17 March 04

Democracy in Action

There is no shortage of opinions about what the results of the Spanish elections mean, but roughly, the right claims that Spain has capitulated to terrorism, while the left holds that there is no connection between Iraq and Al Qaida. One of the most interesting pieces on this I’ve read is Juan Cole’s, who wonders why there has been such a disproportionate level of U.S. military spending on Iraq versus Afghanistan.

Much of the commentary in the Western press which accuses the Spanish of cowardice at the polls strikes me as patronizing at best. The exercise of the vote over the weekend was, exactly, just that: democracy. Democracy means you get to have a choice. The Spanish chose to dump the Partido Popular and a Prime Minister who led them to war against at least 85% of public opinion, probably higher. And those who might otherwise have stayed at home, resigned to the fact that their vote would mean little, were moved to vote.

Posted by at 07:41 PM in Politics | Link |
  1. I agree Pica. I cannot stomach the commentaries accusing Spaniards of cowardice. I thought you might be interested in an editorial from the Sydney Morning herald on the impact the events have been having here. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/03/16/1079199223186.html. The news has been full of debate.

    — Jenny    17. March 2004, 20:38    Link
  2. I must agree with you. I have read some absolute garbage from some US press (in this case Mark Steyn) after the election results in Spain. At best, it shows complete ignorance in the process and anger felt here and who it’s directed at. At worst, it’s self-righteous war-mongering sloganism from someone with complete disregard for the feelings of a nation in mourning. Words like “Spain has dishonoured its dead” are all well and good, but from whose point of view and for whose benefit is Mark Steyn speaking? Statistically speaking, according to the opinion polls, about 175 of the 200 dead would have been against entering Iraq in the first place. How then would pulling Spanish troops out of Iraq, which seems to panic Mr. Steyn most, dishonour them exactly. If the forces in that country were under the auspices of the UN, the Spanish troops would stay. Where the cowardice? The Spanish people voted as they did, not because of cowardice or because they felt an overwhelming pressure to do so from Al Qaida, but because they believed that Aznar and his cronies should no longer be allowed to govern. The Spanish people have always been behind the war against terrorism, but could not quite stomach doing so under false pretences, such as promoted by Messrs. Bush, Blair and Aznar. To add insult to injury, Aznar, knowing that he was up a political creek, tried again to deceive the Spanish people, until the election was over at least, by withholding information on the bombings and pushing the ETA hypothesis, despite all indications that they were not involved, in the European media. As you said, the Spanish people exercised their democratic right. Funnily enough, in so doing have also stated that they do not really care whether from now on the Spanish Omelette will become the Liberty Omelette.


    — Tim    18. March 2004, 01:56    Link
  3. The LIBERTY omlette? Oh no! Another great contribution to world cuisine bites the dust!

    Seriously, what I think is so lacking in the commentary here in the US on this issue is the unwillingness to assume responsibility for the fact that when you go bullying your way around the world, some people are going to be so unhappy about it they’ll be willing not only to kill but to die for it. Then the rest of the world suffers. And the cycle repeats itself.

    What’s so striking about Spain is that it was so OVERWHELMINGLY against participating in the war on Iraq. Zapatero is right to call it a disaster, because that’s exactly what it is, what it was predictably going to become.

    I remember sitting having lunch in December just by the Reina Sofia, not 200 metres from Atocha, when the news of Saddam Hussein’s capture broke. The television played, over and over, the dehumanising images of the dishevelled Hussein, the prize of the Americans.

    Is the world a safer place because of this? Hardly.

    — Pica    18. March 2004, 03:48    Link

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