SPAIN: Lawsuit against Former King & more – 28th Nov 2024

Buenos días from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Spain Update from the 28th of November twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Spain.

First up, Juan Carlos I, Spain’s former king, faces renewed scrutiny over alleged tax crimes. In late November, prominent judges, prosecutors, and journalists filed a lawsuit accusing him of five crimes between twenty fourteen and twenty eighteen.

The complainants argue that his five million dollar payments to the Spanish treasury in twenty twenty and twenty twenty-one, which were meant to settle tax arrears, should not have halted earlier investigations into the former king's taxation and corruption cases.

Juan Carlos, who abdicated in twenty fourteen due to poor health and heightened public attention, has lived in the United Arab Emirates since twenty twenty amid ongoing financial controversies and this is the latest blow.

Meanwhile, on Monday the 25th, the government announced that from May twenty twenty-five, Spain will implement sweeping reforms allowing undocumented residents of over two years to apply for legal residency without fear of penalties. New measures aim to regulate nearly one million undocumented residents over three years, granting around 300,000 people legal status each year.

Key measures include enabling applicants with family, economic, or social ties to Spain to qualify. New rules simplify family reunifications, even for unmarried couples, and allow foreign students to work. Elderly relatives of Spanish citizens will also gain streamlined residency pathways.

Over to Barcelona in the northeast, where on Saturday the 23rd, around 22,000 people staged a protest demanding lower rental prices and improved living conditions.

Demonstrators chanted against soaring rents, which have risen nearly 70% since twenty fourteen, fueled by gentrification and the proliferation of short-term tourist rentals.

Smaller protests also went ahead across Catalunya, Burgos in the north, Asturias in the northwest, and Jerez de la Frontera in the south. A spokeswoman for the tenants' union of Catalunya emphasized the strain on wages, saying, “We are spending half our wages on rent.”

Speaking of protests, on Wednesday the 27th, the worker's communion CCOO and national trade union CGT called thousands of public bus drivers to strike. The protest began on Thursday the 28th and is planned until the 9th of December — and then from the 23rd of December onwards if nothing changes.

The sector is striking mainly to demand better early retirement conditions and is asking for the government to lower the retirement age, as well as eliminate pension reductions, should someone take their retirement money earlier than the legal pension age.

Heading south to Andalusia, where Hortyfruta, a Spanish association that promotes fresh produce, has issued a yellow alert for vegetables like cucumbers and zucchini due to unstable market conditions caused by overproduction and changing weather.

According to Hortyfruta, long Dutch cucumbers face a critical situation, with production up 10% compared to normal levels, driven by unusually warm November temperatures and surplus stock from northern Europe.

Hortyfruta warned it might enforce rules limiting lower-quality produce in markets, prioritizing premium categories to stabilize prices.

Starting on Monday the 2nd of December, Spain will implement strict new regulations requiring hotels and tourism businesses to collect detailed personal information from tourists, including family relationships, bank card details, and home addresses.

Fernando Grande-Marlaska, Spain's Interior Minister, announced the implementation of this new law on Tuesday the 26th. Still, the decision has sparked worldwide uproar, with many news outlets labelling it as Big Brother-esque.

Hoteliers are also upset. The hotelier association CEHAT has slammed the law as intrusive and incompatible with EU privacy rules, even launching legal action against the government.

In more tourism updates, on Friday the 22nd, Spain's Consumer Rights Ministry fined five budget airlines over 188 million dollars for charging passengers extra for hand luggage and seat reservations.

Of all the low-cost airlines, Ryanair received the largest fine of 113 million dollars, followed by Vueling, easyJet, Norwegian Airlines, and Volotea.

The ministry first announced the fines in May, but has followed through this month after rejecting airline appeals. It also banned the fees in question, saying they were violations of consumer rights.

Ryanair and easyJet vowed to challenge the penalties in court, arguing their policies align with EU regulations. The fines are the largest of their kind in Spain's history and have followed a six-year investigation into transparency issues in the budget airline sector.

In wildlife news, on Friday the 22nd, a study published in the Conservation Science and Practice Journal advised against introducing European bison to Spain, citing ecological, legal, and ethical concerns.

Carlos Nores, a zoology professor at the University of Oviedo in northern Spain, leads the study, which challenges previous statements that the species can restore habitats, mitigate climate change, or prevent forest fires. The study argues that the evidence does not support these benefits.

The researchers note that European bison never naturally inhabited Spain and would struggle to survive in its hot, arid climate, requiring human support. Existing populations in Sierra de Andújar in the south, Extremadura in the west, and Castilla-La Mancha in the center face high mortality due to extreme summer temperatures exceeding 104 Fahrenheit or forty degrees Celsius.

Michał Chełkowski, a Polish angler, has made headlines by catching a massive 105-inch (over 2,6 meters) catfish weighing over 280 pounds (around 120 Kilos) in Spain’s Ebro River in the northeast.

After measuring and photographing the catfish, Chełkowski released it back into the river. While his catch surpasses the Polish record of 101 inches (2,5 meters) set in twenty seventeen, it won’t qualify for recognition as it was caught abroad.

Chełkowski, undeterred, aims to break bigger records, though the current world record of 112 inches (around 2,8 meters), set in May twenty twenty-three by Italian angler Alessandro Biancardi, still stands.

Have you ever held a hyper-realistic baby? Well, this past weekend on Saturday the 23rd and Sunday the 24th, thousands gathered at La Feria Bebé Reborn in Madrid to see and purchase super real reborn dolls, replicas of newborns crafted from silicone and vinyl.

The event featured seventy vendors offering complete dolls, parts, and accessories, with prices ranging from one hundred dollars for small dolls to 3,600 dollars for lifelike models with crying and laughing sound systems.

Now, let’s head to the village of Brihuega, in Castilla-La Mancha, central Spain, for a less celebrated hidden gem: an eight-kilometer (around four miles) labyrinth of caves from the 10th and 11th centuries. The caves showcase ancient storage jars and remnants of Moorish history.

The village is known for its lavender fields, located beneath the main Plaza del Coso, which many post on Instagram.

It’s just under a month until Christmas, but Barcelona’s festive season is in full swing with the return of the illuminated spectacle of The Lights of Saint Paul or Els Llums de Sant Pau, in Catalan.

This event transforms the modernist Sant Pau hospital complex into a magical display of over twenty light installations. The fourth edition of this light display opened on the 21st of November and is set to run until the 12th of January.

Let’s close this edition with more festive cheer as Spain has some delicious and festively unique treats that are a must-try! Roasted chestnuts, sold by street vendors in cities across the country, are a great winter snack.

If chestnuts aren’t your thing, then maybe go for something sweet with one of many Spanish Christmas sweets. In the south, Murcia’s Cordiales, little almond cakes, are particularly good. Turrón is also a popular gift with endless flavor combinations and is typically made from a base of honey, almonds, and egg whites.

Lesser-known dishes like Catalunya’s Escudella soup in the northeast, and Castile-La Mancha’s Garlic soup in the center of Spain and the Balearic Islands cream of almonds soup just off the eastern coast are also very good!

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

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¡Hasta la próxima!