Russian Funds & more –14th Dec 2023

Buenos días from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Spain Update from the 14th of December twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Spain.

After months of debate, on Tuesday the 12th, the EU Commission headed by Spain unveiled a proposal to use the profits derived from the frozen Russian central bank reserve funds. These assets were frozen in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and mostly affected Euroclear, a Belgium-based financial services company holding about 191 billion euros in Russian sovereign assets.

The EU can't give the money to Ukraine as it legally belongs to Russia. However, Brussels believes that it can tax the profits that the money generated by sitting there and use that to help Ukraine. Still, the proposals need backing from the twenty-seven EU countries to pass, and France, in particular, is extremely worried about Russia's response.

Continuing with the Russian sanctions….

Earlier this year, EU leaders announced that it was better to reinforce sanctions against Russia rather than pass new ones. However, how successful have they been? Well, not very.

A report coordinated by a Dutch investigative platform called Follow the Money has revealed that sanctions against Russia have been ignored in football.

The investigative report, of course named "Offside Deals," revealed that despite EU sanctions on Russian entities due to the invasion of Ukraine, Russian football clubs have sold players to twenty-eight European football teams, exceeding 300 million euros.

Some notable clubs involved include Real Sociedad in San Sebastian and Italian teams in Turin and Bologna, which bought players from FC Dinamo Moscow, owned by the sanctioned VTB Bank.

Next, Vox leader Santiago Abascal, known for his provocative remarks, fueled more controversy during a trip to Argentina this week.

He visited Buenos Aires because Javier Milei, the Argentinian president, personally invited the Vox leader to his inauguration.

While there, Abascal held meetings with Milei, Viktor Orbán, the Prime Minister of Hungary, and Eduardo Bolsonaro, a Brazilian politician. In an exclusive interview with Clarín, one of the largest daily newspapers in Argentina, Abascal criticized Pedro Sanchez, the Spanish president, saying, "Sanchez lacks principles," adding that there will be a time when people will want to "hang him by his feet'' and "hold him accountable."

Abascal's comments about holding Sanchez accountable didn't trigger the outrage. Instead, it was the explicit remarks alluding to "hanging him" that provoked anger from fellow politicians and the general public. Partido Popular or PP, Vox's closest ally in parliament, has remained silent on Abascal’s comments.

Here is the latest update on amnesty agreements.

On Tuesday the 12th, Congress began the process for the amnesty law thanks to the alliance between the central Government and independent parties.

Still, this doesn't mean the grace measures for convicted Catalan ministers and people involved in the twenty seventeen Catalan referendum will be put in place immediately. On the contrary, they will be discussed in Congress at length. There could be more delay once it goes through Congress, as the PP has a majority in the Senate and could delay the implementation of the amnesty for up to two months.

Speaking of delays, former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont has accused the Spanish government of breaking its commitment to grant official status in the Council of the European Union to Catalan, Galician, and Basque languages during the Spanish presidency of the EU.

This promise was part of the agreement between the PSOE and pro-independence parties for Pedro Sánchez's inauguration as Spanish president. However, the official status, estimated to cost 123 million for the three languages, is currently awaiting a legal report from the Spanish government-- which will now have to be granted by Belgium as they take over the EU presidency from Spain going into January twenty twenty-four.

Meanwhile, a proposal in the U.N. COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai underwent two revisions this week due to backlash.

On Wednesday the 13th, almost 200 countries comprising COP28 endorsed a revised plan, outlining the phaseout of fossil fuels by twenty fifty, unlike the initial proposal from Monday the 11th, which suggested a reduction rather than a replacement of fossil fuels.

Last week's PISA results shocked many countries. It showed that worldwide educational competency in math, science, and reading was generally lower in twenty twenty-two compared to twenty eighteen.

An analysis by EsadeEcPol and Save the Children revealed that in Spain, economic and gender inequality could worsen this lack of competency.

According to the most recent PISA report, for the most part, Spain demonstrates higher educational equity than the average of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development or OECD and EU countries.

However, disparities persist, especially in grade repetition. The report reveals that the poorest students, with families in the lowest 25% income bracket, are almost three times more likely to repeat than those in the top 25% bracket.

Gender also played a role in the PISA results, with boys repeating twice as often as girls with similar academic performance. The report attributes the gender gap to students’ behavior, attitude, and teacher bias. Spain also stands out for having the fourth-highest percentage of students repeating grades at almost 22%, though this figure has decreased by seven points since the twenty eighteen PISA edition.

Now let's head to the southern tip of Spain, where UK and Spanish relations are currently hinged on the use of an airport.

Jose Manuel Albares, Spain's foreign minister, stated that a post-Brexit deal on Gibraltar has boiled down to an agreement concerning Spanish citizens' use of its airport.

The status of Gibraltar, a British territory, has been especially contentious since the twenty sixteen Brexit vote. Spain proposed a deal to the UK featuring free movement, border removal, and airport use but an agreement hasn’t been reached yet.

The festive season is well and truly upon us, and for major cities across Spain, that means a huge emphasis on festive lighting.

Catalunya's capital, Barcelona, is a shining example of this, especially on Passeig de Gracia, its famous shopping street that millions of tourists flock to each year.

However, since its opening on Thursday, the 23rd of November, the lights have led to some reckless behavior, with people walking into the road and putting themselves in danger to grab a quick picture.

In response, the Urban Guard has increased its presence, patrolling on motorcycles and cars to warn off people trying to grab selfies in open traffic.

As great as that picture may be, it's best to stay out of oncoming traffic!

Speaking of the winter holidays. Here is a short roundup of some traditions across the Peninsula.

Galicia upholds its unique Christmas traditions, including carol singing by young people, featuring traditional Galician songs known as "panxoliñas," accompanied by tambourines and bagpipes. Another ancient tradition involves burning a large wooden log on Christmas Eve for good luck. Afterward, a new log is partially burned and preserved for the next year to guarantee a year of good fortune.

In the Basque country, they celebrate Santo Tomás Day on the 21st of December with local food markets, a tradition that dates back to when farmers would bring their winter produce to market and pay their rent. And if you're looking for Father Christmas in the autonomous region, keep an eye out for a traditional peasant character called Olentzero. Instead of riding on a sleigh, Olentzero is a simple character who, according to Basque tradition, came down from the mountains on foot on the 24th of December to drop off presents.

Want to know more about the Basque Father Christmas? Link in show notes.

Aaand that's it for this week! So here's to a bit of holiday spirit. We wanted to thank you for listening, learning, thinking, and for joining us on this new thing called Rorshok we're all doing together. Really. Thank you.

¡Hasta la próxima!