By Cynthia Goldman

Spanish newspapers have been all a buzz reporting the new change in Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s government. This is the first time in Spanish history where women outnumber men in governmental positions.

The new numbers show how far Spain has gone in the past 29 years since the conservative dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, in which a man had a legal right to “discipline” his wife by beating her and holding hands in public was prohibited.

The general public, especially women’s groups, are happy with the current change in hopes that Zapatero will pass a broad legislative package to combat domestic violence. The issue has gained attention since newspapers reported the rising statistics of women being killed or attacked by abusive partners. In fact, following terrorism, unemployment and crime, abuse against women is ranked as one of the country’s most serious problems.

While many have commended Spanish efforts for a gender-equal government, similar to that of Nordic countries like Sweden, Italy’s new Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi scuffed at the Spanish cabinet for being “too pink”.

Berlusconi, who was recently re-elected, was quoted earlier saying, “Zapatero has formed a government that is too pink, (something) which we cannot do in Italy because there is a prevalence of men in politics and it isn’t easy to find women who are qualified for government.”

At a news conference, Spanish daily El Pais cited Berlusconi joking, “He’ll have problems leading them” and “Now he’s asked for it.”

In response to the conservative Italian’s jokes and comments, Elena Valenciano, the Socialist Party’s secretary for international relations said, “In Italy, as in Spain, there are enough women sufficiently qualified, intelligent and capable of being ministers or occupying other government posts.”

She also said that Berlusconi should respect the decisions of prime ministers of other countries and follow Zapatero’s example because “it would benefit politics and society in Italy.”

Besides fighting domestic violence, these progressive measures are expected to facilitate divorce proceedings, legalize abortion and educational and awareness programs, including classes on gender equality for schoolchildren.

This news is wonderful to hear since I’ve been living in Spain for almost four months now and have realized how different Spanish and American ideals are. Growing up, I was told women and men are equal. Now that I’m entering the workforce soon, I know that that idea may or may not be the overall consensus in regards to employment and salaries. Nevertheless, the United States prides itself on fighting for gender equality. But it’s a relief to hear that such conservative countries such as Spain are striving for a gender-equal environment as well. I think that although the Italian prime minister spoke negatively about the reform, it won’t be long for other European countries to follow suit. Overall, everyone will be affected by this in a positive way!

Carla Vázquez Jones

La campaña electoral ha sido larga, intensa y luchada, pero el pasado domingo la calle Ferraz, ubicación de la sede del Partido Socialista Obrero Español, fue centro de celebración tras recibir los resultados de las votaciones. Los seguidores socialistas gritaron a coro “La niña de Rajoy es socialista”, metáfora que utilizó éste al final de los dos debates que fueron televisados por RTVE. Los dos debates que se produjeron fueron tan esperados como las del 1993 entre González y Aznar. Aunque ni Zapatero ni Rajoy estuvieron a la altura de Aznar en su día.

Los españoles han concedido una segunda legislatura al actual presidente José Luís Rodríguez Zapatero. Sin embargo, el PSOE no ha obtenido la mayoría absoluta lo cual significa que deberá formar una coalición para poder gobernar. Zapatero declaró que “va a gobernar para todos, pero pensando antes que en nadie en los que no tienen de todo”.

La campaña se cerró de forma imprevista y similar a la del 2004, en sentido trágico, con el asesinato de Isaías Carrasco a manos de ETA. Tanto el PSOE como el resto de los partidos dieron por finalizada su campaña por respeto al ex concejal socialista. Durante su entierro, la hija que presenció la muerte de su padre hizo un llamamiento a los españoles para que acudieran a las urnas el domingo 9 de marzo de 2008.

El bipartidismo español ha sentido un mínimo crecimiento en votos, mientras que el resto de partidos han sentido un cambio de escaños bastante violento comparado a las últimas elecciones. Por un lado, IU y ERC han perdido 8 escaños en conjunto. Ello ha contribuido a la próxima renuncia del cargo de coordinación de Izquierda Unida de Llamazares al conseguir el peor resultado de su historia con una obtención de solo 2 escaños. Por otro lado, el nuevo partido liderado por Rosa Diez, exsocialista, ha conseguido un escaño en el Congreso de Diputados. Se despidió de dicho partido para fundar UPyD (Unión Progreso y Democracia) junto con el filósofo Fernando Savater en agosto de 2007.

Con esta segunda derrota del Partido Popular con Mariano Rajoy al frente, puede que suceda una próxima renuncia de su presidencia. El único mérito del PP es que ha obtenido más votos nuevos que el PSOE, pero no los suficientes para el triunfo para entrar en La Moncloa.

by Maja Gojkovic

11.7 million tuned in to a live and televised debate to see the Prime Minister Zapatero and his opposition, Mariano Rajoy, battle it out, in their last opportunity to air their opionons and policies ahead of the elections on 9 March. 

According to the newspapers, the debate was a clear win for the prime minister and also according to the polls, as he came top in four opinion polls after the debate last night. Another poll for the TV station Cuatro gave Mr Zapatero 50.8%, against 29% for Popular Party leader Mariano Rajoy.

The debate, yet again, was heated, as the two called each other liars in angry exchanges on the economy and terrorism. Mr Rajoy accused the government of weakness on the issue of immigration; Zapatero defended and responded to this by saying that immigrants were a contribution to the Spanish Society.

 Mr Rajoy continued to use immigration as his main line of attack, saying that, “Uncontrolled immigration is a danger, and some Spaniards may feel that they are negatively affected - when they try to access to healthcare or housing, or find a place in school for their children. Your policy has been weak.”

The prime minister pointed out the partnership agreements with African governments that had helped reduce the flow of illegal immigrants, he also explained that foreigners residing legally in Spain were net contributors to social security and had helped stimulate the economy.

Recent figures show that Spain accounts for well over a third of all net immigration into the European Union.

Another poll for La Sexta television put Mr Zapatero on 49.2% and his rival on 29.8%, with 21% calling it a draw.  The most recent opinion polls before Monday gave Mr Zapatero’s Socialists a lead of about 4% over the conservative PP.

Elections will take place on 9 March.