Em disculpareu que rompi el silenci polític que m’he imposat durant la darrera setmana i mitja. I que ho faci en un dia com avui – de reflexió, de dol i d’impotència. La raó d’aquest trencament és l’editorial que publica avui The Guardian – el diari que compr a Anglaterra. L’editorial que porta per títol An Unconvincing contest val la pena tot i que es deixa coses importants.És un bon exemple de com es veu Espanya des de l’exterior. He traduït un parell de fragments que em semblen interessants. Perdonau si la traducció no és gran cosa i disculpau que faci una entrada un dia que no toca. Tanmateix si no ho feia avui, no ho hauria fet.
“Si Zapatero hagués decidit convocar les eleccions el passat mes d’octubre no hi hauria hagut massa dubtes del resultat. L’economia gaudia d’una dècada de creixement, l’atur disminuïa i la meitat del ciment que s’usava a Europa es consumia a Espanya. Quan el país demà vagi a votar l’estat d’ànim serà molt diferent. L’economia d’alta velocitat espanyola està en dificultats. El país ha d’escollir entre un titular mediocre i un aspirant desacreditat (…)”
“Els dos debats televisius no han ajudat a millorar l’estat d’ànim (…) Era una ‘tribuna’ única pels dos candidats. Tanmateix aquests l’han emprada per discutir sobre gràfics i reproduir un intercanvi parlamentari que va tenir lloc fa quatre anys. Si hi havia una perspectiva més global, una visió més ampla de les coses, aquesta es va perdre pel camí. El debat semblava confirmar la impressió que polítics de segona estan encarregats d’un país amb multinacionals de primera.”
An Inconvincing Contest
Whether that will affect the outcome is unclear. But the unhappy mood has not been helped by two television debates between Mr Zapatero and his conservative challenger, Mariano Rajoy. The live debates, the first in Spain in 15 years, attracted record audiences. Here was a real platform for both men. They used it instead to bicker over wallcharts and engage in a rancorous rerun of a parliamentary exchange that took place four years ago. If there was a bigger picture, a wider vision, it was lost on both men. The debate only seemed to confirm the impression that second-rate politicians are in charge of a country with first-rate multinationals.
Of the two, Mr Rajoy is in the greater political trouble: a poll published in Britain yesterday showed his Popular party lagging behind by 3.8%. His party has not recovered from its mishandling of the Madrid bombings in March 2004, for which it tried to blame Eta. The sudden economic downturn has come as a political lifeline, but he has used it to target voters worried about rising immigration. Unreconstructed neoconservatives are still in charge of a party that has yet to find a moderniser. None of the three most obvious possible leaders, among them Madrid’s mayor, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, are even standing for parliament this time.
Mr Zapatero has failed to fulfil the expectations he inspired four years ago. The two things that have damaged him most are a charter on Catalan autonomy and controversial negotiations with Eta after a ceasefire that was eventually broken. He has been on surer ground with social reform. The legalisation of same-sex marriage and reform of divorce and gender-equality laws put Spain ahead of Scandinavia and enjoy wide support domestically.
He should win an absolute majority, but many in his party expect instead a minority administration dependent on the support of Basque or Catalan regional parties. This will not encourage a bolder second term; nor will it create the quality of political leadership that Spain deserves.
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Me qued amb aquesta frase, sense cap dubte: “The debate only seemed to confirm the impression that second-rate politicians are in charge of a country with first-rate multinationals.”