The six political parties —PSOE, Unidas Podemos, ERC, PNV, Junts and EH Bildu— that have been working for more than a year and a half to change the Citizen Security law, consider the reform for dead. The question now is when to bury it: if this same Tuesday in the Interior Commission, as everything seems to indicate; or in a couple of weeks in the plenary session of Congress, if today the vote on the paper prospers after an unlikely last-minute agreement.
The prohibition of rubber balls as riot control material and the immediate return of immigrants have cracked the conglomerate of parliamentary partners who came together to repeal one of the laws that caused the greatest social rejection during the absolute majority of the Popular Party.
The attempt to remove the gag from the Citizen Security law had not gone so far since it was approved by the popular roller eight years ago. After almost fifty meetings between the groups that promoted the reform —on a text originally from the PNV— it has been agreed to retouch 36 of the 54 articles that the law has and incorporate almost a dozen additional provisions. All with a clear spirit, according to parliamentary sources: change the paradigm of a law that contemplates "excessive protection" for agents to move to a model that aims to "protect citizens more."
Different sources from the parties involved agree that this reform is, without a doubt, the most complicated of the entire legislature. The groups started from very distant positions on nuclear aspects of the law. For this reason, what at first was intended to be a repeal mutated into an attempt at reform. But with a peculiar working method. The parties have been meeting discreetly, outside the presentation, to advance on the points where they most converged but without addressing, until the end, the four most controversial aspects: rubber balls, lack of respect for the agents , fines for disobedience and rejections at the border. And at this point a huge crack opened between the formations.
On one side, the partners of the coalition government together with the PNV. These three parties are in favor of approving the reform with the points agreed so far. Sources from the socialist group consider that they have been "excessively generous" in the negotiations during these months. And they regret that everything agreed remains on wet paper. And it is not little. The text of the reform contemplates that spontaneous demonstrations "in the event of events that require immediate public expression" would not be punishable. Protests that cause "serious disturbance" in front of the Congress of Deputies would cease to be a serious offence. The taking and dissemination of images of the agents during their performances would not be sanctioned. There would be reductions in the fines linked to the minimum interprofessional salary of the offender. Or the maximum time to identify in police stations would go from six to two hours.
Last Tuesday, after PSOE and Unidas Podemos —which control the Table and therefore parliamentary time— decided to convene the Interior Commission to vote on the opinion without having the agreement tied up, the parties met in the last attempt to bring positions closer . Nothing is further from reality. The reproaches flooded the appointment in which, according to eye sources, there were moments of great tension. ERC, which months before had already presented a document with 11 minimum requirements, entrusted everything to two assignments: that the reform explicitly include the prohibition of rubber balls and hot returns. Some demands for which the socialists are not willing to pass.
From that unsuccessful meeting, the parties are making an effort to impose their own story in the face of the more than possible failure of the reform that can be seen materialized this Tuesday. "Let everyone hold their candle," explains a parliamentary spokesman. The PSOE blames the pro-independence parties, especially the ERC, for torpedoing the reform by wanting to impose a ban on rubber balls, despite "the fact that it is a material that is hardly used." The purchase by the Ministry of the Interior of almost 60,000 rubber balls in full negotiations did not help. In turn, from Podemos they point to the PSOE. "It would be a terrible failure of the legislature, there would be no excuses and only one person in charge," spokesman Pablo Echenique said yesterday.
The Republicans, who have already announced that they will vote against, blame the PSOE and Unidas Podemos for the failure, considering that, precisely, the aspects that have not been reached by consensus are the most harmful, those that —in the eyes of this formation— give gag name to the Citizen Security law. From Junts, which got off the hook from the meetings months ago, they also point to the government partners. In particular, to the PSOE for "limiting itself to lowering the tone of the PP." For its part, from EH Bildu, to which the rest of the groups recognize its predisposition to negotiation, it is criticized that a "simple make-up" of the norm is being made.
The report of the presentation has insured 18 yeses —PSOE (13), Unidas Podemos (4) and PNV (1)— compared to the 18 noes also insured —PP (9), Vox (5), ERC(1) Ciudadanos ( 1), Junts (1) and UPN (1)—. The reform needs a simple majority in the Commission to advance in its parliamentary process. If EH Bildu joins the "no" bloc, as it has been announcing, the reform will decline.
