Tens of thousands join anti-government protest in Madrid
Tens of thousands of people rallied Sunday in an opposition-organised demonstration in Madrid accusing the government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of corruption.
Protesters, many waving red and yellow Spanish flags, massed in the Plaza de Espana, a large square in the centre of the Spanish capital, and chanted 'Perdo Sanchez, resign!'.
The Popular Party (PP) called the rally after leaked audio recordings allegedly documented a member of the Socialist party, Leire Diez, waging a smear campaign against a police unit that investigated graft allegations against Sanchez's wife, brother, and his former right-hand man.
Diez has denied the allegations, telling reporters on Wednesday that she was conducting research for a book and was not working on behalf of the party or Sanchez. She also resigned from Sanchez's Socialist party.
PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo has accused the government of 'mafia practices' over the affair, and said Sanchez is 'at the centre' of multiple corruption scandals.
"This government has stained everything -- politics, state institutions, the separation of powers," he told the rally, going on to urge Sanchez to call early elections.
The PP estimated that more than 100,000 people attended the rally, held under the slogan "Mafia or Democracy."
The central government's representative in Madrid put the turnout between 45,000 and 50,000.
"The expiry date on this government passed a long time ago. It's getting tiring," Blanca Requejo, a 46-year-old store manager who wore a Spanish flag drapped over her back, told AFP at the rally.
Sanchez has dismissed the probes against members of his inner circle as part of a "smear campaign" carried out by the right wing to undermine his government.
He came to power in June 2018 after ousting his PP predecessor, Mariano Rajoy, in a no-confidence vote over a corruption scandal affecting involving the conservative party.
Recent polls show the PP holding only a slim lead over the Socialists. The next general election is expected in 2027.
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Khaleej Times
a day ago
- Khaleej Times
Tens of thousands join anti-government protest in Madrid
Tens of thousands of people rallied Sunday in an opposition-organised demonstration in Madrid accusing the government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of corruption. Protesters, many waving red and yellow Spanish flags, massed in the Plaza de Espana, a large square in the centre of the Spanish capital, and chanted 'Perdo Sanchez, resign!'. The Popular Party (PP) called the rally after leaked audio recordings allegedly documented a member of the Socialist party, Leire Diez, waging a smear campaign against a police unit that investigated graft allegations against Sanchez's wife, brother, and his former right-hand man. Diez has denied the allegations, telling reporters on Wednesday that she was conducting research for a book and was not working on behalf of the party or Sanchez. She also resigned from Sanchez's Socialist party. PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo has accused the government of 'mafia practices' over the affair, and said Sanchez is 'at the centre' of multiple corruption scandals. "This government has stained everything -- politics, state institutions, the separation of powers," he told the rally, going on to urge Sanchez to call early elections. The PP estimated that more than 100,000 people attended the rally, held under the slogan "Mafia or Democracy." The central government's representative in Madrid put the turnout between 45,000 and 50,000. "The expiry date on this government passed a long time ago. It's getting tiring," Blanca Requejo, a 46-year-old store manager who wore a Spanish flag drapped over her back, told AFP at the rally. Sanchez has dismissed the probes against members of his inner circle as part of a "smear campaign" carried out by the right wing to undermine his government. He came to power in June 2018 after ousting his PP predecessor, Mariano Rajoy, in a no-confidence vote over a corruption scandal affecting involving the conservative party. Recent polls show the PP holding only a slim lead over the Socialists. The next general election is expected in 2027.
Khaleej Times
02-06-2025
- Khaleej Times
Low turnout marks Mexico's unique vote for judges held under shadow of crime
Mexico's president hailed the country's unprecedented elections for judges a success even though only around 13 per cent of eligible voters turned out for a poll that sharply divided opinion. With Mexico plagued by rampant crime, corruption and impunity, the government and its supporters argued that the reform making Mexico the only country in the world to select all of its judges and magistrates by popular vote was needed to clean up a rotten justice system. Turnout in Sunday's polls hovered between just 12.57 and 13.32 per cent of the nearly 100 million eligible voters, National Electoral Institute head Guadalupe Taddei said in a televised statement. Despite that low turnout, President Claudia Sheinbaum praised the unique exercise as a "complete success." "For the first time in history, almost 13 million Mexican women and men exercised their right to decide the new ministers, magistrates and judges," Sheinbaum said in a video message posted to social media. She insisted on the eve of the vote that only those who "want the regime of corruption and privileges" to continue were against it. Voters were tasked with selecting around 880 federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, as well as hundreds of local judges and magistrates. Another election for the remainder will be held in 2027. Sheinbaum had defended the judicial reforms but critics feared the elections would politicise the justice system and make it easier for criminals to influence the courts with threats and bribery. Arturo Giesemann, a 57-year-old retiree, said his main motivation for voting was "the disgust I have with the current judiciary because of its corruption." Many voters struggled to choose from such a large list of largely unknown candidates. "We are not very prepared," said Lucia Calderon, a 63-year-old university teacher. "I think we need more information." In the western state of Jalisco, 63-year-old housewife Maria Estrada said she used her "intuition" because she did not know the candidates. While corruption already exists, "there is reason to believe that elections may be more easily infiltrated by organised crime than other methods of judicial selection," Margaret Satterthwaite, the United Nations special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, told AFP. Hundreds of opponents of the reforms marched through Mexico City waving flags and banners with slogans including: "Hands off our democracy" and "No to electoral fraud." The elections send the judiciary "to its grave," said Ismael Novela, a 58-year-old company worker. "It was the last counterweight we had against the totalitarianism of the executive branch." The run-up to the vote was not accompanied by the kind of violence that often targets politicians in Mexico. However, "it is logical that organised criminal groups would have approached judges and candidates who are important to them," said consultant Luis Carlos Ugalde, a former head of Mexico's electoral commission. Rights group Defensorxs has identified around 20 candidates it considers "high risk," including Silvia Delgado, a former lawyer for Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. Another aspiring judge, in Durango state, spent almost six years in prison in the United States for drug crimes. Candidates were supposed to have a law degree, experience in legal affairs and what is termed "a good reputation," as well as no criminal record in Mexico. To do a good job, voters "would have to spend hours and hours researching the track record and the profiles of each of the hundreds of candidates," said David Shirk, a professor at the University of San Diego. He believes that most of the corruption in Mexico's judicial system is in law enforcement agencies and public prosecutors' offices. "If you can avoid being prosecuted, you don't have to worry about the judge," said Shirk, who heads the Justice in Mexico research project. The judicial reforms were championed by Sheinbaum's predecessor and mentor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who frequently clashed with the courts before stepping down last year. The main reason for the elections seems to be "because Lopez Obrador had a grudge against the judges," Shirk said.
Khaleej Times
01-06-2025
- Khaleej Times
Mexico votes in first judicial election amid concerns over rule of law
Mexicans vote on Sunday in the country's first ever judicial elections, part of an overhaul of the nation's judiciary that critics warn could jeopardise the rule of law. The vote will elect 2,600 judges and magistrates, including all Supreme Court justices, and is part of a reform pushed by former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and his protege and successor President Claudia Sheinbaum. Lopez Obrador and Sheinbaum say the election will root out corruption in a flawed judiciary dominated by an out-of-touch elite and instead allow people to decide who should be a judge. But the run-up to the vote has been dominated by a scandal over some of the candidates, including a convicted drug smuggler and a former lawyer of drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. Opponents say the overhaul risks removing checks and balances on the ruling Morena party, by appointing judges friendly to their cause, and also allowing organised crime groups greater influence over the judicial system by running their own candidates. Mexico joins Bolivia as the only countries worldwide to conduct judicial elections at the national level, though state-level judicial elections are common in the United States and some local Swiss judges are also elected. Voters on Sunday will cast ballots for Mexico's nine Supreme Court judges, as well as for judges and magistrates across 19 of Mexico's 32 administrative divisions. More than 7,700 candidates are running for judicial posts. Pollsters expect a poor turnout, in part due to opposition calls to boycott the vote, but also because of the complexity of the process and vast number of candidates to consider. "In Mexico City we are going to vote for 50 candidates. If even discerning people with access to social media aren't checking the candidates, imagine the people who don't have this access," 22-year-old accounting student Maria Alejandra Mares told Reuters. "They're going to vote blind." Voting is not mandatory in Mexico and there is no minimum turnout required to legitimize an election. Just 37% of 1,000 people polled by Buendia Marquez said they would come out to vote, compared to 61% who participated in the vote last June that elected President Sheinbaum. The right-wing PAN opposition party has called on supporters to boycott the election, branding it a "vulgar fraud," but Sheinbaum has vigorously defended her predecessor's reform and her party has sought to mobilize the grassroots vote. "We call on you to participate, participate, participate," Sheinbaum told a press conference on Friday, saying this would help significantly improve the current judiciary. "Participating is the best way to transform a country." Besides mandating the popular election of judges, the judicial reform, promoted last year by former President Lopez Obrador, also reduced the number of Supreme Court judges, shortened terms and eased some requirements such as minimum age and work experience. The reform's approval by lawmakers last year knocked financial markets, sparked the United States to express concern about a weaker judicial system, and sparked a strike by the country's judicial workers. "Mexico's justice system was far from perfect, and this new judicial system will not address its shortcomings," said Rodolfo Ramos, an analyst at Brazilian bank Bradesco BBI. Ramos said "the real litmus test" would come when cases against a government action reach the Supreme Court. Counting is expected to take two weeks, with the results out on June 15. In 2027, another vote is scheduled to fill over 1,000 more judicial positions.
