Numerous flags of Spain and Latin American countries, and also some of Israel, as a sign of solidarity after the Hamas attack, adorned Barcelona's Passeig de Gràcia this morning in the March of the Twelfth of October, a national holiday and Hispanic Heritage Day, in where Latin American folkloric associations have also gathered with their colorful traditional costumes.
This year the call has followed the recent demonstration against the amnesty organized by the Catalan Civil Society on October 8, which was massive, and the number of participants has dropped significantly not only compared to last Sunday but also to the same day a year ago .
At 11:30, the time of the start of the march, just a few hundred people had gathered in the center of Passeig de Gràcia, behind a banner with the motto “Freedom of language choice”, from the Habamos Español platform. In another, a little further down, it read: “Enough of concessions”, posted by Espanya i Catalans, Civic Movement. Behind her stood the leaders of Ciudadanos, PP and Vox, the parties that supported the demonstration.
The pasodoble Que viva España, by Manolo Escobar, played over the public address system, among other songs, during the festive journey to Plaza Catalunya, where several tents of parties and constitutionalist entities were waiting with gifts - in the Ciudadanos tent they gave away books by Spanish and Latin American authors. and merchandising to the protesters, who have not been able to fill the space.
The cry of “Puigdemont, to prison!” It has been heard on several occasions among Vox supporters, who have largely capitalized on the march from the back of the rally and behind their own green banner, with the motto "Spanish Pride." “I am Spanish, Spanish, Spanish!” the far-right young people chanted in unison, following the bearer of a megaphone who also invited them to sing the popularized “Let Txapote vote for you.”
Before the start of the march, in front of La Pedrera, those responsible for the political parties spoke to the media to reiterate their opposition to the criminal oblivion of the events of October 2017, the condition that the pro-independence forces with representation in the Congress, ERC and Junts, impose for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez.
On behalf of Vox, Joan Garriga was grateful that there are entities that “do not turn their backs on the Catalans”, in contrast to what, in his opinion, institutions such as the Barcelona City Council and the Generalitat do, which, as he has pointed out, They do not adhere to a festival that is celebrated throughout Spain and that commemorates the discovery of America, in whose “evangelization” many Catalans participated, he recalled.
The leader of Ciudadanos in Catalonia, Carlos Carrizosa, has pointed out that his party represents “the Catalans who feel free and the Spanish without complexes”, which is why on this day he wanted to vindicate the Spanish language and culture. Likewise, he has praised his formation as the one that has introduced the "normal use" of Spanish in Catalan institutions, both in the city councils and in the Parliament, and has criticized the absence of the socialists in the demonstration: “Salvador Illa has "He went to Brussels and makes trouble today," he stated.
Alejandro Fernández, president of the PP of Catalonia, has condemned the attack by Hamas against Israel and has expressed his support for the entities that have promoted this call, which offers the opportunity to express the "pride of being Spanish", because Spain , he said, is “a great nation that has contributed to universal culture.” “All Spaniards must be equal before the law and there cannot be a caste that commits crimes and then ends up being amnestied,” he concluded, in reference to the investiture negotiations.
