Madrid, shame on you!

The Spanish police today gave a perfect display of Fascist and cowardly acts befitting the mindset which massacred defenceless Latin Americans and hardened the hearts and minds of millions of people against the country whose contribution to civilization back then was the Inquisition. A shot in the foot?

The sheer stupidity of Madrid was epitomized by Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy whose total absence of emotional intelligence was clear for all to see, as he tried to suppress what was after all an expression of democracy as the Catalan people wanted a referendum on their status as a part of Spain or an independent Republic. After the way Madrid behaved today, sending thugs to commit acts of thievery, vandalism and gratuitous violence, there is a strong possibility that even those who were originally against statehood will have changed their minds.

The President of the Regional Government of Catalunya, Carles Puigdemont, will probably announce a universal declaration of independence in the coming days, if the result of the vote goes in favor of independence.

And after the way the police behaved, kicking old ladies, throwing girls onto the floor, beating people with batons, dragging people along the ground by their hair, it would surprise nobody if the Catalans rise up as an independent nation and wish to get as far away from Madrid as possible.

What utter stupidity from Rajoy. He and Madrid should be ashamed of themselves.

Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey

Pravda.Ru

Twitter: @TimothyBHinchey

[email protected]

*Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey has worked as a correspondent, journalist, deputy editor, editor, chief editor, director, project manager, executive director, partner and owner of printed and online daily, weekly, monthly and yearly publications, TV stations and media groups printed, aired and distributed in Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, East Timor, Guinea-Bissau, Portugal, Mozambique and São Tomé and Principe Isles; the Russian Foreign Ministry publication Dialog and the Cuban Foreign Ministry Official Publications. He has spent the last two decades in humanitarian projects, connecting communities, working to document and catalog disappearing languages, cultures, traditions, working to network with the LGBT communities helping to set up shelters for abused or frightened victims and as Media Partner with UN Women, working to foster the UN Women project to fight against gender violence and to strive for an end to sexism, racism and homophobia. A Vegan, he is also a Media Partner of Humane Society International, fighting for animal rights. He is Director and Chief Editor of the Portuguese version of Pravda.Ru.

Photo: By xenaia - originally posted to Flickr as Manifestació Som Una Nació, Nosaltres Decidim! 13, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10901236