SPAIN

MOBILE PHONES AND POTS AND PANS (source unidentified)
Paul Laverty, 15.03.2004 19:51

Eyewitnes report from Madrid on the crucial Saturday before the Spanish
Elections

A five minute walk from where I live in the centre of Madrid is Atocha
station where two of the bombs exploded on Thursday. Last night one
hundred meters from my front door three Moroccans were arrested for
“involvement” in the crime; and from my kitchen window I can see the
queue of those waiting to vote in today’s general election.(14th
March.) I have just interviewed a fifty two year old resident called Shaaban,
who once worked in journalism, insisting the attack was still carried out
by ETA. This demonstrates how effective outgoing President Aznar and his
Popular Party government’s manipulation of the news has been. The
question on everyone’s lip is “Will the truth get out in time?” It
did for one Grandmother I spoke to who refused to give her name. “I
voted for the PP last time but I can’t vote for these thugs again who lead us
into a war nobody wanted. They lied about the weapons in Iraq, and
they’re lying again today. How dare they manipulate the dead? Many of
my friends think the same.”

Yesterday there was growing fury as more dirty tricks by the Minister
of Interior and Foreign Minister were exposed – all exacerbated by deep
frustration than none of this was being covered by the main TV
Stations, especially TV 1, Antena 3 and Tele-Madrid which are all pro Government.
Even after a van was discovered with detonators and tape with Koranic verses Aznar phoned
the editor of the biggest paper El Pais to say he still thought it was
ETA´s doing while the PP´s new Presidential candidate Mr Rajoy said he had
“the moral conviction” ETA were responsible. But tens of thousands of
mobiles were on the go flashing messages between friends. Have you seen
Bloomberg? Check article in New York Times. Check out Radio Ser – 95%
of police investigating Al Quaida and on it went all day contradicting the
Government line till I received a message – “Meet outside PP party
headquarters to demand the truth…..followed by a “cacerolada”
(literally, protest by banging of pots and pans) at 10pm wherever you
live………pass it on.”

By the time I arrived at the PP headquarters at 7 pm there were
hundreds streaming from the metro and the road was already closed off. I met a
woman Marisol who had been among the first to arrive. The police moved in and
demanded identification papers but backed off as hundreds more arrived.
Now there were around five thousand, and rising, chanting “We want the
truth before we vote”, “Our Dead – Your War” and then a continuous chant
of “Liars…..Liars…..Liars” followed by “Don´t play with the
Dead”. More mobiles flashing – there were demonstrations outside the PP
offices in all the big cities and spirits rose.

By the time I got home the neighbourhood of Lavapies was a cacophony of
unbelievable noise and my two month old son was beginning to look
overwhelmed. Balconies were full of protesting families. The square was
a throng of clinking kitchen implements. Africans, Moroccans, Latin
Americans, Spaniards, children and parents were banging their pots and
pans. Some had soup spoons and one old man, arthritic fingers gripping
an enormous ladle, pounded a plastic bin with all his might “ I want the
truth!……Liars!” he spat, “God damn those liars!” Beside him a six
foot African clanged a road sign with his umbrella as his friends held
up a sign, “Senegal for Peace”. It was overpowering; grassroot fury at the
manipulation suddenly given expression. Next, news filtered through
more mobiles, and it was as many suspected – Al Quaida sympathisers had been
arrested.

Another spontaneous meeting was organised in Sol, the most famous
square in Spain right at the heart of the city. At midnight thousands more
arrived. More chants “Esto es el regalo del amigo Americano”. “This is a
present from our American friend”. On TV a Government spokesperson
condemned the spontaneous meetings and warned against participation.
There was speculation whither the riot police would take a heavy hand as they
did during the anti war demonstrations when peaceful marchers were battened
and fired upon with rubber bullets which forced us to rush into bars and
hotels for safety, or whither they would do anything to avoid more bad
publicity. It was the later; still more arrived in the square as more and more
inventive slogans proliferated. At 2 am the crowd decided as one to
head or Atocha station by the scene of the massacre. Suddenly the mood
changed.
Hushing sounds swept though an enormous crowd from the Atocha
roundabout to adjoining streets. Everyone sat down, held up their hands, and there
was a stunning silence apart from the police helicopter above. Some cried,
some cuddled, some prayed, and some were lost in private thoughts. After a
perfectly observed two minute silence there was a spontaneous applause
before they hung their banners and placed candles for the dead at the
station wall. Some made reference to the innocent lives taken in Madrid
and the ten thousand civilians killed in Baghdad. Some called for the end
to terror – of every kind. Some referred to the “three wise monkeys” of
Blair, Bush and Aznar and their infamous encounter in the Azores prior
to the war, and some mentioned names of loved ones. “Sergio, I love you.”
I laid mine – No more lies.