Spain People’s party not to gain vote: Expert

Press TV has conducted an interview with Ramin Vahidzadeh, an expert on Ibero-American affairs in Tehran, to discuss the regional and municipal elections in Spain.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: First of all, how do you interpret the results of these voting in Spain specifically as its grassroots parties are making gains across the country. Do you think that the ruling party is right now reassessing some of its policies?

Vahidzadeh: Well as all the results indicates there is a huge exaggeration and huge miracle in the voting system. We are seeing two new parties, which is Podemos and Ciudadanos that are gaining votes although they are not significant but they are having their goals reached in some places before and ahead of the general elections.

The ruling party right now can see that their policy did not have the effect that they were saying all these years and through all election campaign. The jobless problem, the markets that are slowing down is the main problem and is the main challenge that Mr. [Mariano] Rajoy and his party is facing right now.

They should change their policies but until now they have not done such a thing. They are saying that we are open to dialogue with Catalonia, with all the parties but at last they are saying that we are the unique and the only option for governing the country and they simply ignore all the demands.   

Press TV: Mr. Vahidzadeh, as you have just rightly pointed out, it is the issue of austerities specifically and the economic downturn that Spain is going through. Now people and specifically the government in Greece will also be carefully monitoring how things develop in Spain as far as these voting procedures go.

Do you think that Spain will vote in an anti-austerity party come to general elections because let’s not forget the ruling party did manage to get the most amount of votes despite the results?  

Vahidzadeh: The anti-austerity right now has the vote. The Socialists are anti-austerity, Podemos also, Ciudadanos also. The only party which is in favor of the austerity is the People’s Party.

Right now, from the day after these elections, the main challenge would be how the coalition will be formed in the opposition parties. If the Socialists are going to have a coalition with Podemos or Ciudadanos which all of them until now have said that they are open to a coalition with all the parties and specifically they have said that they are not open to any deal with the People’s Party.

So in the general elections, maybe the People’s Party gain the votes but it will not have the majority, the vast majority it would not have like the last four years. It can have the fifty-fifty point and if coalition between the Socialists and other parties which could be right now Ciudadanos or the Citizens would be forged, then the People’s Party would be a party that would not [be] governing Spain.

Press TV: I had asked this question from our correspondent as well and I would like to get your opinion on this, is that of the question of the Catalonian independence. If an anti-austerity party comes to power in Spain after the general elections, do you think Catalonians will wait for that referendum, will hold off until they see how effective an anti-austerity party can be in power?

Vahidzadeh: Well the issue of Catalonia is very complicated. Mr. Artur Mas is an intelligent politician. Right now he is saying that he will go on and on with his referendum but between the lines he is saying that he is open to dialogue, he is open to have more power in order to suspend his referendum.

It is very difficult to say but as the history had told us, Catalonia is not satisfied being part of Spain. They want their independence and coming in the scene of the politics of some anti-austerity parties is not that important for Catalonia. They are seeking another goal. If this goal is reached with the new government, they can suspend their referendum. They want more power, they want more economical freedom, they want to have external policies and external relations with other countries without the interaction of the central government.

If they could manage somehow these issues, they would suspend their referendum but if not, the referendum will be celebrated and the celebration of the referendum per se is not a significant way for their independence because as we saw in the last referendum, they had the votes but the central government blocked it. And in the other referendum they can manage it somehow, although it is not constitutional but they can crackdown this referendum and have their saying in this matter. So even if the referendum is celebrated, it is very difficult for Catalonia to be independent.    

AHK/KA

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