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Spain
Quick Overview:
Spain has made rapid strides in recent decades, with the successful transition to full democracy following the death of Franco in 1975 and the transformation of the economy, particularly since joining the European Union in 1986. The Head of State is King Juan Carlos, and the Head of Government is the Prime Minister, currently Mr José María Aznar, leader of the PP. First elected in 1996 with a narrow majority, the PP won an absolute majority in the Congress of Deputies in the 2000 elections. Mr Aznar, despite his strong record, has announced that he will not contest the 2004 national elections. His successor as the PP leader will not be decided until 2003. The main opposition party, the centre-left Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE), is led by Mr José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. The current composition of the 350-seat Congress of Deputies is: PP 183 seats; PSOE 125 seats; Convergence and Union Party (CiU) 15 seats, United Left Party (IU) 8 seats; Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) 7 seats; other regional parties 12 seats. There is also a less powerful but nevertheless still important Senate, with powers of amendment, currently comprising 256 Senators (the number varies between parliaments, with some Senators being appointed as regional representatives). The current Spanish Constitution, dating from 1978, recognises the right of the various regions of Spain to "autonomy"' while emphasising the "indissoluble" unity of the Spanish State. Spain is divided into seventeen "autonomous communities", each with its own assembly and executive government, together with the two North African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla. The powers of the autonomous communities vary considerably, with the Basque Country and Catalonia enjoying relatively extensive powers, including over regional policing, education and health services. The PP currently holds power in ten of the seventeen autonomous communities, the PSOE in five, the CiU in Catalonia, and the PNV in the Basque Country.
Geography:
The Iberian Peninsula has been occupied for many millennia. Some of Europe's most impressive Paleolithic cultural sites are located there; the famous caves at Altamira contain spectacular paintings which date from about 15,000-25,000 years ago. The Basques are the first identifiable people of the peninsula and are the oldest surviving group in Europe. Iberians arrived from North Africa during a more recent period. Beginning in the ninth century BC, Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians, and Celts entered the Iberian Peninsula, followed by the Romans, who arrived in the second century BC. Spain's present language, religion, and laws stem from the Roman period. Although the Visigoths arrived in the fifth century AD, the last Roman strongholds along the southern coast did not fall until the seventh century AD. In 711, North African Moors sailed across the straits, swept into Andalusia, and, within a few years, pushed the Visigoths up the peninsula to the Cantabrian Mountains. The Reconquest--efforts to drive out the Moors--lasted until 1492. By 1512, the unification of present-day Spain was complete. During the 16th century, Spain became the most powerful nation in Europe, due to the immense wealth derived from its presence in the Americas. But a series of long, costly wars and revolts, capped by the defeat by the English of the "Invincible Armada" in 1588, began a steady decline of Spanish power in Europe. Controversy over succession to the throne consumed the country during the 18th century, leading to an occupation by France during the Napoleonic era in the early 1800s, and led to a series of armed conflicts throughout much of the 19th century. The 19th century saw the revolt and independence of most of Spain's colonies in the Western Hemisphere: three wars over the succession issue; the brief ousting of the monarchy and establishment of the First Republic (1873-74); and, finally, the Spanish-American War (1898), in which Spain lost Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines to the United States. A period of dictatorial rule (1923-31) ended with the establishment of the Second Republic. It was dominated by increasing political polarization, culminating in the leftist Popular Front electoral victory in 1936. Pressures from all sides, coupled with growing and unchecked violence, led to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in July 1936. Following the victory of his nationalist forces in 1939, Gen. Francisco Franco ruled a nation exhausted politically and economically. Spain was officially neutral during World War II but followed a pro-Axis policy. The victorious Allies isolated Spain at the beginning of the postwar period, and the country did not join the United Nations until 1955. In 1959, under an International Monetary Fund stabilization plan, the country began liberalizing trade and capital flows, particularly foreign direct investment. Despite the success of economic liberalization, Spain remained the most closed economy in Western Europe--judged by the small measure of foreign trade to economic activity--and the pace of reform slackened during the 1960s as the state remained committed to "guiding" the economy. Nevertheless, in the 1960s and 1970s, Spain was transformed into a modern industrial economy with a thriving tourism sector. Its economic expansion led to improved income distribution and helped develop a large middle class. Social changes brought about by economic prosperity and the inflow of new ideas helped set the stage for Spain's transition to democracy during the latter half of the 1970s. Upon the death of General Franco in November 1975, Prince Juan Carlos de Borbon y Borbon, Franco's personally designated heir, assumed the titles of king and chief of state. Dissatisfied with the slow pace of post-Franco liberalization, in July 1976, the King replaced Franco's last Prime Minister with Adolfo Suarez. Suarez entered office promising that elections would be held within one year, and his government moved to enact a series of laws to liberalize the new regime. Spain's first elections to the Cortes (Parliament) since 1936 were held on June 15, 1977. Prime Minister Suarez's Union of the Democratic Center (UCD), a moderate center-right coalition, won 34% of the vote and the largest bloc of seats in the Cortes. Under Suarez, the new Cortes set about drafting a democratic constitution that was overwhelmingly approved by voters in a December 1978 national referendum.
Related Links:
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Offical Sites Ministerio de Administraciones Públicas The Senate |
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Education Government Education Page International Education in Spain |