Roman era cargo has been discovered off a popular tourist beach, bullfighting fans have been hit with a blow and politics has been notably turbulent – discover our expat’s pick of news stories.
Find out the latest news from Spain…
While most people have been following the politics of the local elections in the UK, Spain also has its political issues at the moment. A week or so ago, the President of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced that he would be removing himself from his position for five days to consider whether he should continue in his role following what he termed an “attack on his wife”. A court in Madrid is investigating allegations of corruption made against Begoña Gómez by a right-wing group called “Clean Hands”. The allegations are solely based on newspaper articles.
When the five days had passed, Mr Sánchez announced that he had decided to stay on in politics and would reinforce democracy in his country. Subsequently, he visited Catalonia to support the socialist candidate in the upcoming election on 12 May.
Find homes in Spain via our property portal.
Catalonia votes for a new government
Catalonia is a rich region of more than 7.5 million people with its own language and culture. Many Catalonians desire to separate from Spain, which has been a politically fraught topic for years. It is also a region with a large number of Spanish who have moved there for work and are against independence for Catalonia.
In 2017, the then President of the region, Carles Puigdemont, unilaterally declared independence which immediately provoked a heavy response from the Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, and his government which took over the management of the entire region. Since then support for independence has wavered and it is likely to still be falling.
Why does the May 12 election matter?
Barcelona, Catalonia.
Mr Puigdemont, who has been in exile in Belgium since 2017 is planning to stand for election. He and his party, Junts, are the most vocal and diehard independence party and want total separation from Spain.
Meanwhile, Mr Sánchez and his socialist government have made several moves to defuse the independence movement, mainly by announcing an amnesty for those imprisoned following the illegal declaration of independence in 2017.
The current ruling party of the Generalitat is called Esquerra and they too seek independence for Catalonia but are more willing to talk and convince rather than use confrontation.
So, much for the future of Spain depends on this election. The current polls suggest that the socialist PSOE will be the largest party, though without an overall majority. This inevitably means they will need the support of another party or parties. PSOE are against independence for Catalonia.
Depending on how the election plays out, there could be more or less confrontation between the Generalitat and the Spanish government in Madrid, which would have consequences for the whole of the country.
To some extent, whatever the outcome, the lives of the Spanish and foreigners living in Spain could be affected. Demonstrations, strikes and other civil disturbances might manifest following the result.
Parking politics, discover long-lost treasure and art, and news for bullfighting.
Major bullfighting prize scrapped
The Spanish government announced that it would do away with the €30,000 National Bullfighting prize. This has infuriated the aficionados and delighted the animal rights organisations. The Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, declared “We did not believe it is appropriate to maintain an award that rewards a form of animal abuse.”
Bullfighting has become more and more a focus for Spanish culture disagreement. The leftwing parties are against and the centre-right and right-wing parties have promised to reverse the decision if they form a government.
Treasure discovery near tourist beach
For more than seventeen centuries, the contents of a Roman era trading ship have been the property of the ocean.
In 2019, swimming off the Playa de Palma, a local discovered the cache by chance. Archaeologists have now recovered 300 amphorae, a form of ancient ceramic jar or vase, decorated with more than 100 painted inscriptions, and coins and shoes from the wreck. The wreck is the only one of kind from the Cartagena area, in southeast Spain.
Archaeologists calculate that the ship left Cartagena, now Murcia, headed for Italy, Corscia or one of the Balearic Islands. But a weather change led to the ship becoming wrecked, sinking two and a half metres deep, just 65 metres from the coast. Its fascinating history dates back to 320AD.
Who knows what you will find during your next dip!
Lost and found
A discovered Caravaggio!
At an art auction in 2021, the sale of a painting was stopped because it was believed to be a work of the great Italian painter, Caravaggio. The painting had been lost, or so the experts thought but now it has been authenticated as the original masterpiece, painted between 1605 and 1609.
The Prado Museum in Madrid will put the painting in a special exhibition on 27th May where it will remain until October. It will then be placed as part of the Prado’s permanent collection.
The painting is not allowed out of Spain unless the government permits it.
You might also like:
