JUST IN: “When Aznar supported the Iraq war, look at what happened to us”
In a major development, the following story has emerged from the international scene.
The former president of the Government José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero burst into the electoral campaign of Castilla y León this Friday with a rally in León in support of the PSOE candidate for the Presidency of the Board, Carlos Martínez, and with a speech in which he mixed party demands, close support for Pedro Sánchez and harsh censorship of the right on account of war and international politics. Received as one of the great assets of Leonese socialism, ‘ZP’, who showed off his characteristic eyebrows in reference to the campaign that led him to the Presidency of the Government, converted a central part of his speech into an amendment to the criticism of the Executive’s position regarding the escalation of war in the Middle East. And he did so by resorting to one of the most traumatic episodes in Spain’s recent history to refute the argument of defending the security of those who support military intervention in Iran by the US and its allies: “Look at how our security was defended when Aznar supported the war in Iraq and what happened to us,” he stated, in a direct reference to the 11-M attacks. Zapatero defended that Pedro Sánchez’s rejection of the war does not weaken Spain, but rather reinforces an idea of a country based on sovereignty, peace and international legality. “You have to be brave and patriotic to tell that president of the United States: no. In Spain Spain rules, in Spain the Government of Spain rules and the sovereignty of Spain is Spain, that is being patriotic,” he proclaimed. Throughout the rally, attendees chanted the then slogan, ‘No to war’, which turned the public event in León into a declaration of support for the position of Pedro Sánchez’s Government in the international conflict. Gaza, Iran and international legality The former president further toughened his speech when addressing the situation in Gaza and the attack on Iran. He did so with an explicit condemnation of Benjamin Netanyahu and with an appeal to the moral responsibility of denouncing the death of civilians. “No to that barbarism, not to that barbarism like the barbarity of Gaza, where more than 20,000 children died, not that barbarity,” he assured. In one of the harshest passages of the rally, he maintained that he “will never” be able to stop denouncing what happened to the Palestinian people. “We will never stop denouncing it nor will we be able to forget it. We will never be able to support a Netanyahu policy. We will always condemn it and criticize it contrary to all principles,” he stated. Zapatero also wanted to dismantle the argument of those who identify the condemnation of war with complacency towards authoritarian regimes. “Of course we don’t like the ayatollahs’ regime, it would just be lacking. Authoritarian. Discriminatory. But are the girls who are dying in schools and civilians to blame?” he asked. Along the same lines, he appealed to a more emotional reflection on the human cost of war. “I would have liked this country to have been bombed when I was 12 years old because there was a dictator. No, I would never have signed because there were girls in schools killed by bombings,” he said. Zapatero also framed this position in a closed defense of international legality and the coherence of the Spanish Government in the face of armed conflicts. “No one can attack a country, no one can use force if it is not with the agreement of the Security Council. Russia did it and the Government condemned it. The United States does it and the Government condemned it out of coherence or principles, out of convictions,” he stated. Attack on the right for its “patriotism” The former president dedicated part of his speech to attacking the right for its position in international politics and its relationship with Vox. “All those on the right, those two rights that exist now, all their lives with Spain, all their lives patriots. And the president of another country was speaking and they all follow behind like chickens. Man, please, what patriotism is that?” he launched. Against this, he contrasted “the patriotism of peace”, “the patriotism of reason” and “the patriotism of dialogue”, while positioning Pedro Sánchez as an uncomfortable leader for the opposition precisely because of that position. “They can’t stand it,” he said, before raising the tone to present the President of the Government as “the reference international leader for the great democrats and progressives of the world.” But his criticism did not stop there. He also portrayed the PP as a formation without its own criteria, subordinated to Vox’s speech on central issues. “Look at the PP, how it follows Vox all day long? For Zapatero, the Popular Party has given up having its own voice. “The Popular Party has to have a project, an identity, a profile and it is not at the mercy of what Vox tells it, which is what it is all day long,” he said. He also downgraded the attempt to turn the election into a plebiscite on Pedro Sánchez and asked to focus the campaign on the Community. “These elections are not against Sánchez nor in favor of Sánchez. These elections are in favor of Castilla y León, with the profile of Castilla y León, for advanced healthcare, for advanced education and for the fight against depopulation. That’s what Carlos Martínez talks about all day,” he said. Pride of socialist militancy Zapatero also appealed to his personal and political link with the PSOE, in a sentimental but firm tone. “I am a member of the Socialist Party of the León Group. Since the year 78. I continue to be a member of the León group. And I will be until my last days, proud and happy to be from the Socialist Party,” he assured. From there, he put together a tight defense of the historical trajectory of the socialists, which he presented as the party that has contributed the most to democracy, the modernization of the country and the expansion of rights. “I feel proud of the party that has done the most for democracy in Spain. Of the party that has always fought for freedoms,” he said. He also highlighted its role in the consolidation of public services and social advances in recent decades. “I am proud of the party that has modernized Spain the most, that has done the most for public health, for public education in favor of people with dependency. “In favor of freedoms and rights, of the equality of men and women, of equality in love,” he stated. He extended that pride in acronyms to the history of the party and its democratic memory. He defended that the PSOE will “never” forget those who suffered Franco’s repression or their families, and he vindicated historical memory from a position that, he said, has known how to combine remembrance, reconciliation and coexistence. “They never asked us for forgiveness. But we have forgiven and we have reconciled,” he said. León, Leónism and vindication of his legacy In a rally held in his province, Zapatero also reserved a relevant section of the intervention to vindicate his own mark in León. And he did so with a striking phrase. “I am going to say with humility, with humility, that what results from the democratic political history in León. The greatest León fan has been Zapatero because he is the one who has done the most for León. The rest are songs,” he stated. He then listed some of the actions that he linked to his years in government, from infrastructure to equipment and projects in the province. He cited the “jobs at Incibe”, the Treatment Center, the airport, the senior center or the Teatro Emperador. “So many investments, 3,000 million,” he summarized. He even took the opportunity to ironically comment on the presence of Alberto Núñez Feijóo in La Bañeza. “Where is he today Feijóo giving a rally in La Bañeza, in the Pérez Alonso theater, I, my Government, also rehabilitated it,” he said, before admitting that the arrival of the AVE to León was “a shared task” between his Executive and that of Mariano Rajoy. His thesis was blunt: “The most Leonese party” is the PSOE, because “Leonesista is whoever does for León, neither songs nor flags are worth whoever does for León.” Immigration, coexistence and rejection of polarization Zapatero also included a defense of immigration as part of the model of a modern and open Spain, in response to the discourse of the right. “I can’t stand those who spend all day using immigration as a weapon of political combat, how sad,” he stated. He recalled that during Franco’s regime Spain did not receive immigrants, but expelled population, and appealed to the memory of those who went to Europe or Latin America in search of work. “During Franco’s regime we did not have immigrants, we had emigrants,” he said. From there, he demanded ethical coherence with those who now arrive in the country. “Coherence, ethics make us treat the people who come to work well, to have a future and dignity,” he said. He also focused on Bierzo to remember the arrival of workers from Cape Verde to the mining industry. Or they have also been and are people with rights, worthy citizens with whom we must embrace, live together,” he stated. In parallel, he made a call to reduce political tension and warned of the risk of “verbal violence”, “insults” and “indignity”, understanding that they deteriorate democratic coexistence and fuel a polarizing dynamic that, in his opinion, should be corrected. He applauds Sánchez’s refusal to spend 5% on defense Beyond international politics, the former president He also campaigned internally and took advantage of the management of the Government of Pedro Sánchez. He assured that the Executive leads “the best economic performance in Europe” and highlighted the employment data, the increase in the minimum wage and the social protection measures. “It leads the highest employment record in the history of Spain,” he stated. interprofessional.” Zapatero also focused on the minimum vital income, on the reduction of job insecurity and housing. As he said, “Pedro Sánchez’s great commitment at this moment” is to continue improving stability in employment, lower salaries and access for young people to a home. Along the same lines, he supported Sánchez’s refusal to accept without nuances greater demands for military spending. “Very good Pedro Sánchez, for having bravely endured and not reaching 5% and saying the 2 is already fine. I do not want to compromise either public health or public education,” he stated. Unqualified support for Carlos Martínez The closing of the speech was reserved for Carlos Martínez, whom Zapatero wanted to elevate as a solvent alternative to govern Castilla y León after 15-M. It was not a protocol support, but a personal and political defense, with praise for his profile and his career. “I have a weakness for Carlos Martínez, I have a weakness for him. Because it has personality. It has identity. He has something that distinguishes him,” he stated to the audience. The former president recalled his time at the head of the Soria City Council and defined him as “a magnificent mayor”, as well as “an exemplary socialist militant.” And he finished his speech with a phrase with a clear electoral and investiture tone: “He has been a magnificent mayor of Soria, an exemplary socialist militant. With ideas and sensitivity. And he will be a magnificent president of Castilla y León.” Zapatero asked to face the campaign with intensity and conveyed full confidence in the PSOE’s options. “This party achieves it when it wants, when it feels it it achieves it,” he proclaimed in León, at a rally with which he not only supported Carlos Martínez, but also tried to nationalize part of the electoral debate, vindicate the socialist legacy and present these regional elections as an opportunity to put Castilla y León “with the pulse of Spain.”
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Source: This article was originally published in another language by El Español – Home and has been translated and adapted for our global English-speaking audience. Read the original article here.