[lg policy] Rajoy goes on the offensive in Alicante

[Harold Schiffman]

 Rajoy goes on the offensive in Alicante
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@leadernewspaper <http://www.theleader.info/author/theleader/>
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07/05/2018
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<http://www.theleader.info/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/DcbnU4wX4AAHkWt.jpg>Rajoy
goes on the offensive in Alicante

Despite the problems faced by Spain’s ruling conservatives in Madrid
following the resignation of the regional premier Cristina Cifuentes over a
scandal involving a dubious master’s degree and a shoplifting incident
caught on security camera, Prime Minister Rayoy gave a muscular performance
in Alicante on Saturday.

At a packed meeting of almost 1600 party faithful, which took place in the
Provincial Auditorium of Alicante (ADDA), the Prime Minister launched an
offensive against the linguistic policy of the Consell, as he opened the
the electoral battle in the race toward the municipal and regional
elections next year.

He said that one major issue was the fundamental reason for organising the
event in Alicante, a city that he hadn’t visited for over five years, that
he wanted to give his backing to the new mayor of the city, Luis Barcala,
and at the same time provide his support to the electoral axis on which the
campaign of the PP in the province will pivot: the attack on the
educational policy of the Consell, as it continues both to stir up the
linguistic conflict and compare the situation of the Community with that of
Catalonia.

The rally, which started with a tribute to the victims of ETA after the
dissolution of the terrorist organisation, completely filled the ADDA and
provided the local party an opportunity to take what will be the official
photo of the PP in Alicante during the elections next year, where Mariano
Rajoy was flanked by the two candidates for the presidency of the
Generalitat and the office of the Alicante Mayor, the autonomic president
of the PP, Isabel Bonig, and the new city mayor, Luis Barcala.

In his speech, Rajoy announced that his government will raise an
unconstitutionality appeal against the new Plurilingualism Law of the
Generalitat, the mandatory introduction of the Valencian language into
government and education, if there is no agreement with the bilateral
commission, which has already been convened.

The announcement, which opens another front between the Consell and the
Government, was supported by Isabel Bonig, who said in her speech that
those who govern the Community “want to confront and divide our society” in
a clear reference to the politics of the Conseller of Education, Vicent
Marzá, of Compromís.

Rajoy said “This government will consider the unconstitutionality of the
Law if it does not respect the legality and the right of parents to choose
a school and a language for the education of their children. We want to
talk before resorting to the legal process, but nobody should be deceived.”
He said that the Government does not intend to accept neither impositions
nor discriminations,” because Castilian and Valencian are co-official
languages.

“The last thing that the Valencian Community needs is to follow the example
of division, confrontation and the creation of problems that cause so many
difficulties for the Catalans,” he added. “Because that is what the
governments of change do, govern a little and divide a lot and, they also
create many more problems for the people.”

He added that the new leader and councillors have been “exemplary” in their
management and “demonstrate in Alicante that efficiency is a reason to vote
for our party. We trust in you and we are going to win control of this city
with a majority,” he said, ratifying Barcala’s candidacy.

Without mentioning any of the ongoing corruption cases that plague the PP
in the Community and elsewhere, Rajoy did talk about the projects already
announced during his visit to El Altet airport, the linking of Alicante
with Murcia and Andalusia and the AVE to Castellón. He said that these
works in the Mediterranean Corridor are currently “the most important
projects in Spain.”


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 Harold F. Schiffman

Professor Emeritus of
 Dravidian Linguistics and Culture
Dept. of South Asia Studies
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305

Phone:  (215) 898-7475
Fax:  (215) 573-2138

Email:  haroldfs at gmail.com
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/

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