King Felipe VI of Spain warned this Saturday that the political and social confrontation and the erosion of institutions pose risks to the union and coexistence of the country, stressing that “division weakens democracies.”
In his Christmas speech to the country, the Spanish monarch called for the “reinforcement” of the institutions, so that they respond to the general interest, in “loyal collaboration and respect for the Constitution and the laws”, and that they assume themselves as an example of integrity, in a veiled reference to an unprecedented crisis that broke out earlier this week between the Constitutional Court, the Government and the two chambers of the Spanish Parliament.
Without referring to any of the institutions in question, Felipe VI encouraged “everyone” to “reflect constructively” on the consequences that institutional erosion can cause, as well as the deterioration of coexistence and confrontation.
“A country or a society that is divided or in conflict does not advance, it does not progress, it does not solve its problems well, it does not generate trust. Division weakens democracies; the union, on the contrary, strengthens them”, stressed the King of Spain.
In line with other Christmas messages, the monarch made a firm defense of the Spanish Constitution, “the fruit of dialogue and understanding” and which represents “the union achieved by the Spaniards as a commitment to the future, diversity and harmony”.
The Spanish Constitutional Court decided this Monday to prevent the debate and vote on an initiative in the Senate, in an unprecedented decision in Spanish democracy to interfere in parliamentary activity.
The decision opened an “unprecedented institutional crisis” in Spanish democracy, according to the president of the Senate, Ander Gil, in a statement after the decision was made public.
The decision was made by the judges of the TC at the request of the Popular Party (PP, right, in opposition) and aimed at a change in the legislation that regulates the election of the judges of the TC itself and of the General Council of the Judiciary.
The PP requested, in an appeal before the TC, a precautionary measure and invoked that the parliamentary procedures had been trampled on by the government parties (socialists and the extreme left platform United We Can), which resorted to mechanisms that would allow the legislature to The changes will be implemented in a few days and without debate in the Congress and the Senate, the two chambers of the Spanish Cortes.
For the PP, deputies and senators were prevented from exercising their rights, which the party considered unconstitutional.
The president of the Senate, Ander Gil, the president of the Congress, Meritxell Batet, and the Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, all of the Socialist Party (PSOE), said that they would abide by the decision of the TC, since they respect the institutions of the rule of law , but they announced that they would challenge it, considering it of the “maximum severity” in conditioning the legislative power and the action of the most direct representatives of popular sovereignty.
For Bolaños, a decision like the one assumed by the TC has never been seen in Spain or in any other European country and “affects the separation of powers.”
The leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, wrote on the social network Twitter that Spanish democracy had been “reinforced” because “in a state of law, all powers are subject to the law.”
The PP’s appeal before the Constitutional Court had the support of other right-wing parties with parliamentary representation, such as Cidadanos and VOX, and the leader of the latter formation, Santiago Abascal, promised to move forward with a motion of no confidence against the Government.
Source: TSF
