U.S., SPANISH EXPERTS DISCUSS SPAIN'S JOURNEY TO DEMOCRACY
USIA
16 September 1998
U.S., SPANISH EXPERTS DISCUSS SPAIN'S JOURNEY TO DEMOCRACY
(NED, Instituto Universitario Ortega y Gasset 9/16 forum) (1010)
By Louise Fenner
USIA Staff Writer
Washington -- Spain's remarkable journey from fascism to democracy was
the subject of a symposium September 16 sponsored by the National
Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the Instituto Universitario Ortega y
Gasset, titled "Managing Pluralism: Twenty Years of Spanish
Democracy."
Carl Gershman, president of the National Endowment for Democracy, and
NED Chairman of the Board John Brademas opened the meeting.
Brademas, a former U.S. congressman, noted that in 1983, as president
of New York University, he bestowed on Spain's King Juan Carlos his
first honorary degree, to pay tribute "to the extraordinary leadership
that the king had given" during Spain's democratic transition. In 1997
the king and queen attended a ceremony at NYU to dedicate the King
Juan Carlos I of Spain Center for the study of modern Spain.
Also opening the seminar were Spain's ambassador to the United States
Antonio Oyarzabal, and Emilio Lamo de Espinosa, professor of sociology
at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid and director of the Ortega y
Gasset Institute.
What happened in Spain following the death of General Francisco Franco
in 1975 was "the opposite of what everyone expected" from a country
that had been under a fascist and authoritarian regime for so many
years, Espinosa said. Now Spain is "a wholly normal European country"
with overwhelming popular support for democracy. "I doubt if there was
a more brilliant and happy period in Spain's modern history than the
last 20 years," he said.
"The Spanish example is totally valid, in that it shows that this can
be done," said Oyarzabal. "We switched from an authoritarian system to
a system where the basic rights of democracy are respected. It can be
done. And I think that the Spanish case has proven that democracy,
with all its shortcomings and problems is still the best system."
Oyarzabal stressed the importance of Spain's integration into "this
family of democratic nations, Europe, the Western world." He recalled
the divisive debates about it: "Now, nobody doubts that this of course
is the normal situation for Spain; where else could we be but in the
European Union and NATO?
"It's amazing to see how things are taken for granted today, but just
a few years ago there was not so much belief that we should belong to
these organizations as the normal aim of a democratic Spain."
Charles Powell, a professor at the Ortega y Gasset Institute and
advisor to the President of the Spanish Parliament, discussed the role
of political institutions in the consolidation of Spain's democracy.
The monarchy is one of the most respected and trusted institutions in
Spain, he said. It is considered to be "not only compatible with, but
necessary to the functioning of the democratic system." The king
played a "crucial role not only in bringing about the restoration of
democracy but also in defending it."
Powell noted that according to the 1978 Constitution, "the king is the
symbol of unity and permanence of the Spanish state...one of the most
important symbolic functions he has played."
He said that "one of the king's major aims during these years has been
to reconcile Spaniards to the notion of a united yet plural,
multicultural and multilingual Spain. This he does, for example, by
using the other official languages of the Spanish state -- Catalan,
Basque, Galician, Valencian and so on -- during his official
visits.... I would argue that as in Belgium, and to some extent as in
Britain, the monarchy has played a crucial role in keeping the country
together."
Additionally, "in symbolic terms, the king has played a very important
role in integrating other minorities -- ethnic and religious
minorities," Powell said. One great achievement of the Constitution
was "the peaceful, friendly separation of church and state." Gestures
such as the Catholic king's "presence at the opening of Madrid's first
synagogue" and his contacts with other religions "have been very
important in encouraging Spanish public opinion to come to terms with
this new multicultural dimension."
In discussing Parliament, Powell said that "what had been a
consensus-seeking model was gradually transformed into a majoritarian
model." The elections of 1993 and 1996 changed the government's
political makeup, "but I would argue that this apparent current
revival of parliament owes more to governmental vulnerability than to
a general revision of parliamentary procedure."
The lesson of Spain, he said, is that "a high concentration of power
in the government and in its parliamentary majority can contribute to
political stability and effective decision-making. However, once
democracy has been consolidated, an excessive concentration of power
may generate certain serious liabilities for democracies.
"What we need today, in order to enhance the quality of the democratic
game, is a dispersion of power, more coordination and less
subordination, and greater flexibility in government-opposition
relations and within the parliamentary majority itself."
As for the judiciary, Powell said opinion polls of the past 10 years
show that it is held in less esteem than other major institutions. "In
a sense, this is unfair and paradoxical because the judicial system
has been overhauled quite dramatically over the last 20 years in order
to bring it into line with the new political system," he said.
"However, Spaniards still perceive it on the whole as being slow,
inefficient and arbitrary." He cited the perception of "a growing
politicalization of the judiciary and the judicialization of
politics.... Today the independence or lack of independence of the
judiciary is central to Spain's political debate."
In a discussion following Powell's remarks, Richard Gunther, professor
of political science at Ohio State University and author of several
books on Spain, observed that two factors contributing to Spain's
successful transition were: "one of the better electoral laws in
existence" and the efforts of the Spanish politicians who worked to
make democracy a reality.
"We would be remiss not to acknowledge the contributions of those
individuals, some of whom are sitting around the table today," Gunther
said.