To the British Community in Spain
A British Overview of Spanish Politics: “Letters From Madrid”
Letter Three: 5th July, 2009
This week, members from the Madrid branch of Conservatives Abroad have been attending Campus FAES held in the beautiful mountain village of Navacerrada in Madrid province. This is the sixth year that José María Aznar’s think tank FAES (Fundación para el análisis y los estudios sociales) has held its summer course, inviting many different prestigious politicians, academics, journalists and writers to participate in round table conferences. The campus consisted of three separate courses focussing on the current world climate of crisis: “Freedom in Times of Crisis”, “Confidence Against the Crisis” and “Challenges and Threats to Liberal Democracy”.
The first course counted with the presence of prestigious international figures like Gianfranco Fini, speaker of the Italian Parliament, Elliot Abrams, member of the US Council on Foreign Relations and specialist on Middle East affairs and Xavier Bertrand the secretary general of Sarkozy´s UMP party. Members of the Venezuelan conservative opposition such as the President of the “Primero Justicia” party Julio Borges, Marcel Granier President of Radio Caracas Television and Yon Goicoechea student opposition leader along with the Chilean conservative candidate Sebastian Piñera spoke of issues concerning South America. John Blundell director general of the London Institute of Economic Affairs and Rt. Hon. Michael Portillo (our branch patron) represented the British voice.
I was particularly impressed by what the Venezuelan opposition leaders said about the sad state of affairs in their country. The Chavez government is majoritarily composed of former soldiers, giving it a marked militaristic character, though no uniforms are worn. A disturbing 90% of judges are politically appointed. The country lives in an atmosphere of brutal democratic regression with an obvious crisis in the party system. “Chavismo”, as it is called, has put the democratic system in Venezuela in real danger with Chavez’s ever-increasing control and manipulation over Venezuelan society in general and, in particular, over the media, with 6 state controlled TV channels to broadcast government propaganda. After listening to the speakers I couldn´t help thinking that we here in western Europe should try to do more to support and help these opposition forces in Venezuela. If we allow democracy to crumble in different parts of the world like Venezuela, Honduras and Latin America in general (not to mention Afghanistan, Iraq, China and Burma, etc) thinking them too far away to matter, we run the real risk of contributing to the weakening of our own democracies in the future. Although Latin America is geographically distant from Europe, we share many common bonds through cultural, historical heritage and especially concerning Spain, language and religion. There are also common shared values such as a belief in the free market and democracy. Let us not forget that the first university to be established in America was in Santo Domingo in 1538.
Europe needs to remember its past ties with the Latin America in order to forge new ones. In the 19th century Britain helped the burgeoning countries to become independent and establish themselves as liberal democracies. During the Second World War, Britain received unconditional support from Brazil and Uruguay in its struggle against Nazi forces in South America. Understandably, Britain has tended to focuss its attention on other parts of the world due to colonies, world wars and the cold war. Twenty years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, now is the moment for our country to once again take an active interest in Latin American affairs, primarily by supporting democratic forces and parties in those countries where they are in real danger such as Venezuela and Cuba. We should also look further into business opportunities to be offered to British companies who have had a token small scale presence compared to the companies from Spain or the United States.
Finally, I would like to mention the special report prepared by FAES about Europe called “Europe: Proposals for Freedom”, presented by José María Aznar and directed by Alberto Carnero and Manuel Herrera. In the introduction, Aznar states very clearly that the future prosperity of Europe is not guaranteed but depends on a number of important factors such as a recognition that the Europe of today exists because of the alliance with the United States, which permitted the defeat of both National Scocialism and Soviet Communism. Aznar also states inequivocably his belief that Europe is based on its nation states, and that the Europe as we know it would not survive an attempt to destroy these historic bases of our identity. Nor should we negate or reject the enormous importance that Europe’s Christian roots have had, because to do this is to contribute to the moral and ethical confusion evermore characteristic of our present day society. This climate of moral and intellectual confusion only serves to weaken us. Europe would be simply inexplicable without an understanding its Christian heritage.
On a similar note, but with reference exclusively to the current economic crisis in Spain, José María Aznar’s recently published book “España puede salir de la crisis” recommends practical solutions for Spain to resolve its current grave economic problems with massive unemployment in order to return to a period of boom and prosperity as Spain enjoyed under both Aznar governments from 1996 until 2004.
Paul Gordon
Honorary Branch Secretary and Acting Media and Registration Officer
Conservatives Abroad Madrid
Letter Two: 28th June, 2009
I am going to start this week´s round up of the Spanish political scene by commenting on the energy policy of Zapatero´s government in general and in particular, the probable closure of the Garoña nuclear power station in Burgos province, in spite of the Nuclear Security Council’s recommendation that Garoña can continue to function normally for a further ten years without any problems. This coming Friday (2nd July), the government seems likely to decide in its weekly cabinet meeting (Consejo de Ministros) to decommission the facility. This will directly affect over 600 families, and is likely to have a tremendous socio-economic impact upon the area. Officially, representatives from the President’s office have commented, to angry workers demonstrating outside the Moncloa Palace in Madrid, that the government is still studying the technical reports and that it is a very difficult decision. The deputy president Teresa Fernández de la Vega has also promised that in the event of its closure no worker would be left unprotected, but understandably the nuclear power station workers do not want any hand outs from the state or empty promises of help. They simply wish to continue working for another 10 years in a nuclear power station which is perfectly viable. What is more, in the past, when other Spanish nuclear power stations have been closed, (Almonacid de Zorita, Guadalajara or Valdecaballeros in Badajoz) many of the generous promises of help have not been forthcoming after their closure.
It is a well known fact that Zapatero´s government is not ideologically favourable to nuclear energy and is trying to introduce alternative sources of energy, such as conventional power stations as well as renewable sources of energy, such as wind and solar energy, to replace nuclear power totally. So the outlook is not a positive one for Spain’s nuclear power sector or for its workers, despite the fact that Spain has to import a large proportion of its energy from abroad. As a result, Spain is dependent upon foreign powers for a vital, strategic commodity. Meanwhile, other European neighbours, such as France and Britain are increasingly aware of the advantages of nuclear power. The majority of Western Europe’s nuclear power stations are now widely recognised as safe. Political criteria should not challenge the influence of common sense, necessity and national interest in the formation of National energy policy.
Continuing with the subject of energy policy, last Friday (26 June) I had the pleasure of attending the public presentation of the Spanish edition of Lord Nigel Lawson´s (former Chancellor of the Exchequer to Margaret Thatcher) book: “An Appeal To Reason” published by the FAES Foundation in the Círculo de Bellas Artes, Madrid, Mr Lawson introduced his book commenting on what he calls the new “religion” of global warming and its political, social and economic consequences upon our societies. First of all, he stated that there are a significant number of climate scientists who do not agree with the hypothesis of global warming being supposedly due to carbon dioxide emissions and those of other greenhouse gases. The facts are disputed. Secondly, he commented on the fact that no country is genuinely willing to bear the economic consequences of employing the proposed reductions in carbon dioxide emissions and that it is for this reason that international agreements are so difficult to obtain and implement. No one wants to restrict their own economic development and living standards, especially in developing countries like China or India. And thirdly, we have now reached a situation where those who speak out against the global warming orthodoxy are automatically discredited. Quite apart from the economic and social issues at hand, Lord Lawson also pointed out that the religion of global warming has implications upon freedom of speech, of thought and for intellectual debate which are undoubtedly, quite alarming. A new inquisition would seem to be upon us.
Political leaders have to be very careful about what they say relating to environmental issues in general and in particular about global warming, as they know that they will be immediately attacked by the media and left wing circles and thereby provoking the loss of an incalculable number of potential votes. No right minded politician nowadays can afford not to be attentive to the powerful global warming and “green” lobby. Effectively, the western democratic tradition of free speech and of intellectual debate backed up by the objective analysis of scientific data is being challenged by a blind and unquestioning acceptance of the global warming paradigm. Like a new secular religion. No-one is permitted to question the established environmental orthodoxy because the very salvation of the entire human race and of the planet is at risk, or so we are told. This automatic rejection and ridicule of opposing beliefs, in itself is of the greatest importance and should make us consider what is happening in our own society. If the scientific evidence in favour of global warming is so obvious then what does anyone need to fear from open objective debate on the subject? The Conservative Party itself has changed its official logo emblem under Cameron´s leadership to a little green tree rather than the olympian torch of old.
Something similar is happening with respect to the use of nuclear power. The left, especially the radical left, are now very much against the use of nuclear power. This has been fashionable on the left since the 1980s. However there are no clear objective scientific reasons to justify such a policy. The use of nuclear power is not 100% perfect, but over the decades, since its first use in Western Europe in the 1950s, there have been very few accidents. There is no pollution, unlike conventional power stations. However, it is has to be recognised that the dumping of radioactive waste is a serious environmental issue. The only thing that I am trying to suggest here is that the national energy policies of our countries should be decided after a proper scientific debate in public, taking into consideration all the related information possible and then rationally deciding what are the best sources of energy for a country to use. The blind rejection of nuclear power for merely political reasons is not good for the national interest of any country and especially for energy dependent countries like Spain. Lord Lawson also remarked upon the inadequacy of wind power and the need for heavy subsidies to support them. Wind turbines do not generate as much electricity as commonly believed. In order to deliver power to the grid, the wind-speed has to fall within a certain margin; it cannot be too fast nor too slow. Conventional power stations remain necessary to make up for the irregular output of wind turbines. Renewable energy sources are heavily subsidised in general and remain expensive. Let us not fall into some Orwellian dictatorship in this matter of global warming and about the use of nuclear power, where the truth or the search for the objective truth based on proven scientific facts is censored, covered up or rejected for politically “correct” reasons of environmental orthodoxy. Freedom of speech and open intellectual debate are two essential pillars of democracy. If we restrict these two basic ingredients of what have helped to create the modern western world, we will be making deeply regressive steps in the course of civilisation, not the progressive measures that the left and green parties will have us believe. .
Paul Gordon
Honorary Branch Secretary and Acting Media and Registration Officer
Conservatives Abroad Madrid
Letter One 21st June, 2009
As this is my first blog letter, I would like introduce myself. I am Paul Gordon, the Honorary branch secretary of the recently established Conservatives Abroad branch in Madrid. My intention is to contribute a weekly blog article giving a British Conservative overview of Spanish politics from Madrid. The weekly blog articles will be titled “Letters from Madrid” with obvious reference to the late Alistair Cook´s famous “Letters from America”. I hope to reach his level of expertise eventually.
The Madrid branch of Conservatives Abroad was formally established on Saturday 6th June, 2009 by Benjamin Harris-Quinney, Leandro Busto and myself at the Palace Hotel Madrid. The Executive Committee members are as follows: Chairman and External Liaison Officer: Ben Harris-Quinney, Deputy Chairman and Acting Publicity Officer: Leandro Busto-Pilbeam, Honorary Secretary and Acting Media and Registration Officer: Paul Gordon (me), Honorary Treasurer and Acting Events Officer: Pierre Shepherd and finally Chairman of Conservative Future Madrid: Paula Gordon. We are also quite fortunate to have the Rt. Hon. Michael Portillo as our Honorary Patron.
Now down to the nitty gritty of the everday political scene. Currently, the biggest news in Spanish politics is the cruel and mindless murder of the Spanish police inspector Eduardo Puelles in Arrigoriaga, in the outskirts of Bilbao, Vizcaya. He was killed by a car bomb, which exploded at 9.05 am last Friday morning (19th June). He was 49 years old and has left a wife and two teenage kids. This seems to be the official response of ETA to the new regional Basque government controlled for the first time by the Spanish Socialist Party supported by the Popular Party. ETA has the audacity to call the present Basque regional government undemocratic when ETA does not know or seem to want to know the meaning of the word democracy.
One thing to my great embarrassment as a Brit, is to see time and time again the BBC refer to this gang of criminal thugs as “the Basque separatist group”. Let´s not beat about the bush; ETA is a full-blooded terrorist organization that has been responsible for hundreds of deaths over the last forty years. I have never been able to understand why the BBC uses this euphemism. I don’t think people in Britain would have been very pleased if the Spanish TV had called the IRA: simply the Irish separatist group, as if we were talking about something like Mahatma Ghandi´s peaceful movement to rid India of British rule. It’s about time the BBC put its house in order and called ETA for what it obviously is. I think most decent British people would agree with me on this point. Our country also knows what it is to suffer at the hands of hardened militant terrorists who selfishly dispose of the lives of other people as if it were there natural right. I grew up in the seventies and eighties with the almost constant images on TV of terrorist bomb attacks related to the ever-present Northern Ireland problem. The British community in Spain should stand firmly beside the Spanish people in support against ETA. We cannot stand back and turn a cold shoulder to the internal affairs of the country where we reside.
Yesterday, the Prince and Princess of Asturias attended the funeral in Bilbao of the dead police inspector accompanied by important members of the Spanish government and other public dignitaries, and an hour before, thousands of people across the Basque country took part in silent street protests against this latest atrocity of ETA. The other day on the news Zapatero said from Brussels that “the full weight of the law” would fall upon the people guilty of this vile act. Let’s sincerely hope that this is in fact the case, as many ETA terrorists in prison serve only a fraction of their jail sentences due to good behaviour and other supposedly mitigating circumstances. Terrorists, like other violent criminals, should serve their full jail sentences once and for all. This is a demand that the majority of Spanish people have expressed time and time again through countless written petitions trying to force politicians to change the law and bow to popular demand on this issue. Unfortunately, politicians seem to have brushed aside this popular voice.
After forty years Spanish people are more than tired of ETA and the atrocities committed. They expect their elected politicians to stand up to these thugs and bring them to justice, not by any politically watered-down sense of justice, but an exemplary one which punishes in accordance with the gravity of their crimes. They should be seen as truly mindless criminals and muderers and not just empty clichés repeated automatically in the immediate aftermath of terrorist atrocities. As we pray for the end of ETA and its crimes let us remember Eduardo Puelles and his family. May he be the last victim on a long list of names.
Paul Gordon.
Honorary Branch Secretary and Acting Media and Registration Officer,
Conservatives Abroad Madrid
