Forty years ago this week, Spain’s democratic constitution was endorsed by a large majority of the electorate in every region except the Basque Country. Vox uses toxic anti-immigrant rhetoric and wants to dismantle the autonomous powers Basques and Catalans already enjoy under the constitution. Though all parties agree the constitution needs change, there seems little hope the consensus achieved 40 years ago can be recovered. The best way to celebrate 40 years of peaceful democracy under the constitution would be for all democratic parties to agree a new minimal framework for the state. The conservative parties in Andalusia could lead the way, by rejecting any alliance with Vox, a movement clearly bent on destroying democracy itself.

Source: The Irish Times December 07, 2018 00:00 UTC