{"id":788,"date":"2021-03-26T08:45:11","date_gmt":"2021-03-26T08:45:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.whs-blogs.co.uk\/linguistica\/?p=788"},"modified":"2024-11-12T21:03:11","modified_gmt":"2024-11-12T21:03:11","slug":"la-politica-espanola-de-hoy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whs-blogs.co.uk\/linguistica\/2021\/03\/26\/la-politica-espanola-de-hoy\/","title":{"rendered":"La pol\u00edtica espa\u00f1ola de hoy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Caroline (Year 12) has been researching the Spanish political system and attitudes towards politics in Spain. As part of this, she has interviewed Marta, a Spanish student studying in Germany, about her views on the subject. <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mi primera pregunta ser\u00eda – \u00bfC\u00f3mo crees que ha cambiado el panorama pol\u00edtico en la \u00faltima d\u00e9cada en Espa\u00f1a? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My first question would be – How do you think the political landscape in Spain has changed in the last decade?\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: En mi opini\u00f3n, el panorama pol\u00edtico no ha cambiado mucho, porque en Espa\u00f1a hay dos partidos mayoritarios, y siempre hay un intercambio de poder entre los dos. Pero creo que, al fin y al cabo, no hay una mejora o un cambio general en la popularidad de estos partidos l\u00edderes en Espa\u00f1a porque la gente no ha cambiado sus h\u00e1bitos de voto: se sienten disociados de la pol\u00edtica, por lo que les da igual.\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: In my opinion, the political landscape hasn\u2019t changed much, because in Spain there are two majority parties, and there is always an interchange of power between the two. But I think that, when all is said and done, there is no improvement or general change in the popularity of these leading parties in Spain as the public haven\u2019t changed their voting habits: they feel dissociated from politics, so they don\u2019t care about it.\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT – these two main Spanish political parties are the <\/strong>Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (Spanish: <\/strong>Partido<\/strong> <\/strong>Socialista<\/strong> <\/strong>Obrero<\/strong> Espa\u00f1ol)<\/strong> and the <\/strong>People’s Party (Spanish: <\/strong>Partido<\/strong> Popular)<\/strong>. These have dominated the political scene since the 1980s! The PSOE is a centre-left party, and has been in government longer than any other political party in Spain. The Spanish President, <\/strong>Pedro S\u00e1nchez<\/strong>, belongs to it. The PP is a conservative and Christian-democratic political party, founded in 1989.\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00bfY cu\u00e1les crees que ser\u00e1n las implicaciones del ascenso de la extrema derecha, como el partido \u2018Vox\u2019 ? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And what do you think the implications of the rise of the far-right will be, like the party \u2018Vox\u2019?<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: Yo espero que aunque tenga un mayor n\u00famero de votos, nunca lleguen al poder. Pero en el hipot\u00e9tico caso de que lleguen a poder, supongo que pondr\u00edan medidas muy radicales como leyes que restrictan severamente la inmigraci\u00f3n, o medidas contra el aborto. Pienso que, hablando de manera realista, no podr\u00e1n obtener suficiente apoyo para competir contra los partidos principales, pero nunca se sabe!\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: I hope that even though they obtain a greater number of votes, they never come into power. But, hypothetically if they did get into power, they would likely implement radical measures such as laws severely restricting immigration, or measures against abortion. I think realistically speaking they won\u2019t be able to gain enough support to compete against the major parties, but you never know!\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT – This specific party, Vox, is the predominant <\/strong>Spanish far right party<\/strong>, often compared to the <\/strong>\u2018National Rally\u2019<\/strong> party in France (led by Marine Le Pen). They entered Spanish parliament for the first time in April 2019, and currently have around <\/strong>54,000 members<\/strong>. In November 2019, it performed <\/strong>3rd<\/strong> out of all Spanish parties.\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00bfPor qu\u00e9 crees que hay un apoyo tan grande a la independencia catalana? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why do you think there is such great support for Catalonian independence?\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: Hay un apoyo tan grande dentro de Catalu\u00f1a, pero en el resto de Espa\u00f1a, no hay un apoyo significativo para que Catalu\u00f1a se independice. Yo creo que el major problema es que Catalu\u00f1a paga muchos impuestos comparado con el resto de Espa\u00f1a porque es una comunidad m\u00e1s rica – as\u00ed que contribuye en gran medida a la econom\u00eda espa\u00f1ola. Tambi\u00e9n, la universidad es m\u00e1s cara all\u00ed, as\u00ed como otros bienes y servicios. Entonces, creo que piensan que es todo m\u00e1s caro por culpa de Espa\u00f1a, y echa la culpa a Espa\u00f1a, y por eso se quieren independizar.\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: There is relatively great support within Catalonia, but in the rest of Spain, there isn\u2019t significant support for Catalonia to become independent. I think that the greatest problem is that Catalan pays lots of taxes in comparison to the rest of Spain because it is a richer area – so it contributes extensively to the Spanish economy. Also, university is more expensive there, as well as other goods and services. Therefore, I think they consider that everything is more expensive because of Spain, and they pass on the blame to Spain, and this is why they want to become independent.\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT – In the Catalan independence referendum of 2017, <\/strong>92% voted for independence, with only 7% voting against.<\/strong> However, voter turnout was only <\/strong>43% <\/strong>of the population, at roughly <\/strong>5 million people<\/strong>.\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Como estudiante, \u00bfc\u00f3mo crees que difieren las opiniones de los j\u00f3venes de las generaciones mayores en t\u00e9rminos de pol\u00edtica? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a student, how do you think that the opinions of young people differ from those of older generations in terms of politics?\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: Opino que no importa si se vota por un partido de izquierda o de derecha, tanto las generaciones j\u00f3venes como las mayores votan por sus propios intereses hasta cierto punto, pero tambi\u00e9n tienen en cuenta el futuro. Se trata de qui\u00e9n tiene las mejores pol\u00edticas en cada elecci\u00f3n, y creo que j\u00f3venes y mayores pueden estar de acuerdo en esto m\u00e1s de lo que la gente piensa. Por supuesto depende de la mentalidad abierta de un individuo, pero colectivamente, todos buscamos una Espa\u00f1a mejor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: I believe that no matter whether voting for a party on the left or on the right, both younger and older generations vote in their own interests to an extent, but also consider the future. It depends who has the best policies at each election, and I think that young and old can agree on more than people think. Of course it depends on the open-mindedness of an individual, but collectively, we are all searching for a better Spain.\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT- At the last Spanish general election in 2019, over <\/strong>35 million people<\/strong> were eligible to vote, with <\/strong>1 million young people voting for the first time<\/strong>. Many of these new voters were concerned by issues such as <\/strong>Government corruption, climate change, and gender inequality.\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tras el arresto de Pablo Hasel y las protestas que han seguido, \u00bfqu\u00e9 crees que dice esto sobre la libertad de expresi\u00f3n y la actitud hacia su represi\u00f3n en Espa\u00f1a? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following Pablo <\/em>Hasel\u2019s<\/em> arrest, and the subsequent protests, what do you think this says about freedom of expression and the attitude towards its repression in Spain?\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: En mi opini\u00f3n, no s\u00e9 si deber\u00edan haberlo arrestado porque va en contra de sus libertades de expresi\u00f3n, aunque muchas de las cosas que dice son pol\u00e9micas. El problema que hay en Espa\u00f1a es que no se puede decir nada mala en contra del rey o de la Corona, pero es sancionado si lo hace, a pesar de no haber cometido un delito grave como robo o asesinato. Por lo tanto, se puede argumentar que las personas que manifiestan est\u00e1n en contra de calificar ese discurso como ilegal. La ira surge de la percepci\u00f3n que la familia real recibe privilegios que no se merecen, mientras que hay cada vez m\u00e1s desigualdad en Espa\u00f1a. Tambi\u00e9n, si la familia real misma comete un delito, a menudo no se les pedir\u00e1 cuentas.\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: In my opinion, I don\u2019t know whether they should have arrested him as it goes against his freedom of expression, though many things he says are controversial. The problem in Spain is that you can\u2019t say anything bad against the king or the monarchy, and it is punishable if you do, despite not having committed a serious crime such as robbery or murder. Therefore, it can be argued that the protesters are against the branding of such speech as illegal. The anger comes from the perception that the royal family receive privileges they are not deserving of, despite the rising inequalities in Spain. Also, if the royal family themselves commit a crime, they often are not held to account.\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT – Spanish rapper Pablo <\/strong>Hasel<\/strong> was jailed after he <\/strong>tweeted comments slandering the monarchy, state, and police<\/strong>, as well as for <\/strong>exalting terrorism in his lyrics and tweets<\/strong>. For weeks, protests in Spain, often violent, have followed, with many outraged by this perceived violation of free speech.\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Y siguiendo de esto, \u00bfPiensas que la Corona en Espa\u00f1a todav\u00eda es necesaria en el clim\u00e1tico pol\u00edtico de hoy? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And following on from this, do you think that the Spanish monarchy is still necessary in today\u2019s political climate?\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: Pienso que la Corona est\u00e1 pasado de moda, y no la necesitamos hoy en d\u00eda. Est\u00e1 separado del gobierno, as\u00ed que no nos representa. Realmente, no hace nada para la poblaci\u00f3n, y todos los espa\u00f1oles pagan por su casa y su estilo de vida extravagante. Cuando el presidente viaje a los otros pa\u00edses para representarnos, el rey no acompa\u00f1a y rara vez aparece en este tipo de visitas. Tambi\u00e9n, ha habido muchos esc\u00e1ndalos relacionados con la familia y, como resultado, su popularidad ha disminuido considerablemente. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta: I think that the monarchy is old-fashioned, and we don\u2019t need it nowadays. It is separate from the Government, so it doesn\u2019t represent us. Really, it doesn\u2019t do anything for the population, and all Spanish people pay for their home and their extravagant lifestyle. When the president travels to other countries to represent us, the king doesn\u2019t accompany, and rarely appears in these types of visits. Also, there have been lots of scandals related to the family, and as a result, their popularity has significantly decreased.\u202f<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT – According to a recent poll, over <\/strong>40%<\/strong> of Spaniards back a <\/strong>republic<\/strong> and the abolition of the monarchy, following scandals including the <\/strong>departure of former king Juan Carlos <\/strong>abroad. It also found that <\/strong>48% favour a referendum<\/strong> on the monarchy, to let the public have their say.\u202f<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Marta for letting me voice her views on politics in Spain! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adios! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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