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COVID Struggle Exposes Spain's Deep Divisions

Graham Keeley

   MADRID, SPAIN - As its coronavirus death rate ebbs,'¯Spain'¯is at last
   easing one of the strictest lockdowns in the world. But analysts fear
   its political polarization will hamper its ability climb back from what
   is expected to be the deepest economic recession since the 1936-39
   civil war.

   Unlike some other European countries, where parties have made visible
   efforts to put aside their differences to fight the virus, in Spain the
   epidemic has only emphasized ideological divisions.

   Conservative opposition parties have unsparingly criticized the
   handling of the crisis by Pedro Sánchez, the Socialist prime minister,
   who heads a minority government. Most recently, they are demanding a
   swifter reopening of the economy than Sanchez is willing to sanction.

   The prime minister has hit back, telling the Spanish parliament:
   "Lifting the state of emergency would be a total, unpardonable
   mistake." He added that billions of dollars in state aid to help
   companies and individuals were available only because of the lockdown
   order.

   When Sánchez this week called for another extension of the lockdown
   until May 24, the parliamentary vote should have been a formality.
   Instead it blew up into a political row, underlining problems which
   will dog the government when the immediate health crisis recedes.

   Pablo Casado, leader of the main opposition conservative People's
   Party, initially threatened to vote against extending the lockdown. He
   said measures designed to contain the spread of the crisis were no
   longer necessary at a time when people were being allowed outside after
   more than two months of confinement.

   "We cannot support extending the state of emergency," Casado told
   Spanish radio Onda Zero this week. "When the prime minister says that
   ... we are in a phase of de-escalation, it does not seem compatible
   with continuing to demand extraordinary measures against the rights and
   freedoms of Spaniards."

   After initially supporting the government, Casado has accused the
   government of recklessly allowing large marches to mark International
   Women's Day on March 8 against the advice of health bodies, for acting
   too slowly and for inconsistencies in releasing data.

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