a moment of unity and consensus where those responsible for this are Aznar, Ibarretxe and possibly myself. If the president of the government wants to speak to me I’ll answer his call. All democrats need to put aside our differences and look for what we have in common which is basically the defence of peace and our commitment to work together to achieve peace, democracy and freedom".

MANUEL CHAVES - Socialist President of the Andalucian Regional Government and Secretary General of the PSOE party, 30th November
Insisted that his party would never be guilty of electioneering when it comes to the terrorist problem and that it would back all (PP) Government initiatives in order to redirect the situation and guarantee the ceasefire

CRISTINA CARBONA - then a prominent member of the PSOE party and today Minister of the Environment, 29th November
The attitude of the terrorist organisation can’t be blamed in any circumstances on errors committed by the government or how the government has acted during the peace process in the Basque Country. It is not a moment to appear disunited but to promote the position that all democrats take against this u turn and to trust that ETA will regret its mistake and not return to violence once again.

RAMÓN JAÚREGUI, General Secretary of the Basque Socialist Party, 29th November
Pleaded to political parties to "make it as difficult as possible for ETA to go back to killing", by fostering dialogue between all political groups and insitutions fundamentally between the President of the Government, the Lehendakari (the leader of the Basque Parliament) and the General Secretary of PSOE.

PP - today's main opposition party - reaction to ETA's announcement in 2007

MARIANO RAJOY (Leader of the PP), 5th June
“To give in to a terrorist organization is a mistake that would only serve to strengthen that organization. I ask the Spanish Government to rectify its position. I ask for clarity, certainty, security and under no circumstances that it act ambiguously. The president’s declaration this morning was not clear in any way. I ask that there will be no cession or negotiation with ETA and that he puts into use all the mechanisms of a democratic state and the law. And I ask for facts and proof that all Spaniards require that the government will not give in’’

ESPERANZA AGUIRRE (PP President of Madrid), 5th June
"The President of the government had a mandate to verify that ETA had given up its arms. However, that mandate was never carried out. ETA "has always used ceasefires to rearm itself and that the end of this ceasefire came just two days after it achieved control of some townhalls and 250 million euros towards extorsion and killing".

IGNACIO ASTARLOA, PP Justice and Security Spokesman, 5th June
"The PP told PSOE that this peace process was ridiculous and would only lead to total concessions to the terrorists and their return but this time stronger. I regret that all this has happened in a scenario of total cession on the part of the government".

LEOPOLDO BARREDA, PP Spokesman in the Basque Country, 5th June
“…Over the last 14 months ther was nothing real or certain about this ceasefire. It gives the impression that everything has been deliberate given that the ceasefire was broken only after the local elections because it was important for them to get back into local government. "

Civil Guard Investigating PP in Melilla

According to reports in the Spanish press, doubts over the validity of postal voting have been raised in Melilla. Following accusations made by members of the Melilla Coalition Party the Public Prosecutor’s office ordered the Civil Guard to investigate possible fraudulent practices related to local and regional elections to be held in Spain this weekend.

Yesterday the Civil Guard searched an education centre in Melilla and found food vouchers each with a value of 60 euros. According to the Melilla Coalition Party these vouchers have been given out to Muslim citizens in exchange for votes in favour of the PP. Furthermore, the food vouchers carried the signature of Hassan Driss the Regional Vice-Minister for Welfare and also the PP candidate for Melilla.

Around 90 documents were discovered including 25 named food vouchers, over 20 applications for postal votes and up to 23 voting cards with the same names as those which appeared on the food vouchers.

During their search of the premises the Civil Guard also discovered 8 envelopes which included all the documentation necessary for postal voting. However, each of these envelopes were votes in favour of the PP

Condoleeza Rice to visit Spain

Condoleezza Rice to Visit Spain on 1st June

The US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, will visit Spain, Germany and Austria between 29th May and 1st June, according to information from the US State Department published by the Spanish media today.

The visit to Spain which is expected to take place on 1st June, is the first official visit from a member of the Bush government since President José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero became president and relations between Spain and the US deteriorated because of the Spanish President's decision to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq.

Controversy in lead up to local and regional elections

Possible mal practice regarding the electin Castelló Town Hall

According an article published this week in the Levante Newspaper the Town Hall in Castellon, run by Spain’s main opposition party the PP, has allowed the inscription of 117 Rumanians on the electoral register. However, all 117 are registered as residing at the same address which happens to be the headquarters of Cáritas, a charity run by the Catholic church.

This situation means that as a result of registering numerous residents at the same address, approved by the local government, more than 100 people who possibly may not really reside in the area have been given the right to vote in the forthcoming local elections.

Conditions at the headquarters of Cáritas, which in reality is only an advice centre, are not those of a residence and according to the paper it is impossible for 117 people to live there.

The discovery of this situation opens the controversy once again over the race for the Rumanian vote in the local elections and the reports of PP run Town Halls in and around Castellon registering fictitious inhabitants on their electoral register.

So far the local government has not questioned the validity of the 117 Rumanians residency at the Caritas headquarters in Castellon and when a reporter from Levante Newspaper went to Castellon to investigate whether 117 Rumanians really lived in the Cáritas Headquarters nobody answered the doorbell.

This is the latest in a series of controversies in the lead up to elections next weekend. In several regions around Spain, parties have accused eachother of trying to inflate the electoral register in order to increase their own votes.

Voting trends in Spanish elections

Spanish Voting Tendencies

Less than two weeks to go for local and regional elections in Spain, el País published an interesting article with the results of a study carried out to describe voting trends in Spain over the past few years. According to the study, rural and industrial areas vote in favour of PSOE (the Spanish Socialist Party) while urban areas tend to vote for the PP (the Peoples’ Party). This political map has remained virtually unchanged since 1995, when there was a large swing in favour of the PP in the local elections.

These voting patterns have recently been examined by electoral experts because it wasn’t always like this. PSOE’s downfall in large urban areas came in 1995. The following year they were defeated in the General elections. This fall in popularity came after a number of national scandals involving the Socialist government of the day. Many Socialist mayors were the first victims of this electoral revolt.

In fact in the local elections of 1995 PSOE only retained power in 5 provincial capitals out of a total of 52. They improved their position in 1999 and again in 2003 but have never recovered from the huge loss of votes in 1995.

Álvaro Cuesta, a leading member of PSOE has been working with a group of experts who have looked into voting behaviour over the last 3 years. The findings show that voting patterns have been affected by an ageing population, higher incomes, and the fact that young people have been forced to move out of cities because of the constant rise in property prices. In addition to these causes other PSOE leaders have also highlighted disenchantment and lack of political activity in certain sectors of the urban population.

The study found that PSOE leads in areas where there are up to 5000 inhabitants. In this group PSOE received a total of 86,000 more votes than the PP. This represents 6390 Town Halls or just 6.57% of the population. PSOE also dominates in places where the population is between 5000 and 20,000 inhabitants – this represents 882 Town Halls which is 19.7% of the population and just 10.87% of all Town Halls. This works out as 250,000 more votes than the PP.

PSOE leads in populations consisting of 20,000 to 50,000 inhabitants which is 14.82% of the total Spanish population, a total of 126,000 more votes.

Out of 123 Town Halls for areas with more than 50,000 inhabitants PSOE is in charge of 61 as oppose to the 50 which are governed by the PP. The other 12 that remain are in the hands of regional parties or nationalists.

However, when it comes to provincial capital cities where the PP is the clearly in the lead in charge of almost double the number of Town Halls . However, in large industrial areas where there is a large working class population most votes are in favour of PSOE.

The study also demonstrated that in populations with between 50,000 and 250,000 inhabitants, which account for 25.1% of the Spanish population, PSOE governs in 54 cities as oppose to 41 cities governed by the PP.

Out of 12 cities consisting of 250,000 to 500,000 inhabitants the PP has 6 Town Halls and PSOE just 4 with the others being governed by Izquierda Unida and the the PNV, the Basque Nationalist Party.

Finally in populations of more than 500,000 both the PP and PSOE are in charge of 3 Town Halls each. Barcelona, Sevilla and Zaragoza are governed by PSOE and Madrid, Valencia and Malaga by the PP.

Zapatero offers French socialists "model of success"

José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the Spanish president participated in a large rally in Toulouse yesterday in support of the Socialist candidate for the French presidency, Ségolène Royal. During the meeting, attended by thousands, he said that, Ségolène was the future for France. According to official sources this will be Ségolène’s last rally before the first round of voting on Sunday.

Zapatero said that Europe was waiting for an innovative, committed, brave and modern France to emerge from the elections. He also said that he was convinced that Ségolène would achieve this because she represented a real alternative and would offer another form of government. According to Zapatero Spain feels close to France. His speech, which was translated using subtitles on two giant screens either side of the stage, was greeted with applause and chants of ‘Zapatero, Zapatero’.

When asked why he had chosen to show such strong support to Ségolène he justified his presence saying that he wanted to accompany her in this decisive phase of her campaign because of the commitment to social democratic ideas which they both shared and to offer a model of success to the French.

Ségolène Royal, was given the nickname Zapatera by the press in 2004 when she became the first female president of the region Poitou-Charentes. When she was still competing to be the candidate for the French presidency, she visited Madrid to participate in PSOE’s annual political conference last September, where she had a meeing with Zapatero. The Socialist leader committed her party to following a similar programme of equality designed by Zapatero’s government.

The French opinion polls only show that three out of four voters are still undecided on who to vote for. Although the outcome is still uncertain, latest polls show Nicolas Sarkozy as the front runner and many foreign policy analysts will question Zapatero's very public display of support for the opposition candidate, especially since Franco-Spanish relations and cooperation are vital in the on-going fight against Basque terrorism.

Political wing of ETA almost condemns violence

Otegi - "armed struggle an error"

In an interview with a Catalan radio station Arnaldo Otegi, the spokesperson for the illegal Basque political party Batasuna, said that it would be an error to build an independent Basque state using armed struggle because it would be socially and politically impossible to sustain.

However, Otegi avoided direct criticism of ETA, the Basque terrorist organisation, although he repeated that an independent state would not be possible unless it was achieved through democratic means.

Otegi also said that he was sure that ETA was not trying to impose an independent state through its armed struggle but that it used violence because democratic means to achieve independence did not exist.

Otegi affirmed that the objective now was to create a process in which a definitive solution to the conflict could be achieved. He criticised those sectors that insisted that Batasuna condemn ETA’s armed struggle when the opportunity to find a solution to the conflict is there for the taking.

He is reported to have said that ‘at present there are sufficient conditions for creating a situation through honest and sincere dialogue in which a definitive end to the Basque conflict could be achieved’.

The Batasuna spokesperson stated that his organization was going in this direction, although he also warned that such a situation could not be achieved unilaterally by the nationalist left (la izquierda abertzale).

Otegi suggested Batasuna should be legalized immediately because 20 accusations that linked it to ETA and were the reason for it being declared illegal have been discredited. He said that all cases that have reached court have been acquitted.
The director of the nationalist left also denounced powerful interests that try to prevent Batasuna participating in local elections because, according to Otegi, they would achieve very good results. He also said that if Batasuna was not allowed to field candidates in the local elections due to be held on 27th May 2007, that the Basque Country would be the only area in Western Europe where institutions did not represent the votes of its citizens.

Equality of sexes in Spain

Spanish Congress passes new equality laws

The Spanish parliament passed the Law on Equality between men and women yesterday. This new law gives fathers the right to 15 days paternity leave and equality between men and women on electoral lists which according to Zapatero, the Spanish president will radically transform society for ever.

The president took it upon himself to present the law on equality in the Spanish Congress today with the support of 192 members of parliament but with the notable abstention of the 119 PP members of parliament. When the law was passed there was a standing ovation by members of parliament and representatives of women’s groups that had been following the debate in the Congress.

The Law on Equality also forces companies with more than 250 employees to negotiate plans on equality within the workplace and for larger companies to incorporate 40% of women in their Board of Directors within 8 years.

It also gives parents the rights to reduce their working day from an eighth to half in order to look after children under eight years old. In the case of premature births, maternity leave starts when the baby leaves the hospital. Paternity leave will be extended from 15 days to one month within a timescale of 6 years.

One of the most controversial changes that the new law will bring about is to electoral lists. In districts of 5000 or more inhabitants political parties must have at least 40% of women for every 5 posts. From 2011 this measure will be applied to districts of 3000 or more inhabitants.

Susana Camarero, a member of PP, accused Zapatero of being an armchair feminist who does not listen to women (even though he is the only president in Spanish history to have an equal number of men and women ministers in his government). She said that this was a law for elites and that it did not address the needs of real people. She also said it was not very ambitious and that it would not be very effective.

Zapatero highlighted that the most important objective was to do justice to women. He dedicated the 15th March 2007 to Clara Campoamor, the member of parliament who defended women’s rights 75 years ago. According to Jesús Caldera, the Minister for Work and Social affairs this new law could come into effect next Monday.

A weekend of protests in Spain begins today

Demonstrations organised by PP to take place all over Spain today

Spain’s main opposition party, the PP, has organized demonstrations to take place all over Spain today in order to show solidarity with the victims of terrorism. The PP has called on all citizens to participate. These smaller demonstrations planned for today will serve as a warm up for tomorrow’s demonstration in Madrid which they hope will attract thousands of demonstrators. The demonstrations are protesting against the government, following the ETA prisoner De Juana Chaos being released from prison and being placed under house arrest.

This decision effectively saved De Juana’s life as it meant that he gave up his hunger strike which had lasted over 100 days. His health was deteriorating rapidly and his vital organs could have stopped working at any moment. He is now recovering in hospital in San Sebastian before returning home where will remain under house arrest for the remaining part of his sentence for threats (he has already served 18 years in prison for his part in over 20 political assassinations).

Some believe the government’s decision has also saved the delicate ‘peace process’ that has been taking place between the government and ETA. If De Juana de Chaos had died the consequence would have been very serious and it is almost certain that street violence ‘calle borroka’ as it is called in the Basque Country would have escalated. The Government has repeatedly called on the PP to stop using terrorism and the victims of terrorist violence as an electoral weapon (local and regional elections are due to be held next month), and has pointed out that several terrorists were given shorter sentences under the PP governments.

However the PP will inevitably try to capitalise on the unpopularity of the Government's decision (according to a survey carried out this week by Cadena Ser, 60 percent of voters disagree with it) and their leaders talk of little else. They have hired 500 buses to transport people to Saturday's protest march in Madrid, Aznar and the current PP leader, Mariano Rajoy, have both taken flowers to a memorial set up to remember the 25 people killed by De Juana, and yesterday the leaders started driving around Madrid in a bus in a bid to publicise their view that the government has given in to blackmail by De Juana Chaos, and to get support for the marches.

The demonstrations today under the banner ‘Freedom in Spain’, will take place today in the three main cities in the Basque Country - Bilbao, San Sebastián and Vitoria - as well as all major towns in Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, the Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castilla la Mancha and Castilla y Leon, Catalunya, the Comunidad Valenciana, Extremadura, Galicia, the Baleares, the Rioja and Murcia. In all 65 protests have been organised.

Corruption case in Granada

Town Councillor accused of corruption freed on bail

Manuel Fernández, a PP town councillor for Alhendín in Granada in charge of town planning, was freed on bail following 8 hours interrogation. He is accused of bribery, neglect of duty, extortion and price fixing.

Amongst other charges he is accused of irregularities in the planning and construction of an industrial estate (Marchalhendín) and a residential estate (Novosur) according to his lawyer who spoke to journalists following the councillor’s court appearance.

He has been given 8 days to pay his bail set at 18,000 euros. He pleaded innocent on all charges and defended the legality of his actions. Details of the interrogation have yet to be made public.

The case came to light when PSOE councillors reported several irregularities in his department. PSOE have accused the town hall of ‘losing’ 16 million euros by selling off land for the industrial estate which was valued at 24.25 million euros for just 9 million euros. In addition Manuel Fernández is accused of removing public rights of way valued at 750,000 euros on roads that pass through the estate and handing them over free of charge to the developer.

Related:
Guide to Granada

Extremadura challenges new Andalucian Statute

President of Extremadura questions the legality of the new Andalucian statute

Juan Carlos Rodríguez Ibarra, the President of Extremadura, has announced that he will go before the Constitutional Court to question the jurisdiction of the new Andalucian Statute when it comes into effect regarding control over the Guadalquivir river which runs through Extremadura.

He claims that the new Andalucian statute should not have any legal rights over control of the river which runs through both regions, despite an article contained in the new statue which says that it does. President Rodríguez Ibarra told journalists that the Spanish Constitution categorically states that rivers which run through various regions are the sole responsibility of the State - 8 % of the Guadalquivir river runs through Extremadura while the other 92% runs through Andalucia.

Furthermore Ibarra, one of Spain's longest serving and most outspoken regional presidents, said that while he remained president of Extremadura he had no intention to modify his region’s statute, although future presidents could do what they liked.
Meanwhile, a minister for the Andalucian regional government, Gaspar Zarrías responded to Rodriguez Ibarra's declarations, saying that he fully defends the constitutionality of the Andalucan Statute and regrets the attitude taken by the Extremaduran president.

In a press conference in the Andalucian Parliament he stated that Ibarra was wrong on this occasion. According to Gaspar Zarrías the Andalucian Autonomus Statute which was approved in a referendum last Sunday is completely constitutional and marks a before and after in the regional reforms that are taking place within the country.

Independence of Judicial system in Spain

77% of Spanish citizens believe that the Spanish justice system is influenced by politics

According to the results of the latest Pulsómetro survey published today by Spain's leading radio station, Cadena Ser, 77% of those questioned do not believe that the Spanish justice system is independent from political influence. Those questioned think the latest example is the challenge to the right of Supreme Court judge Pérez Tremps to participate in the Supreme Court's debate on the constitutionality of the proposed Catalan constitution. Participants in the survey blame both the PP and PSOE in equal measure for trying to manipulate the Justice system in their favour.

According to the results of the survey, two out of three people questioned were in favour of the decision not to free the ETA prisoner Iñaki De Juana Chaos despite his failing health due to his hunger strike. Most people questioned also supported a policy of force feeding him.

When asked about voting intentions PSOE came out in the lead with 43% of votes while the main opposition party in Spain, the PP, got 5 points less at 38% of votes.
With regards to the popularity of the main political leaders in Spain José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, President of Spain and leader of PSOE, obtained 51% support and Rajoy, Leader of the PP, received just 30%.

Secret CIA flights in Spain

Spanish government to declassify documents on secret CIA flights in Spain

The Vice-president María Teresa Fernández de la Vega has announced that all documents concerning illegal secret CIA flights in Spain held by the National Intelligence Centre will be declassified.

This announcement came following the request by the Spanish High Court. De la Vega said that it was essential for the executive to collaborate with the High Court even when if it meant revealing ‘official secrets’.

The illegal CIA flights refer to those flights which transported terrorist suspects to other countries for interrogation where respect for human rights is questionable.

The High Court judge who requested the information, Ismael Moreno, is investigating whether any of these flights made stops in Spanish airports. According to some sources the CIA flights made stops in Tenerife, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca and Málaga airports.

Government calls for consensus in fight against ETA

The Vice President calls on the PP to support government policy against ETA

In a speech given in Marbella yesterday the Vice President, María Teresa Fernández de la Vega, appealed to the PP (Spain’s main opposition party) to support government policy against ETA on Monday when president is due to appear before Congress.

This appeal comes just a day after thousands marched against ETA in Madrid and Bilbao, demonstrations which were not endorsed by the PP. All other political parties in Spain participated in the demonstrations.

De la Vega stated that the President’s appearance before congress would not include anything extreme that could not be supported by those who wanted to see an end to violence. She also stated that all democratic governments had tried to achieve a peaceful solution and not to do so would be irresponsible.

De la Vega spoke of the intolerable accusations that the PP had made against the government and asked how they could steep so low. She said that it was an insult to suggest that the government did not want to end terrorism against the state and that at no time had the Security or Justice departments lowered their guard.

She said that since May when Zapatero announced the government would be prepared to enter into dialogue with the terrorists the government had worked ceaselessly, responsibly and loyally in order to try and achieve peace. She also said that they had tried to gain the support of the PP because a united front against terrorism is much stronger. She said the government would continue trying to get the support of the PP in spite of the PP’s claims that the government was betraying the victims of terrorism and giving up Navarra.

De la Vega said that she was confident that the PP would support the government in parliament today and that it was a great occasion for all political parties to come together to show their opposition to ETA. She asked for the PP to stop creating divisions in this respect.

At the end of her speech De la Vega said that the Government felt proud of the solidarity shown in the demonstrations against terrorism on Saturday in Bilbao and Madrid. She concluded that if everybody united then peace could be achieved.

Anti-terrorism Demonstration in Madrid

The demonstration organised for this Saturday in Madrid to protest against ETA terrorism will keep its slogan ‘For peace and against terrorism’.

The Trade Unions UGT and CC OO (two of the largest in the country) along with the Federation of Equatorians in Spain (the two people killed by the terrorist bomb in Madrid Airport were immigrants from Ecuador) have decided not to include the word ‘Freedom’ in the banner which will be carried at the head of the march, as had been requested by the Ermua Forum. However, by way of a compromise, the main organisers of the march have agreed to include the slogan ‘for life and for freedom’ in the final speech which will be given at the end of the demonstration.

The Spanish governing socialist party PSOE, the left wing IU political party, the United Police Syndicate together with the Association for the 11th March Victims have all given their support to the organisers of Saturday’s march, whereas Mariano Rajoy, leader of the PP, prefered yesterday to outline three conditions which he said must be fulfilled in order for his party to support the demonstration – for it to call for the "defence of freedom", the defeat of ETA and for there to be no negotiations with terrorists.

The pro-PP Association for the Victims of Terrorism has confirmed that it will not be supporting or participating in this Saturday’s demonstration which they claim to be politically biased and in favour of negotiating with terrorists. Instead the leader of this Association has called for people to demonstrate against the bomb explosion in Madrid airport tomorrow.

There is also divided opinion over the demonstration due to take place this Saturday in Bilbao organised by the Basque Government in favour of "peace and dialogue". The Basque Socialists will only support the demonstration if Batasuna is not participating in the march. Patxi López, the General Secretary, explained that they would not participate alongside Batasuna who have still not condemned the bomb planted by ETA in Madrid two weeks ago.

Basque separatists appeal to ETA to maintain ceasefire

The leader of Batasuna, the political wing of ETA, Arnaldo Otegi, has requested that ETA respect and maintain the contents and objectives given in their statement on 22nd March 2006 which announced a permanent ceasefire.

In a press conference given in San Sebastián yesterday Arnaldo Otegi along with Rufi Etxeberria and Arantza Santesteban, other members of Batasuna involved in negotiations, asked that political dialogue be allowed to go ahead in the absence of violence.

Furthermore, Otegi assured his commitment to a just and long lasting peace between the Basque Country and the Spanish state.

Batasuna called for all political parties in Spain to participate in the negotiations without preconditions and with no further delays in order to form a solid multilateral base for political dialogue.

In addition Otegi urged both sides involved in the dialogue, ETA and the Spanish government, to publicly show their commitment to the peace process. He asked for central government to guarantee the conditions under which the peace process can proceed in order to find political solutions for the Basque Country.

He also urged ETA to maintain their commitment to the ceasefire announced on 22nd March 2006.

Otegi said he hoped that these requests would receive positive responses from all those involved allowing for the political process to continue in order to reach its final objective a peaceful political solution.

Basque peace progress

Less optimism among Basques about the peace process in the Basque country

According to the results of a study carried out by the University of the Basque Country and made public to the media in Spain today, 64 percent of Basque people fear that ETA may kill again and 33 percent no longer believe that the ceasefire called by the terrorist group in March is the first step towards ETA eventually disappearing altogether.

An increase in violent acts being carried out by groups of youngsters in several Basque towns and declarations by members of the political wing of ETA blaming the Spanish government for the lack of progress being made in the peace process are behind the most pessimist study to have been carried out since ETA announced the permanent ceasefire last Spring.

The Basque University measures public opinion with this study - called - twice a year. The results made public today contrast with the results just six months ago, when 86 percent of people said they viewed the peace process with optimism (compared to 62 percent this time), and 61 percent expressed their outright rejection of ETA then, compared to just 50 percent this time.

Related articles:
Basque peace process backed by the European Parliament
Spain's main political parties clash over Basque peace process
Negotiations between government and ETA
Spanish government and ETA negotiate possible ceasefire
Government proposes talks with ETA
Gerry Adams interviewed during his visit to Spain

Update: On Saturday 30th December ETA planted a bomb in one of the carparks in Madrid Airport. Police managed to evacuate 2000 people before the bomb exploded, but two people are missing and feared dead. The bomb was one of the biggest ever used by the Basque terrorist group and signals the end of the ceasefire and, presumably, the peace process.

Reforms in primary education in Spain

The government has announced reforms in primary school education. The new decree is called Minimum Teaching in Primary and will come into force in the next academic year.

The biggest changes with respect to the current system is that primary school pupils will be able to choose whether or not to study Religious Education, and those who choose not to will have the right to study an alternative subject. This is already the case in most state schools, but many private schools with religious connections offer no substitute to the traditional Religious Education classes in Spain, which teach children the ins and outs of Catholic beliefs.

All schools will be obliged to undertake the "organizational measures" necessary to offer the alternative to its pupils, ensuring that no pupils will be discriminated against whether they choose one option or the other. This means that whether or not a student has studied Religious Education will no longer be taken into account when he or she applies for a place at university or a higher education grant.

The other main change in the schools' curricula is in the number of hours dedicated to teaching language, maths and foreign languages. According to the new decree, from next year onwards pupils will receive 45 hours more maths tuition and 25 hours less of Spanish language and literature. A new subject called Citizenship and Human Rights Education will be introduced into the timetable of the fifth or sixth primary years.

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Education in Spain

Elections in Catalonia

CIU wins Catalonian Regional Elections.

Convergencia i Union, the moderate Catalan separatist party won yesterday's election in Catalonia, although the victory was not big enough for the party to form government. The result represents an important reverse for the Catalonian Socialist Party (PSC) which has governed for the past three years together with two minor left-wing separatist parties, ERC and ICV-EUiA in the coalition government known as the tripartito which has secured increased autonomy and a new constitution for Catalonia.

This was the third time the Catalans have been called to vote in the past three years, and the low turn-out reflected the feelings of a weary electorate. The last regional elections were just three years ago, and earlier this year voters were asked to vote in a referendum on the proposed reforms in the Catalan statute. Yesterday les than 57 percent of the electorate participated in the elections, the second lowest turn-out in the history of Catalonian regional elections.

CiU increased its number of seats in the regional parliament by 2, from 46 to 48, while the PSC lost 5 seats. ERC and the Popular Party also lost one seat each, while the other minor separatist party ICV-EUiA gained 3 seats and a new anti-separatism political party called Ciutadans de Catalunya (Citizens of Catalonia) formed just before the elections won a surprising 3 seats.

The leader of Convergencia i Union, Artur Mas, said last night that his party would start negotiating with other parties to form a coalition government. The only party he has ruled out as a possible partner in a coalition government is the Popular Party.


Related:
Congress debates new Statute for Catalonia
Breakthrough in talks for new Catalan Statute

Basque peace process backed by European Commission

The EU member states give their backing to the Basque peace process in Spain

Spain's Socialist government received the support of the European Parliament today as the majority voted to support Rodriguez Zapatero's peace talks with ETA and voted against a resolution put forward by Spanish opposition PP party rejecting talks between government and ETA.

It was a narrow victory - 321 in favour, 311 against and 24 abstentions, but nevertheless a very important one for the Spanish government facing unprecedented opposition from the Popular Party over the whole issue of the peace process. Last week one PP senator accused the PSOE party of surrending to terrorism and initiating conversations with ETA when the terrorists were planning the assessination of an ex-member of the organisation, and government spokesmen called the accusations "vile" while the public prosecutor insinuated that some groups in Spain did not actually want the peace process to succeed.

Both parties have been at loggerheads ever since Zapatero sought the backing of congress to initiate talks with ETA, some months after the terrorists called a ceasefire. Zapatero's appeals to the Popular Party to join all other Spanish parties in supporting the peace talks have fallen on dead ears, and relations have reached yet another low.

The fact that French police believe ETA is responsible for the theft of over 300 military arms this week will add further strength to the argument that the terrorists are getting tired at the lack of progress being made in the peace talks, although some analysts compare it to difficulties in the Northern Ireland peace process when factions of the IRA opposed peace talks.

The debate in the European Parliament was a heated one, but the prevailing view was that the Spanish Government should be allowed to try to achieve peace by negotiation. The European Commission also supported the motion. The EU Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini participated in the debate urging European MPs to back the motion and arguing that Spain's "tenacity and conviction in combating terrorism from the respect of democracy and the rule of law has paid off".


Related:
Spain's main political parties clash over Basque peace process
Negotiations between government and ETA
Spanish government and ETA negotiate possible ceasefire
Government proposes talks with ETA
Gerry Adams interviewed during his visit to Spain

Corruption in Spanish politics

Earlier reports that corruption in Spain could be in decline were rather optimistic if the number of possible cases of political corruption being reported by the Spanish media are anything to go by. The list seems to be endless, and every week lately new cases of possible bribes, illegal commission for building licences, unchallenged illegal building developments etc. come to light.

Most of the corruption cases center around real estate speculation and development. Yesterday Cadena Ser reported that Spanish police had found 13,000 illegal constructions in Spain in the past year and a half. Here are just some of the corruption charges in the news at the moment:

Corruption in Marbella: The biggest case of corruption to be uncovered in Spain so far. A police investigation into money laundering and drug trafficking in southern Spain codenamed operation white whale and involving phone tapping overheard conversations between politicians in Marbella which led to a parallel investigation being set up to investigate bribery, corruption, manipulation of public tenders and compensation for illegal building licences. Over 150 police participated in "Operation Malaya" and six months ago over 20 people were arrested, including the then Mayoress and Deputy Mayoress of Marbella. The investigation is still going on, and the profits made by people participating in this massive network of corruption is expected to be millions and millions of euros.

Corruption in Madrid: The authorities of various town halls in the suburbs of Madrid are suspected of accepting commissions for allowing building to be developed on protected land, accepting commissions or being involved in the purchase of cheap land where building is not allowed, then modifying the urban laws so that building becomes legal, and then reselling the land for huge sums of money to property developers. Earlier this week it was revealed that an uncle of the President of the Region of Madrid made an enormous profit on land which was re-catagorised as building land shortly after he bought it a few years ago.

Today El País publishes a conversation held 3 years ago in which a former PP councillor of Tres Cantos, Madrid, in reference to the concession by the Town Hall of a massive property development to a private company is reported as saying "I want my 11 percent of the 30,000 million" (pesetas)"Give me the dough and I'll go". According to el Pais, the ex-PP councillor has acknowleded the declarations but said they were made in the heat of the moment. Meanwhile the same paper today reports that two former mayors of another Madrid suburb, Ciempozuelos, this time from the Socialist party, recently paid 916,000 euros into personal bank accounts in a bank in Andorra. The PSOE party forced the current mayor to resign when the public prosecutor ordered an investigation into possible irregular operations in the urban policies of Ciempozuelos last week and the Socialist party has announced a "Zero-tolerance" policy on urban corruption on all sides.

Corruption in Avila: Earlier this month building on a golf course in Avila was bought to a halt after ecologists protested that the developer - a private company set up by the local and regional administration - was ignoring a court order to stop cutting down trees in a protected area.

And the list goes on.....

Tony Blair in Madrid

Tony Blair arrived in Madrid yesterday evening for a two-day official visit and gave José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero a boost when he endorsed the Socialist Government's controversial decision to start negotiating with the Basque separatist group ETA. When asked if he supported Zapatero's decision, he said yes, he did, because "it's always worth a try".

Ever since José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero withdrew Spanish troops from Iraq almost as soon as he was sworn in as President of Spain, relations between the Spanish President and British PM have been strained. Especially since Tony Blair enjoyed a very close working and personal relationship with ex-President José Maria Aznar (as he also did of course with Silvio Berlusconi) whom he invited to London after the Spanish election result for what was one of Aznar's last official trips as acting President of Spain.

However, tension has eased over the past couple of years, some progress has been made on the future of Gibraltar, and the Spanish government was quick to offer and supply the British government with help immediately after the London train bombings, when they sent anti-terrorist police and detectives who had successfully investigated the Madrid train bombings to advise their colleagues in the UK.

Yesterday's joint press conference was an illustration of their improved relationship, and both premiers were relaxed as they answered questions. The main Spanish opposition party, the pro-PP section of the Spanish media and even ex-President Aznar have openly criticised the Socialists for their decision to talk to ETA following the ceasefire called by the terrorist group earlier this year.

But yesterday Tony Blair endorsed Zapatero's pro-negotiation policy "it is sometimes difficult, but it is the right thing to do", and offered his support. He also reminded reporters that he was criticised and called naive by certain sectors during the long peace process in Northern Ireland, but "if you believe in it, you just keep going".

José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero thanked the British Prime Minister for his support and confirmed that the peace process in the Basque country would continue but would inevitably suffer lows and reach highs. He refused to confirm or refute the rumour that talks with ETA have reached a deadlock.

Tony Blair's visit concludes today after co-chairing, with Zapatero, a round-table meeting with directors from some of Spain and the UK's top companies, including BP, Vodafone, Barclays, Acciona, Indra, Ferrovial and Telefónica.

Related articles:
Meeting between Blair and Rodriguez Zapatero in Madrid
Gibraltar Agreement signed between British and Spanish governments

Madrid Summit to discuss illegal immigration

The Foreign and Interior ministers of the 8 EU countries most affected by the arrival of illegal immigrants - France, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta and Spain - meet today in Madrid to discuss ways in which to design joint policies and strategies aimed at tackling the growing problem of illegal immigration.

The Spanish government has been trying - unsuccessfully - to pursuade the EU to
become more involved in finding solutions to the problem of immigrants arriving by boats en masse to the Canary Islands and several coastal areas in Southern Spain. The arrival of these kinds of boats has been a problem for some years now, but this Summer it reached acute proportions, leading to appeals for EU help from the Canarian and Spanish governments.

According to reports in Cadena Ser, the Miguel Angel Moratinos, Spanish Foreign Minister, and Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, Interior Minister, are expected to propose to their EU colleages the creation of a European border police force and coastguard in the summit meeting today. The ministers intend to elaborate a joint proposal to be presented in the EU summit meeting of Home Secretaries scheduled for next month and ultimately to be approved by the Summit of EU heads of state and governments to be held in Finland on 20th October.

Spain will underline the need for a quick, efficient system to be established at coastal borders to replace the current FRONTEX post in waters near the Canary Islands which is deemed by the Spanish government to be insufficient. The French Interior Minister, Nicolas Sarkoxy has announced his intention to propose a "European pact" whereby EU member states pledge not to undertake any mass immigration regulation policies similar to that passed by the Spanish government last year which many believe that, far from solving the problem of illegal immigration, may be one of the reasons why an increasing number of people from North Africa risk their lives in a desperate attempt to reach Spain in small, overcrowded boats.

Related to the problem of immigration in Spain:
2006
Spain appeals to EU for help with illegal immigration
Situation in the Canary Islands worsens
Immigration in Spain
2005
Legalisation of illegal immigrants in Spain
Immigrants on hunger strike in Barclona
Migrants die in border fence crush in Ceuta
2004
New Spanish immigration laws
Reform of Spanish immigration laws

New law to control telecommunications

The government is preparing a new law that will help combat delinquency and terrorism by having a degree of control over telecommunications.

The Spanish Home Office wants to have access to information regarding mobile telephone use and wants companies to make this information available to them by recording information for a period of 12 months. Under exceptional circumstances this could be extended to 24 months.

The law would apply both to pay as you go mobiles as well as those on contract. It would also oblige shops selling pay as you go mobiles to keep a register of their customers. At the moment there are approximately 16 million anonymous mobile phone owners. Investigations into telecommunications played an important part in the detention of 11th March suspects.

Last February the EU passed a law on the retention of information on telecommunications which made operators responsible for keeping information for a period of between 6 to 24 months in an attempt to combat both terrorism and other serious crime. The terrorist attack in London on 7th July 2005 served as an incentive to help get the legislation approved by the member states.

This law applies both to fixed land lines as well as mobile telephones. Companies are required to keep a record of the telephone number from which the call originated, the number where the call is received, the length of the conversation and where the call was made from. Only under certain circumstances can the content of phone calls be made available to the authorities.

Related:
Broadband Internet in Spain
Wireless Internet connection in Malaga
Domestic use of new technologies in Spain
Telefonica Internet services
E-commerce in Spain

Changes to Traffic Laws

The laws governing traffic have undergone further changes. The introduction of a points system for driving licences came into effect last July and now further changes to penalties for various infractions come into effect as from today.

Not wearing a helmet whilst driving or as a passenger on a motorbike or moped will now be classed as a serious offence whereas it used to be classed as a minor offence. This is also the same for people driving quad bikes which have become very popular in recent years.

Not wearing a safety belt will also be classed as a serious offence. Children will also have to use special car seats according to their size (children under a certain height will either need to use a special car seat or a booster seat). Children are only allowed to use normal safety belts when they reach 135 cms in height.

Pregnant, women will also have to wear a safety belt (under the previous laws governing car security they were exempt). However taxi drivers continue to be exempt from the rules on wearing safety belts while at work.

Baby car seats will no longer be allowed to be placed in the front seat if the car is fitted with airbags unless the airbags have been deactivated.

This year over the summer period there have been 10 deaths less than recorded over the same time last year.

Ex-Mayor of Marbella on corruption charges

Marisol Yagüe the ex-Mayor of Marbella appeared in court for the second time yesterday. The judge, Miguel Ángel Torres, asked for her to return to court in order to clarify her initial declaration.

The ex-Mayor has been charged along with other council members of corruption on several counts and has remained in prison since 29th March. Some of the charges she faces are neglect of duty and bribery.

Pablo Luna, her defence lawyer, said that she had nothing new to add to her original declaration. The ex-Mayor was transferred from prison to court in a police van and her appearance in court lasted just over an hour. According to Luna Marisol Yagüe is still hoping to be released from prison on health grounds due to the depression she is said to be suffering although 3 requests have already been refused by the judge in this case.

Related:
Visitors guide to Malaga and Marbella
Hotels in Marbella
Hotels in Malaga
Cheap hotels in Malaga
Photos of Marbella

Demonstration in favour of self determination for the Basque Country

Thousands of demonstrators marched through the streets of San Sebastian to show their support for Basque self determination yesterday afternoon. Although Batasuna, the banned Basque separatist party in favour of complete independance, had been prevented from organizing the march many of its leaders were present.

It was unclear whether the demonstration would be allowed to go ahead until the last minute. Howver, it finally started at 6pm following a slight delay due to some minor incidents between demonstrators and the Ertaintza (the Basque Police).

Mariano Rajoy, the president of the PP was strongly opposed to allowing the demonstration to take place because he considered it to to have been organized by Batasuna who he believes has close ties with the terrorist organization ETA.

The march coincided with the first day of San Sebastian's fiestas known as 'Semana Grande', one of the busiest days for tourism in San Sebastian.

Articles related to Basque indpendence:
Debate over Basque indpendence in Spain
2005 Basque elections in Spain
2005 election results in Basque Country
Basque nationalism

Resources related to the Basque country:
Guide to Guipuzcoa
San Sebastian
Bilbao
Best restaurants in San Sebastian