Talk:Spanish Socialist Workers' Party

From Academic Kids

Felipe Gonzalez

Regarding the PSOE and how they handled NATO and corruption. Historical facts (not opinions): Dec 1981 - Spain applies to join NATO (under UCD rule ..centrist government)) The PSOE hands in to the Moncloa Palace a protest against NATO supported by 600.000 signatures

May 1982 - Spain becomes a member of NATO (UCD rule)

Oct 1982 - General election. The PSOE wins an overall majority in both houses

Dec 1982 - Felipe González voted in as new prime minister PSOE promises to retire Spain from NATO Devaluation of the peseta (spanish currency)

Feb 1983 - RUMASA, one of Spain's largest holding is socialized for supposed financial and fiscal irregularities

This reflects a fact but the phrasing of it implies an opinion. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

June 1983 - Several figures in the PSOE speak against Spain remaining in NATO

Sep 1983 - Attacks in the French Basque country by GAL (GAL is a pseudo-terrorist organization created and mercenaries supported by the PSOE with the intention of using the same tactics ETA uses against them).

Supported by "the PSOE" is going a little too far and wide. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

1983 is the year Spain gains interest in joining the EEC (European Economic Community). PSOE promised that Spain would join the EEC, but the EEC wants Spain to stay in NATO. The PSOE is broken in two: those who want think joining the EEC is more

Spain had for the longest time wanted to join the EEC but as long as it was not a democracy (1978) it had no chance. "Gains interest" does not explain whether it was Spain or the EEC or both or neither that was interested. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

1984 - Year that nationalist (separatist) regional parties in Spain gain popular support in their respective regions

This seems to imply that they had very little support previously, which I don't think is correct. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

June 1985 - Spain signs treaty of accession to the EEC

Nov 1985 - Huge demonstrations (more than half a million in Madrid) against NATO membership - PSOE and Communist party militants

May 1991 - National newspapers report about FILESA, the mysterious company used to finance the PSOE's electoral campaign (illegaly)

Feb 1992 - The Ibercorp case, a financial scandal involving the governor of the Bank of Spain, comes to light (PSOE is involved) ... The Bank of Spain is not really a "bank" ..it is the national monetary institution of the country ..controlled by the government.

The Bank of Spain is the central bank, equivalent of the US Federal Reserve. Ironically, there was a "Banco Central" which was a private bank. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

Mar 1992 - The government increases to a year the period of employment required before being eligible for unemployment benefits (the "socialist" party ... right.)

May 1993 - The government is forced to devaluate the Peseta in the run-up to the election

June 1993 - General election. Fourth consecutive socialist victory, but the PSOE needs to reach an agreement with the Basque and Catalans nationalists ETA kills seven people in Madrid.

Dec 1993 - The Bank of Spain takes over Banesto, one of Spain's largest banks, and dismisses its chairman, Mario Conde

"takes over" or "bails out"? Again a matter of opinion, like RUMASA. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

Apr 1994 - M. Rubio, governor of the Bank of Spain, is accused of insider dealings and other illegal activities

June 1995 - E. Alonso Manglano, head of Secret Services (CESID), resigns over accusations of telephone tapping Two senior ministers, N. Serra and García Vargas, tender their resignations in the wake of the CESID scandal PSOE had been using the Spanish Secret Service to obtain info on political contenders

Nov 1995 - Congress grants Supreme Court authority to open proceedings against J. Barrionuevo, PSOE ex-minister of the interior, for his possible part in organising the GAL, the counter-terrorist group involved in the "dirty war" against ETA during the 1980s

Jan 1996 - Barrionuevo and Vera are charged with directing the operations of GAL

March 1996 - General election. The PP emerges as the largest party but is dependent on the support of minorities parties, with who negotiations begin

"minorities" is the same "Basque and Catalan Nationalists" that PSOE had negotiated with in 1993 and which the PP had spent three years lambasting. On election night, 1996, PP supporters insulted the Catalan president Jordi Pujol with "Pujol, you midget, speak in Spanish". That must have made Aznar's negotiations to secure the support of Pujol's party reaaally easy. Miguel 22:40, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

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Primo de Rivera

I read somewhere that PSOE (and others) somehow supported the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera to get rid of the corrupt turno system. But during the dictatorship, parties were banned (except for the artificial Unión Patriótica (?)). What was the relationship then between Primo de Rivera and PSOE.

This page (http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/averroes/iescasasviejas/cviejas1/histo2/tema4.1.htm) claims that "from the beginning Monarchic parties, Republican parties, PCE, CNT and 'the parliamentary branch of PSOE' opposed Primo de Rivera". It seems that the Socialist union UGT collaborated with the regime, which maybe explains the cryptic phrase "parliamentary branch". It should be noted that, until relatively recently, UGT membership was required for PSOE membership. Also, the page claims that the intent of Primo de Rivera was actually to prevent the replacement of the turno with a more democratic system, although his public retoric was of course different. Miguel 21:53, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

This other page (http://www.historia-es.com/spain/c_09_in.php) claims that the CNT was repressed, but there was an understanding between the Regime and the UGT/PSOE. PSOE leader Largo Caballero was appointed to the consejo de Estado. The collaboration of the socialists allowed them to achieve gains for workers such as health insurance, sunday rest, public housing and professional training. Primo de Rivera attempted to create a corporatist system like the one in Fascist Italy, or the "vertical syndicate" of Franco's time. Miguel 21:59, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

I knew the PSOE was rife with internal strife through 1939, and that Largo Caballero was the leader of one of the factions, so I dug up this profile (http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/SPprieto.htm) of Indalecio Prieto. Largo Caballero and Prieto were archrivals during the Spanish republic, even though they were both in the same party. The page shows that Prieto was the leader of the "leftist" branch of PSOE, which did not wish to cooperate with Primo de Rivera. Miguel 22:25, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)

Largo Caballero, Besteiro and Prieto

The second paragraph of the article needs to talk more about the interaction of Largo Caballero, Besteiro and Prieto, which determined a lot of internal PSOE politics as well as important turning points of Spanish politics in the 1920's and 30's. Among other things, I don't know that the "right" and "left" designation of the various factions within the party is very enlightening. Miguel 22:30, 2004 Mar 25 (UTC)