|
News, December 2007Interruption at Pray4SpainHappy Christmas! We will be away over the Christmas holiday and hope you are also able to enjoy the blessings of time to relax and ponder the wonders of the Incarnation, take stock of events and achievements and look forward to the Lord working wonders in the new Year. more >> News from the Churches Arriving at the Congress December 19th, general news roundup.47 linked to ETA jailed for political activity - sentence interrupted as defendants sing illegal anthem BBC report; politicians sign first 'pact against poverty' in Spain's history; EU ministers agree cuts in vineyards, but not yet compulsory; 280,000 falsified articles of clothing and the like found by police in warehouse near Madrid as Christmas shopping rush reaches peak; most of Spain now eagerly awaiting Christmas lottery draw (on 22nd); stormy weather cuts ferry link to North Africa in Straits; fishermen reluctantly accept slight cuts in quota and fishing days; 18th: Gaddafi visits Spain; first cold snap of winter closes 4 passes - most people enjoying the snow; canon on digital supports from mid-January; 9 tonnes of hachish found by police in south en route for Britain; Spanish plane in Chad Arche de Zoe child kidnap case remains held as 'proof' in court case -prosecutor wants it confiscated; 17th: ETA bombs again in Basque Country - magistrates court destroyed NYT report; 7 more doctors arrested in Barcelona abortion clincs case (some 100,000 abortions -half foreigners- take place every year, 97% for 'psychological reasons'); 63 arrested in child porn raids BBC report; finance minister Solbes claims part of inflation down to poor Euro adoption BBC report; 15th: 25th anniversary of opening of Gibraltar fence original BBC report; new ETA threats rejected by all parties; national front created in Morocco for the recovery of Ceuta and Melilla (Spanish enclaves on Moroccan coast); 14th: Inflation confirmed at 4.1%, requiring heavy salary and pension rises for next year; Bank of Spain says while debt is very high, it is just 10% of domestic wealth; ex premier Felipe González to head EU think tank on future. more >> Sport roundup, 29th NovemberSorry, no updates in December. Champions: Sevilla beat Gunners, Barcelona drew, Madrid and Valencia lost; Spain wins European indoor football championship again; Benitez has days numbered at Liverpool; Shanghai Masters -Ferrer loses to Federer in final; Spain beat Sweden 3-0; Jorge Lorenzo World Champion of Bikes 250; Joventut leads ACB league; Madrid heads Primera. For more, read on! more >> Costa Brava Funeral reportOn November 21st we reported on the tragic death of a British holidaymaker and his son off cliffs, while watching stormy waves on the Costa Brava. The email came as a reply to news of the peaceful death of a (96 year old) Mathieson aunt: more >> King walks out as Venezuela's Chavez attacks Spain.13 November. The Iberoameican Congress in Santiago last week came to a sad end when King Juan Carlos walked out after Venezuela's president Chavez attacked former president Aznar as being a fascist. Spain is now attempting to defuse the tension. Chavez claimed on Sunday that the accusations had to do with Spain's apparent support for an attempted coup against him in 2002. more >> Madrid bomb trial ends - 3 life sentences, several absolved31 October. The long-awaited conclusion to the Madrid bombings trial has finally arrived. After six long months, the judges concluded that the bombings on 11th March, 2004 which killed 191 and wounded another 1850, were the work of an islamic group. There was no involvement of the Basque terrorist band, ETA, but rather all the explosive was stolen from a mine in Asturias by Emilio Suárez Trashorras. Otman El Gnaoui was also condemned for his part in supplying the eventual killers. The only survivor of the killers who has been identified is Jamal Zougam. All three got long life sentences. more >> Socialists consider revision of Vatican agreements and Religious Freedom law in 2008 election manifesto23rd October. The Socialist party (PSOE) is considering including the revision of the 1979 Concordat agreement between Spain and the Vatican, as well as the 1980 Religious Freedom Law in their 2008 general election manifesto. The Socialists are again moving towards a more 'lay' state, in which any religious expression is effectively sidelined. The PSOE is especially concerned that the Roman Catholic Church has excessive privileges in an increasingly 'plural' nation in terms of religious belief. more >> Catalan infrastructure crumbling.August... October. In 1992, at the opening of the Olympics, Barcelona could boast Spain's best urban infrastructure. Now it is believed it would not be granted the games on the present record. Every day trains are delayed or cancelled - including services to and from the airport, long jams occur at toll gates on the motorways out of town and in August an electricity substation fire blacked out much of the city for several days. Local politicians blame the central governments of the past 15 years for hardly spending a cent on Catalan infrastructure since the Games. more >> News theme: Basque politics and ETASpain's peripheral regions, particularly Catalonia and the Basque Country, have never felt fully part of 'Spain'. History and language have parts to play in this situation. The result is that these regions have long desired high levels of autonomy or even independence. In the Basque Country, the existence of ETA, a terrorist organisation with a pseudo left-wing nationalist agenda, has forced all parties to consider the independence issue seriously. ETA started during the Franco dictatorship, but has resolutely refused to die before achieving its objectives, themselves more confused with the passing of time. Ceasefires and bombing campaigns have succeeded each other over the years. Meanwhile, democratic parties have taken their own positions on independence, with the governing centre-right Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), under the presidency of Lehendakari (regional president) Ibarretxe, leading the search for an agreed independence or high level of autonomy. more >> News Theme, The immigration crisis Desperation (AFP) News Theme, Autumn in Spain and the WeatherDuring August, the main news concerning the weather tends to be the extreme heat and forest fires, causing loss of life as well as much damage to property. In September the main topic turns to late summer storms. But the most widely feared autumnal phenomenon is known as the 'Gota Fría'. more >> More NewsA few more news items and where to find more news about Spain:more >> |