> foreign affairs Spain committed to the Balkans > Know your embassy Mexico, a shared history > spain abroad Navantia, a national paradigm in international naval construction > culture Atapuerca, the origin of the first Europeans > Prince of Asturias prizes > COOPERATION Spanish cooperation and indigenous populations > INTERVIEW Pau Gasol: “People's affection is the great reward for the work I do”
miradas al exterior
GOBIERNO DE ESPAÑA
MINISTERIO DE ASUNTOS EXTERIORES Y DE COOPERACIÓN
July-September 2007 No.3. 3rd quarter www.maec.es
An informative diplomatic publication of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY AN OPEN DOOR to the world
Analysis > Europe advances again
Editorial Alberto Ruíz Gallardón Mayor of Madrid
Madrid, an international presence ❖ Seeing does not mean simply fixing your gaze on one point, but rather it requires us to compare the information we receive with our own experiences. In this way this simple action acquires meaning, becoming a source of knowledge. The very name of this publication, Perspectives, epitomizes the role it plays in offering invaluable perspectives on how Spain is viewed throughout the world. Contributing to this edition has given me the opportunity to voice my gratitude, on behalf of Madrid, to those who represent Spain and work to protect our compatriots abroad, while promoting political, economic, cultural and scientific relationships with different countries that benefit all Spaniards and, therefore, all citizens of Madrid. This is especially the case for such an open city as Madrid; though many of its citizens work, study or carry out research abroad, they always look homeward. Madrid would also like to offer its thanks to all of those people from other countries who have been interested in what happens in our city and in Spain. We find great satisfaction in knowing that one day these people will come to Madrid, if they have not done so already. Not just because Madrid is the seat of the Spanish state, Spain's social and economic motor, an increasingly popular tourist destination or because of its
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cultural innovation. Rather, they should visit it above all for its ability, as a plural and diverse city, to never disappoint those who gaze upon it. This certainty is, in truth, an expression of its one unique point: that of being the Spanish capital. This honor is understood and accepted not just as a privilege, but as a responsibility and commitment.
❖ Our desire to effectively meet those commitments feeds our desire to strengthen ties with those countries whose people, traditions and aspirations already live side by side with ours. For this reason, Madrid's City Government has and always will have one hand stretched out towards all public institutions and representatives from civil society who wish to join forces to reach this goal. In accordance with this plan, Madrid's City Government has embraced the initiatives put forward by the Minis-
try for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation with utmost respect for the work it has done. It is because of their efforts that Madrid is today involved in the Consortia and Cultural Centers created for the purpose of opening up new channels of communication and exchange with other cultural and geographical regions. ❖ This commitment was made by the city when history and the future most needed it: with the creation of the Linares Palace in 1990, home to the Madrid City Council and the Latin American cultural center, Casa de América. From that point onwards, that institution has become a forum for debate and raising awareness of the Latin American presence in Spain. It is without doubt the links we have with those countries that give us our standing in the world while making us more genuine. For these reasons, the center could be nowhere else. After fifteen long years, the Casa de América has played host to other activities thanks to two of Madrid's long-standing Latin American initiatives: greater local powers and development aid. Madrid effectively leads a network of great Ibero-American cities, the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities (UCCI), which includes more than one hundred million citizens and carries out sustained work in order to improve the lives of each and every one. The creation of the UCCI on October 12, 1982 under Mayor Tierno Galván acted as a precursor to the Latin American process of political, economic and cultural harmonization undertaken by twenty-one, now twenty-two countries at the end of the last century. There is another initiative implemented by the city that is primarily aimed at Ibero-America: it is the Program for International Cooperation, in which we lead a group consisting of leaders from the Spanish regional administrations who contribute a large number of resources to eradicate poverty throughout the world.
Editorial Board. Chairman: Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. Deputy Chairman: General Manager of Foreign Communications. Second Deputy Chairman: General Technical Secretary. Members: Cabinet Chiefs of the Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs, of the Secretary of State for Cooperation, of the Secretary of State for the European Union, of the Secretary of State for Latin America, and the Cabinet of the Secretary General of the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECI).
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SUMMARY ❖ Madrid's view of the outside world extends to other realities with which we share a past. As a city founded by Arabs, that has an Arabic name and visible Arabic influences upon its society, Madrid has felt the need to affiliate itself with the Casa Árabe since its inception. This cultural center will soon have a splendid new home at the Escuelas Aguirre, as well at El Retiro, facilitated by the City Council. Madrid uses this center to raise awareness about Islamic cultures within a framework that has included the forging of close relationships with many capital cities of the Arab and Muslim world. ❖ Our Mediterranean identity, which is also both European and Arabic, would not be complete without the unique contribution made to it by the Sephardic culture –still a vital part of Spanish culture–, the Jewish culture and modern Israeli society's gift for innovation. So, we, the people of Madrid, welcome a new opportunity to enrich our lives with the opening of Casa Sepharad-Israel in our city. The project is already underway and has the full support and involvement of the City Government so that it may become a key reference point for the city's political, cultural and economic activity. ❖ We believe the influence Madrid enjoys in Latin America, Europe and the Mediterranean must now be extended to new destinations and specifically towards Asia, whose potential demands our presence. For this reason, the city has been actively involved in the foundation of a Casa Asia cultural center in Madrid, taking its lead from the highly successful work carried out in Barcelona. We went the extra mile to ensure the success of the groups behind Casa Asia, already installed in Madrid's Marqués de Miraflores Palace, by working with the Philippines and Korea, with India joining next year. The fact that Madrid welcomes each and every one of those groups who show a desire for
bilateral cooperation between Spain and their countries, shows our commitment to Spanish foreign policy. Madrid's involvement in the Casa Asia Consortium is part of a broader project that we are developing in line with the objectives of the Asia Pacific Plan. Madrid's City Government has supported those representing both the Administration and civil society, who have worked solidly with Asian countries and in particular the Spain-China and the Spain-Japan Foundations, by participating and even hosting their bilateral forums, once again with the Ministry's full support. The City also has its own Plan for Japan, which has helped it successfully recapture Japanese attention and tourism. ❖ These are just some of the initiatives that Madrid's City Government actively promotes or is involved in. With these projects, it strives not only to be Spain's capital but also its most advanced city. If, as a capital city, we have been able to welcome hundreds of Heads of State over the last decades, then as a city with a universal vocation we go forward in search of solutions that can be used for the whole of Spain's increasingly urbanized society. ❖ With this universal vocation, Madrid has embarked upon the most exciting adventure that a city can undertake, a project that exemplifies the values shared by our city's citizens and all of Spain. I am referring to Madrid 16, our bid for the Olympic Games that we hope will be the Olympics of integration. We know that this collective dream relies on the bid made by the Spanish Foreign Service and the support lent by each of the cultural centers and institutions our city collaborates with. If we reach this goal, we will have the satisfaction of contributing to a better understanding of the modern, dynamic reality present in both Madrid and the country whose capital it is, Spain.
EDITORIAL OFFICE. Management: Manuel Cacho. Editor-in-Chief: José Bodas. Art Director and Editor: Javier Hernández. Contributors to this issue: Natividad Isabel Peña, Luis Sánchez, Jacobo García, Laura Losada, Carlos Franganillo, David Merino and Jesús García de Viedma. Management: General Bureau for Foreign Communications Serrano Galvache, 26. 28033 MADRID. No. 3. 3rd Quarter 2007. NIPO: 501-07-002-0. Legal Depository: AS-3417-07. Publicity, Printing, and Distribution: www.4ccomunicacion.com
4 > foreign affairs The Casas cultural centers, a model for Spanish public diplomacy. 10 > Europe advances again. 14 > Spain: Committed to the Balkans 18 > Foreign affairs in brief. 24 > SPAIN abroad Spain and Mexico, a shared history 28 > Navantia, a national reference to international
naval construction 32 > GET TO KNOW SPAIN Atapuerca, birthplace of the first Europeans 19 > Príncipe de Asturias, a Spanish prize with international prestige. 48 > Cooperation Spanish Cooperation and indigenous populations. 55 > Municipia, the meeting of Spanish solidary municipalities
52 > MISCELLANY Publications. 56 > INTERVIEW Pau Gasol: “People's affection is a great reward for the work I do” A publication of the General Bureau for Foreign Communications on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MAEC). Total or partial reproduction prohibited without the express consent of the publisher. ‘Miradas al exterior’ is not responsible for editorial content or opinions expressed by the authors.
foreign affairs Since its inception in 1992, Casa América has successfully stood as a model integrating institution that, within its particular scope of activity, has been able to successfully channel Spanish society's focus on Latin America. The versatility of that model and its ability to combine efforts from many different sources has led to its enormous success and inspired the creation of several new branches of the Casas program for other regions: Casa Asia (2002), Casa Árabe (2006), Casa África (2006), and Casa Sefarad-Israel (2007)
The Casas A Model in Spanish
TEXT: ángel vázquez díaz de tuesta. PHOTOS: efe
● For nearly two decades, Spain has enjoyed a complete network of institutions through which it has been able to manage significant levels of contact with other geographic, political, and cultural regions. It was during these years that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation perfected an original method that allowed it to establish a modern, effective model for public diplomacy. Each Casas cultural center was designed to fill a specific gap in the vast array of tools that a world power like Spain, of average size but with enormous global interests in all areas of the world, should have at its disposal. Fundamental changes have occurred
in Spain over the past 30 years, and the most important consequence of these changes has been our country's growing political, economic, and cultural importance. This new-found significance has required an overhaul of our foreign policy--a task that has occupied our democratic government since 1978. Given the large number of responsibilities Spain has assumed on the international stage, this overhaul has, on one hand, focused on the establishment of certain base elements. But, on the other hand, it has also resulted in the modernization of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and its network of Embassies and Consulates scattered throughout all six inhabited continents. But not by itself. The process would not be complete if
Spain had not also taken upon itself the task of creating public diplomacy tools adapted to its own situation. In our case, this meant developing what experts have termed "niche strategies"; that is, specializing our foreign relations to focus on specific functional areas and geographic regions that would allow us to have more direct contact with civil societies in other countries. It is within this framework that the opening of various new Casas cultural centers should be understood, as each branch specializes in specific geographic regions and cultures. Why this segmentation? In our case, Spain's uniqueness is a point of pride. Throughout its history, Spain has opened its doors to many civilizations that have helped to forge different aspects of its
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Public Diplomacy identity. Likewise, Spain was one of the first European nations to carry its civilization and population to other continents. The historical consequences of this process are clear: Today more than 20 countries speak Spanish as their primary language; numerous Spanish communities are scattered across the globe; our roots allow close ties with the Arab world; indeed, Sephardic Jewish communities in Israel and all over the world have a Spanish heritage. However, in order to truly understand our uniqueness, we must also take into account needs arising from modern-day changes occurring in the world and in our immediate surroundings. Spain has become a destination for African, American, and Asian immigrants. Our economy
now functions on an international level, penetrating international markets with varying degrees of intensity. Even our language has become an important tool for international communication. As a result of these processes, Spain has acquired global interests in every region of the world whose management involves not only the use of government authority, but also the actions of civil society as a whole. It is
The Casas centers are designed to fill a specific gap in public diplomacy and add unique, specific value to Spain's foreign relations.
â—? foreign affairs
The Palacio de Linares, in Madrid, has housed Casa AmĂŠrica since 1992.
in this light that the Casas program as it exists today must be understood--it operates in a completely different, but complementary, sphere from that of traditional political-administrative structures such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. The Casas centers add unique, specific value to Spain's foreign affairs. These are institutions designed to promote Spain's national interest by taking advantage of traditional historic relations with the Hispanic-American, Arabic, and Jewish worlds, or by attempting to forge new relations in regions barely touched by our diplomacy in the past, such as Africa and Asia. These efforts are bidirectional, in that they not only allow us to defend our own foreign inter-
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CASA AMÉRICA www.casamerica.es
Inaugurated in July of 1992, in celebration of the Second Ibero-American Summit and in commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America, the first statutes, which remain in force to this day, set a lofty goal for Casa América: "to promote increased understanding between the peoples of Latin America and Spain." Since the outset, it has strived to "help strengthen the bonds that unite the countries that make up the ever more defined Ibero-American Community of Nations." Thus, the first center of the Casas program was born, through the tireless political efforts of the Felipe González administration and under the expert guidance of a team headed by Luis Yáñez. At the same time a new phase in relations between Spain and Latin America and a new model for "public diplomacy" began to materialize--a concept that since that time has taken firm hold and begun to flourish. The positive results obtained during its first decade of operation explain the spread of the model to other continents and circumstances. The best in Latin American thought and culture of all types and genres has walked the halls of the institution. Recitals, exhibitions, concerts, debates, conferences, and much more have taken place within its walls, making it a key point of reference in the rich cultural feast that lies along Madrid's Paseo de la Castellana. During the past 15 years, the circumstances surrounding Casa América have also changed dramatically. Today, Spain is home to over 2 million Latin American citizens, and Madrid has become a great Ibero-American capital; communications technology (the Internet, satellite television) has reached a level that could scarcely be dreamed of then. It is these changes that now challenge the still young, but wise, Casa América to renew and adapt itself to better serve the trans-Atlantic dialogue. that inspired its creation. Miguel Barroso. Director General of Casa América.
CASA ASIA www.casaasia.es
During this new phase, which I have had the honor of leading since last July, Casa Asia will continue working to promote a new dynamic of understanding and bilateral relations with the countries of Asia and the Pacific, and fulfilling our role as a cultural, economic, and educational bridge and reference point between Spain and Asia. Therefore, both from our central office in Madrid and our branch office in Barcelona, we will continue to support our institution's most emblematic programs; that is, institutional exchange through debates with Asian countries or the East-West Dialog; cultural exchange through the Asia Festival and promotion of Asian film; economic exchange through the Asia Forum; and educational exchange through the Bamboo School training programs and scholarships. Naturally, we will continue to focus on our regular activity agenda as well: exhibitions, Asian language workshops and courses, conferences and seminars, book presentations, visits by Asian personalities to Barcelona and Madrid, etc. Bringing the reality of this continent to Spain is just as important as innovation and embarking on new projects. Along these lines, we hope to make Central Asia and the countries of the Pacific a new focus of Casa Asia's actions. We will also be dedicating the year 2008 to India, with a wide variety of activities. We will be publishing a guide to Asian communities in Spain, and we will be initiating construction on an observatory in Central Asia. It is my desire that this new phase of Casa Asia, as an institution dedicated to the State's foreign relations, will be as fruitful and successful as the last. Jesús Sanz. Director General of Casa Asia.
ests, but also allow us to learn to understand other countries, and acknowledge the interests of other societies in order to better defend our own. It is useful to point out that Spain, the populator of other countries for many years throughout its history and now the destination of choice for large numbers of immigrants, has powerful reasons for positioning itself as a point of convergence for the bidirectional efforts mentioned above. The Casas program is precisely one of the meeting points where this can happen successfully. As Spanish public diplomacy expert, Javier Moya, has pointed out, once source and target civil societies have been mobilized, dialogue then consists simply of establishing networks based on shared values. Public diplomacy thus becomes a "network management" task, with many of its initiatives taking on significant emotional and psychological components. This is undoubtedly the principal reason for the Casas centers. While experience gathered to date is not sufficient to establish a typology for the Casas program, it is possible to consider some of the main changes the program has produced in our foreign relations. The Casas centers have made it possible for several Autonomous Communities and City Governments to become involved in Spanish foreign work. The territorial organization of the State set forth by the 1978 Constitution provides these political and administrative bodies with significant possibilities in foreign relations. The defense of economic interests, the dissemination of the various languages spoken in Spain, development cooperation, and political relations with other states or regions are among the matters taken up at various levels by the Autonomous Communities and City Governments. Aside from the direct approaches these administrations may use to carry out these functions, the Casas program provides a platform for involvement in foreign affairs by some Autonomous Communities and City Governments through direct integration into their administrative bodies. This allows the
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Autonomous Communities of Madrid, Cataluña, Andalucía, and the Canary Islands, as well as the City Governments of Madrid, Barcelona, Las Palmas, Córdoba, and others to take part in the Casas effort by becoming part of its organizational structure, making contributions to its budget, and providing space for its various centers. Each branch of the Casas program has its own sponsors, advisors, and collaborating entities that allow other public and private institutions, whether Spanish or foreign, to take part in the defense of Spain's global interests, thus helping to democratize Spain's foreign policy. The Cervantes Institute, the SGAE (General Society of Authors and Editors), and the ICEX (Spanish Foreign Trade Institute); multinational, national, and foreign businesses; international institutions such as the Latin American Jewish Congress; commercial entities such as the Barcelona Port Authority and PromoMadrid; the embassies of several countries; universities; Chambers of Commerce; etc. are just a few of the entities whose collaboration with Casas program activities help make the program a true public diplomacy tool, allowing it to spread its efforts through a wide range of national and international networks of interest. The ramifications of involvement by institutions such as those mentioned above in political, cultural, social, academic, and economic matters are of supreme importance, as they ensure that the Casas program is able to weave itself in to the civil society of Spain and of other countries and societies far beyond our borders. The activities of the Casas program are designed to reinforce Spain's relations with different geographic areas all over the world. However, the intent of such activities is primarily to expand the horizons of Spanish society. A country like Spain, with an open, diversified economy, with a culture shared by millions, with political interests that reach around the globe, and with a desire to disseminate its democratic values, cannot remain distant to the reality of the international scene and its growing complexity. One of the goals of the Casas
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CASA ÁRABE www.casaarabe-ieam.es
As a result of the international focus on the Middle East conflicts and the powerful impact of terrorist networks, the concept of "Arab-Islamic" has unavoidably acquired a media-based Western flavor that tends to dwell on radical extremism, while hiding from public view the diversity and powerful evolutive and creative dynamics that exist in today's Arabic societies. In these circumstances, Arabic feelings tend to turn inward, thus leading to rejection and distancing from the West. As a result, the situation in the Arab and Muslim world--and its vital importance to international relations--calls for the strengthening of mutual relations, the promotion of understanding among all societies involved, and an open expression of respect and cultural esteem among all parties. Here in our two branches, in Madrid and Córdoba, we are making attempts to help untangle this complex and troublesome relationship by turning the Casa Árabe into a place of mutual understanding and shared reflection--a gathering place. Our goals are therefore ambitious, and are oriented to both political and institutional entities and to civil society. This means helping to deepen bilateral and multilateral relations, promote stability and peace in the region, facilitate economic, commercial, and tourism relations, strengthen civil societies and the development of good government, develop culture and education, and in general, promote improved intercultural understanding as an essential element in the deepening of relations between our respective societies. Gema Martín Muñoz. Director General of Casa Árabe.
CASA ÁFRICA www.casafrica.es
Casa África is a consortium created in 2006 by the MAEC, the AECI, the Canary Islands Government, the Councils of the islands of Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote Islands, and the City Council of Las Palmas. Despite its geographical proximity, Africa has remained relatively unknown to Spain for a significant period of time. Even worse, in our collective imagination Africa was a place characterized by scant progress, catastrophes, and violence. However, today Spanish civil society has shown a growing interest in the reality of Africa and has been especially generous toward the needs of its people. Last year the Spanish Government, keenly aware of current ties with Africa, as well as its challenges and its potential, and moved by an ethical and political duty to place high priority on Spanish-African relations, presented its 2006-2008 Africa Plan. It is this plan that forms the framework for Casa África's activities. Casa África is, after all, an open forum for Spanish and African citizens to expand their mutual understanding, to create networks of mutual collaboration, and to promote awareness and understanding with regard to issues in Africa. Because it is located on the Canary Islands, it hopes to promote the Archipelago as a platform for cooperation between Spain and Africa and between Europe and Africa. Casa África organizes and takes part in numerous seminars on current problems in SubSaharan Africa. It has screened samples of African film and organized exhibitions of contemporary African art. It is currently developing programs for strengthening institutions, regional integration, sustainable management of fishery resources, microcredit, health, gender policies, etc.; it is also organizing a wide variety of cultural, artistic, and literary conventions. Alfonso Ortiz. Director General of Casa África.
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tre España y la cultura judía
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CASA SEFARAD ISRAEL
www.casasefarad-israel.es Spain's ties with the Jewish world date back to ancient times. Today, these ancient relations have blossomed into a complex web of connections between Spain, Jewish communities established all over the world, and the modern state of Israel--the destination of many Sephardic Jews. This complex heritage, woven from history, culture, and affections, takes on new life in the modern world, enriched by the contributions of new generations of Jews who desire to maintain cooperative, friendly relations with Spain. Artistic and intellectual creation, economic and scientific ties, tourism, and trade, not to mention the specific importance of relations with a Mediterranean country as significant as Israel, are all factors that unite Spain with Jewish communities in other countries and their organizations. Officially announced in February, Casa Sefarad-Israel (Sepharad-Israel House) is a consortium of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, the Community of Madrid, and the City Council of Madrid. Its foremost objectives include in-depth studies and dissemination of the legacy of Sephardic culture as a vital element of Spanish culture; the promotion of greater understanding of Jewish culture; and the development of friendly, cooperative ties between the two societies. To accomplish these goals, we have put together a schedule of cultural, artistic, scientific, economic, social, and educational activities intended to highlight the cutting edge of modern Jewish culture and values. This institution was organized as a common area in Spain for the Jewish community and its organizations, as well as for all citizens with an interest in the Jewish community. Its purpose is to become a reference point that can be used as a tool for public diplomacy through which public institutions and civil society may strengthen the relations have united the Spanish and Jewish worlds for over 2,000 years. Ana Sálomon. Director General of Casa Sefarad-Israel
program activities is to increase citizens' awareness of globalization. Idea forums, political debates, film screenings, the teaching of other languages, economic symposiums, and more diverse art expositions are some of the means by which the Casas centers allow Spain to reach beyond its borders and allow those outside our borders to reach inside to Spain-by promoting increased awareness among Spanish society of the reality in other countries and facilitating bonding and the development of civil society initiatives. The Casas centers are a powerful tool for strengthening and promoting the diplomatic Alliance of Civilizations initiative. This effort, which was initiated by Spain and taken up by the United Nations, can be greatly benefited by the multidisciplinary activity of the Casas program, which is oriented toward a heterogeneous audience of Spanish and foreign
The work done by the Casas centers is an ideal tool for strengthening and promoting Spain's efforts to establish an Alliance of Civilizations citizens. In a way, it may be said that the goals of the Casas program run parallel to those of the Alliance of Civilizations and may thus help create the specific conditions required for the heads of various regional and cultural environments to come to mutual understanding, by allowing such communities to be led by a spirit of harmony. The 2007-2009 Plan of Action for the United Nation's Alliance of Civilizations states as its objectives the development of a network of partnerships with civil so-
ciety groups by supporting projects that promote understanding and tolerance and by facilitating dialogue and relations among groups that can act as a force for moderation. In this sense, the intercultural projects carried out by the Casas centers align perfectly with these objectives. The Casas centers provide valuable collaboration opportunities for the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and for various Autonomous Communities and City Governments by facilitating contacts of all kinds with the authorities, institutions, and organizations of other countries. Through their initiatives, the centers reinforce Spain's work in international forums and other meetings while raising our partners' awareness of the need to attend to the interests of other regions of the world, strengthen cultural ties, fight discrimination and racism, spread democratic values, promote equality, and fight poverty. The Casas program plays an evermore prominent role in the agenda of high-level international visitors to Spain, using a wide variety of initiatives to leverage the outcome, political or otherwise, of such visits. Fifteen years have passed since the creation of Casa América in 1992, and only a few months have gone by since the establishment of the latest branch, Casa Sefarad-Israel (Sepharad-Israel House). The formula has been an unquestionable success. The initiative for the creation of the program has not been without risk, and implementing it has required considerable persistence by the Ministry. But little by little, this mode of diplomacy has brought to light a significant effort by the State and by Spanish society to establish relations with other States and communities throughout the world and to promote our foreign policy and national image. It can be said that the Casas program has become something of a trademark for our diplomacy, accurately and creatively combining credibility, trust, and stability--critical elements of a foreign policy that must stand the test of time and receive the support of all political forces.
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Viewpoint
Ion de la Riva
SPANISH AMBASSADOR TO INDIA AND FORMER DIRECTOR GENERAL FOR CASA ASIA
To See and Be Seen ❖ To my generation, living amidst the turmoil of Spain's transition to democracy, internationalization and democracy were practically synonymous. The dictatorship had isolated Spain for so many years that dictatorship and isolationism (generally understood as being cut off from Europe) were rejected as one and the same. ❖ It was important to open the windows to the world, but not only at the centers of political and economic power. Society itself, now frequently and somewhat arbitrarily classified as "civil", needed to do likewise. The "Casa América" formula is one of these windows, and its inescapable need and, in the case of Latin America, great success, has served to open other windows to Asia and the Pacific, to Africa, and to the Arab and Sephardic worlds. ❖ At the beginning of my diplomatic career, I had the good fortune to be able to work with a team headed by Luis Yáñez and directed by Fernando Valenzuela. This team showed unwavering support when I proposed the idea of Casa América in 1990, during a 500th anniversary commemoration ceremony that also gave birth to the Ibero-American Summits, the AECI, the Cervantes Institute, and other projects that would help further unite Spain and Europe, but with a personal interpretation based on our reality and the demands of a Spanish society that had not forgotten its great legacy to the world or its internationalist spirit--a Spanish society that was heir to a humanism that had survived the logomachy of Franco's imperial court, from Bartolomé de Las Casas and Francisco de Vitoria to Claudio Sánchez Albornoz and Salvador de Madariaga. ❖ It is impossible to deny that my inspiration to propose the "Casas" formula has personal roots. I grew up in a family that knew exile. I was born in Caracas and lived in a Basque Country with superim-
posed French and Spanish identities. I was educated at a school with an excellent European pedagogical heritage derived from Krausism and the Free Institute of Learning. The ups and downs of family life in exile (Biarritz, Caracas, etc) and internships in Germany, France, and England turned my mind towards a career in diplomacy working to overcome national identity factors that lead to dead ends, as was the case with the "two Spains" that ultimately erupted into tragic Civil War, or the concept of a Spain capable of looking away from the legitimate aspirations of its people. But in addition to this practically inborn idea, I had also become familiar with institutions such as Berlin's "Haus Kulturen der Welt" (in a painfully divided Germany during my schooling there) and the "Maison de l'Amerique Latine" in Paris. However, it was a modest London institution, City Lit in Holborn, that had the greatest impact on me during my years as a student. City Lit was reminiscent of the spirit of Fabian and Bloomsbury and was operated from a run-down building with very few resources at its disposal. But upon entering the doorway, the power of its ideals transformed that humble building into a hub of knowledge and understanding. Courses in the sciences and the humanities were given at ridiculously low prices, even for a student budget. Debates and discussions were held on Epicurus and Einstein, on the European project and the dictatorship of Pinochet. The cafeteria was a meeting place for journalists, experts, and students. It was nothing less than an "all-you-can-eat" buffet, where ideas shared the menu with tea cakes and indigestible kidney pies. ❖ I have never since come across a place like that, where life and intellectual liberty are combined with such freedom from the pomp and egomania so common in these parts. I believe the vitality of Casa Asia, Casa América, and the other Casas
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centers owes much to that internationalist spirit that is so familiar to us--the same spirit that filled the Student Residence and the Casa de las Américas (Americas House) in pre-Castro Havana. ❖ Spain did not have to turn to foreign ideas to establish the Casas program--it simply used these "windows to the world" to recover its own memories and adapt them to the modern-day "global village," and can now share with Berlin, Paris, Lisbon, and London a fraternal relationship of analogous institutions. These are windows that allow us to see, to be seen, and to expand our vision. ❖ Today, the Casas centers play a much more important role than that for which they were conceived. Spain is now home to Latin American, Asian, and Arabic communities that can call these institutions their own--institutions that, in principle, were intended to help Spaniards learn to live with, and become interested in, other cultures. They have now become the windows and mirrors of our new multi-faceted identity. ❖ Through initiatives such as the Alliance of Civilizations and with tools such as the "Casas" program, today Spain continues its endeavor to disseminate, mold, and transform its own reality and that of the International Community into an reality in which the defense of one's own identity or identities will not lead to impasses or clashes between civilizations. At this point I feel bold enough to make three recommendations: None of the Casas centers must ever work behind the backs of immigrants, against the Europist spirit, or behind the backs of the various cultures that have made our own country a melting pot of great interest to the world. ❖ The Casas centers, besides being “think-tanks”, have become true “dotanks”. Their coordinated efforts, and special attention to the information and knowledge society (which did not yet exist in 1992, when Casa América was established), will yet offer new opportunities. The Casas program on “Second Life”? No doubt we will be seeing it soon! Truly, the sky is the limit to what can be done.
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miradas al exterior europe advances again
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The European Union has begun to move ahead. Its twenty-seven members states have overcome the hurdle posed by the failure of the Constitution, which was rejected at referendum by France and the Netherlands, and have come together to create a new, simplified treaty. This new document embraces the principles laid out in the previous text despite eliminating some of its most symbolic values. In this way, the member states were able to overcome one of the greatest institutional crises they had ever faced. Now, after two years of stalemate, we can once again see a future for Europe.
EUROPE advances again TEXT: natividad isabel peña bonilla
● The rejection of the so-called European Constitution by France and the Netherlands in 2005 led to what was described by many as an “unprecedented crisis." Over the last two years, the absence of any alternative and an inability to understand this negative response held back any further development of the European Union. However, the perseverence of the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel (currently holding the presidency of the European Union Council) and the explicit support offered to her by French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, as well as the heads of states from Spain, Italy and Luxembourg -- José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Romano Prodi and Jean-Claude Juncker, respectively-- has managed, after thirty-six hours of hard negotiation to remove the obstacles posed by certain member states, to ensure that the project for a Reform Treaty that preserves the spirit of the European Constitution with sufficient amendments to make it acceptable to all, was passed
unanimously. These negotiations, held in Brussels during the European Council on the June 21 and 22, 2007, cleared the way for European development, in keeping with the objectives laid out by the German Presidency in the first semester of 2007. The new Reform Treaty gives greater political importance to the European Union and increased social rights to its citizens. The text should be drawn up by the end of 2007 so that countries have time to ratify it before the European parliamentary elections in June 2009. If the process goes according to plan, the now-defunct European Constitution will be very much at the heart of the treaty that emerges from December's Intergovernmental Conference. During the meeting of the EU's General Affairs and External Relations Council in May of this year, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, made it clear that Spain's support would depend upon the substance and equanimity of the Constitution being upheld. According to the Spanish minister, the new Treaty could not be one of "bare
minimums". The minister declared that “Spain wants the very best for Europe.” This proposal finds us once again facing the challenge of leading a Europe that looks to the future.
● Changes. This new treaty sees the member states discarding the idea of developing a Constitution as a single text whose main formal contribution to the EU's legislative body would be to replace the treaties that had been in place up to that point. In contrast, the Reform Treaty amends the existing Treaties, which will remain in force, to encompass the changes put forward at 2004's Intergovernmental Conference (IGC 2004). It is worth pointing out the two substantive clauses pertaining to the new Treaty which will have a direct impact upon both the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC). As well as offering changes in terminology - the TEU will keep its name while the TEC will be known as the Treaty on the Function of the Union - the new Treaty resolves
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a matter that has long been the cause of disagreement at the heart of the EU: its legal role. According to the conclusions reached by the European Council in Brussels in June of 2007, and in reference to the mandate designated by the Council for further development at the next Intergovernmental Conference due to be held at the end of the year, the European Union will have a unique legal role. The term "Community" will be substituted by "Union" in all Treaties as soon as the Treaty comes into force. As a result, the Union will now be founded upon the “Treaty on the Function of the Union� and the Maastricht Treaty. The conclusions arrived at by the Presidency also highlight another change: the TEU and the Treaty on the Function of the Union will have no constitutional powers. This will finally allay the fears of certain member states about losing sovereignty to the European Union. At any rate, the new text produced by the European Council in June of 2007 conser ves some of the changes set out in the Treaty establishing a constitution for Europe. These include the creation of a post for a permanent EU President who will be elected by a qualified majority and will hold the post for two and a half years, to replace the current system of a rotating presidency that changes ever y six months. The Treaty establishing a European Constitution also provides for a European Foreign Minister. Though the new agreement maintains the former Treaty's most central points, this last post has been amended and will now be known as the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. His or her duties will include presiding over the Council of Foreign Ministers, holding the Vice-presidency of the Commission and taking charge of an EU Foreign Service that will be established at the IGC at the end of this year.
The new Reform Treaty gives greater political importance to the European Union and increased social rights to its citizens. The text should be drawn up by the end of 2007 so that countries have time to ratify it before June 2009
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Another new measure will see the Commission reduced as of 2013. Rather than having a commissioner from each country as is currently the case, the Commission will be made up of representatives from just two-thirds of member States. Measures were taken to suppress the right to veto for up to forty European policies, including immigration policy, as well as extending the powers of the European Parliament and the inclusion of a clause permitting a member State to leave the organization. The Char ter for Fundamental Rights, which guarantees the protection of all human beings and the basic freedoms of all EU citizens, will become legally binding for all states except the United Kingdom. The precedence of Community law over national legislation will be formally recognized, as will the advances to be made in the fields of energy, civil protection, public health, spor t and tourism. Likewise, the fight against climate change will be made a key policy - one of many decided upon by the German government during its EU presidency. However, due to strong reser vations aired by certain member States, nowhere in the Reform Treaty will the term Constitution appear. Similarly, all references to an EU anthem, flag or currency have been deleted from the text (though not in practice). Nor will there be any talk of European law or legal frameworks, while the current terminology referring to regulations, directives and decisions will be upheld. Another measure taken has been to increase from 4 to 5 the number of member States necessar y to block a decision, while reinforcing the mechanism that allows a minority of countries to freeze an agreement, even if they do not have the number of votes necessar y to block it.
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● The EU looks ahead Each of these new measures laid out in the new Reform Treaty demonstrate how the European Union is advancing, even though the process of twentyseven countries reaching a decision can make consensus rather difficult. Never in its histor y has any decision been easily reached. From the "crisis of the empty seat" star ted by France in the sixties to the current differences of opinion between Poland and the rest of the member States, not to mention the split between "old" and "new" Europe over the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the European Union has emerged stronger than ever. Its determination to bring to the international table its ideas about a more just, efficient and sustainable economic and social order has allowed it to deal with the fluctuations of a world that is constantly changing. And now with the Portuguese presidency already in place, we can safely say that this year has witnessed many achievements. The European Council held in the Spring of 2007 reached the necessar y consensus to bring the European Union's energy model into line with the requirements stipulated in the Kyoto Protocol. Thanks to the programs in Tampere and The Hague, advances have been made in the development of the Union as a space for freedom, security and justice. This in turn has meant that civil protection and liberties have been strengthened throughout Europe. The anticipated expansion of the Schengen area and the lifting of internal land and sea border controls by the end of December 2007 (with the lifting of air borders predicted for March 2008 should the established requirements be met) provide clear evidence that the European Union is taking decisive action to improve its citizens' daily lives. In this context, the guarantee of the four freedoms of an internal market - the free movement of goods, persons, ser vices and capital - becomes crucial to growth, competitiveness and employment. The Directive on the creation of an internal market for postal ser vices, whose ap-
plication would guarantee funding for a high quality, efficient universal ser vice, together with the progress made in efforts related to the Regulation on the European Institute of Technology, are proof of the determination of a Europe with faith in progress.
● A stronger European Union for a better world. This is the slogan adopted by the Portuguese for their EU presidency this semester. Their key objectives include improving the way the Union works, assuring that the Lisbon Strategy is implemented, and an international presence that allows the European Union to reach its goals. With this purpose in mind, Portugal takes full responsibility for the European Council's mandate to hold an Intergovernmental Conference at the end of this year, which should result in the creation of a definitive version of the Reform Treaty.
From the "crisis of the empty seat" started by France in the sixties, the European Union has faced up to these difficult time and always emerged stronger than ever. But an EU that acts consistently with its objectives for internal policy must also aspire to hold a more central role in international politics. The European perspective of the western Balkan states is a key to the Portuguese presidency's agenda. It must work to stabilize and promote the necessary internal reforms within these states that lie on the EU's borders. In the same way, given that the European Union cannot remain impassive to the events unfolding in the Balkans, neither can it ignore what is happening on the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean. Deeper political dialogue is needed, together with the financial tools already in place to help ensure that the EU's peace and security are not confined solely to Europe. And so, the Portuguese objectives extend to Africa, with whom it is hoped a
"shared strategy" can be agreed upon. In the words of the head of the current European Presidency: “we must act together so that those seeing us from the outside perceive us as working towards a common goal”. It is in this context that Sócrates' offer to hold the forthcoming EU-Africa summit in Lisbon must be understood. But action on the EU's borders must be accompanied by initiatives taken on the other side of the Atlantic. The strengthening of ties between the EU and the United States has become a priority for the Portuguese presidency. These two entities must see eye to eye both politically and economically. Latin America and the Caribbean are equally important to the Portuguese agenda for this period. Negotiations for the signing of a Partnership Agreement between the EU and MERCOSUR must be taken up again, while those with Central America and the Andean Community have yet to begin. In contrast, strategic dialogue with Brazil has been guaranteed through the first EU-Brazil summit due to take place this year. On the other side of the world, China, India and the Ukraine form the basis of the Portuguese agenda on EU foreign policy; an improvement in relations with Russia is another of its priorities. In the Middle East, Portugal wants the Quartet to take back leadership of the peace process, while making a concerted effort to find a constructive approach to dealing with the most burning issues in International politics, namely the situations in Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq. In summary, following the period of reflection brought to a close by the European Council in June 2007 and the first six months of a twenty-seven member Union, Europe is once again starting to reach cruising speed. A stronger Europe that this year, with the German and Portuguese presidencies, has aspired to become a true Union: a Union that following December's IGC wants more than ever to be a source of progress and prosperity for those within its borders and outside them. Europe advances again.
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Felipe Sahagún
Journalist specializing in international relations
Europe 2025 ❖ The European vacation is over. There are challenges in the short term that cannot wait and longer-term issues requiring urgent decisions. The most pressing one is, undoubtedly, the passing of the new Treaty. The main challenge between now and 2025 is the modification of its integration into an international system that has witnessed rapid change with the end of the Cold War, 9-11 and the technological revolution. ❖ Despite its limitations, the draft Treaty agreed upon in June's summit is, for a twenty-seven member EU, the best possible outcome for the end of 2007 after two years of paralysis. If it, too, flounders like the ill-fated Treaty which hoped to provide Europe with a halfway Constitution, it will be much more difficult to adapt to the system that has emerged over the last seventeen years, an adaptation that is absolutely essential if the EU is to compete with the United States and the new superpowers. ❖ This would be a tragedy, as it would stop us from capitalizing on advances such as those by Nicole Gnesotto and Giovanni Grevi at the European Union Institution for Security Studies, which the High Representative inherited from the former Western European Union. Its final report, published a few months ago, is called The New Global Puzzle. Following two years working on and revising hundreds of reports, documents, books and essays written by top specialists, a group of twenty people have pinpointed the demographic, economic, environmental, scientific and technological changes that will take place between now and 2025, how they will affect Europe, and the best ways of dealing with them. ❖ If we do not have a more integrated EU, with greater democracy, more
solidarity, stronger institutions, fewer disagreements, greater shared sovereignty and strengthened cooperation, it will be very difficult to respond effectively to the changes that have been predicted. The Reform Treaty is not a panacea; no treaty ever has been. But it is another step along the right road. ❖ After changes to the leadership of the EU's principal power bases and a revision of the text by legal experts over the summer, the moment of truth has arrived. Setting aside the innumerable technical problems, the 27 member states have put on the table at least seven issues that demand political compromise. ❖ They are the changes to the voting system imposed by Poland, the opt-out clauses in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and any decisions obliging states to modify their legal and judicial systems stipulated by the UK, possible changes in the text referring to the Central European Bank, the definitive jurisdiction of the new High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the references to citizenship and, further down the line, the future European diplomatic service. ❖ Portugal, presiding over the EU this semester, is working to overcome these political differences in a month and a half, as well as to prepare a provisional text for the middle of October when the Lisbon summit is to be held. If all goes according to plan and a consensus is reached at the summit to be held in Brussels in December, 2008 will be the year of ratifying treaties and the EU could arrive at the Parliamentary Elections in June 2009 with a road map for the next five years. ❖ More than five years is an eternity in the life of the EU, despite the fact that the
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new French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, has already suggested putting together a group of experts to consider the reforms that will be necessary in 2020-2030. It is unlikely that this timeframe will appeal to everyone. In the UK, the Euroskeptics are already starting to mobilize, demanding a referendum and gaining support. The new prime minister, Gordon Brown, has never been known for his love of Europe. ❖ Despite being grateful to Mr. Sarkozy for his contribution to making the new mini-treaty possible, few European governments share his view of the relationship between Islam and the West as being Europe's top priority, as he made clear in his first presidential speech on foreign policy on August 27th. ❖ “The modern history of relations between Russia (Toynbee never got used to calling it the USSR) and our western society is, in some respects, a repetition of an older story in which the role played by western civilization was held by its predecessor, the Roman Empire, while the Russia's role was played by Islam." These were the words of the historian Arnold Toynbee in a series of conferences given at the BBC in 1952, when the Cold War was in its glacial phase. ❖ Reclaiming Islam as an adversary and using it to fill the void left by the USSR is most provocative and intellectually tempting, especially for the Neoconservatives. It safeguards what Eisenhower called the "military-industrial complex". George Bush, with help from Karl Rove and a strategy that confused Iraq with Al-Qaeda terrorism with the single aim of creating fear, paralyzing, and winning votes, was able to use it to win re-election in 2004. However, this farce can only go on for so long. ❖ Peace and prosperity aside, it is difficult to find priorities shared by all the current members of the EU. They are no small matter. They are, indeed, the two main reasons the EU's founding fathers established the three communities known today as the European Union.
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Dobro jutro, which means “good morning" in local parlance, is once again overheard in the streets of the old Yugoslavia after years of conflict that cast a shadow over this land and its inhabitants. The Balkans are now allowing their own lively, dancing music to emanate on the international stage, and, overcoming the ravages of war, the notes from its vast culture and development are beginning, bit by bit, to emerge.
Spain committed to the
Balkans TEXT: laura losada. PHOTOS COURTESY: efe
● Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania have received a great deal of international support since the end of the Balkan conflict, bringing them closer to the economic and social community of Europe to which they belong. And Spain has been no exception to this international commitment in the region. In 2001, the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECI) unveiled its Technical Cooperation Office (OTC) in the Balkans. Headquartered in Sarajevo, the OTC currently operates in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania. Spanish cooperation includes both Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania in the category of Countries Meriting Special Attention. Bosnia is undergoing a long, slow process of reconciliation, return, normalization and viability as a united and independent state, while Albania is an extremely poor country relative to European standards. Serbia and Montenegro, on the other hand, are considered to be Preferred Countries, which receive timely attention, focused in this case on the framework of the Stability
Agreement for Southwest Europe, which in the future will lead to a reduction in the intensity of cooperation. Cooperation with Bosnia and Herzegovina, which covers more than 19,300 square miles, has been affected by a regional conflict that began in 2001. The war left hundreds of thousands dead and countless victims of torture, millions of people displaced and the destruction of much of the country's infrastructure and industrial capacity. Following the Dayton Peace Accords, Bosnia and Herzegovina were divided into two entities, the Republic of Srpska, with a Serbo-Bosnian majority, and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a Bosnian and Bosnian-Croatian majority. Considering these factors, Spanish cooperation with Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the words of OTC's coordinator, Cristina Gutiérrez, seeks to "facilitate the region's stabilization and consolidation of peace, and, in turn, assist in the strengthening of all institutions in its path towards integration into the European Union, which is currently the focus of nearly all donors working here, including ourselves." Social and institutional strengthening, the expansion of economic capaci-
ty, as well as conflict prevention and the forging of peace are the three axes that define the AECI's work in Bosnia and Herzegovina. “You have to keep in mind that Bosnia is a relatively new country. After its declaration of independence and the end of the war, the country began to function as a state and is now creating structures that have already been established in other countries for decades, if not centuries. This involves the creation of new ministries, such as Defense and Security, the configuration of a coherent judicial system and the establishment of a General Council to the Judiciary and Fiscal Authority to ensure the independence of such powers," comments Cristina Gutiérrez.
● Guaranteeing rights. Efforts towards the bolstering of social and institutional capacity through Spanish cooperation in Bosnia and Herzegovina foster the creation of judicial and fiscal structures and the construction of a lasting rule of law which guarantees the enjoyment of rights by all citizens, as well as the creation of institutions to ensure that this process unfolds with efficiency and impartiality. Along these lines, Spain collaborates with local au-
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Before and after. The image above shows the old Mostar bridge that spans the Neredva River as it was in 1996, after it was destroyed by Croatian bombing in 1993. The large image shows the reconstruction of the bridge in July of 2004, rebuilt with Spanish assistance.
thorities in the creation of a Center for Legal Documentation that enables professionals to consult all jurisprudence issued by various tribunals in previous cases, all of which leads to an enrichment of the country's judicial efforts. In this arena, Spanish cooperation has also led to the creation of a department for financial intelligence that investigates money laundering and the financing of terrorism. This project has relied on support from and collaboration with Spanish experts from the Commission for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Financial Irregularities. This is one of the projects that is required to lead Bosnia and Herzegovina along its path towards integration into the EU.
Spain's contributions to the region TOTAL ODA AECI 2003 27,152,330.00 4,411,971.66 2004 19,902,750.00 4,449,384.69 2005 6,298,073.00 3,621,227.56 2006 (not available) 4,064,866.00 2007 (not available) 3,870,000.00 figures in euros
â—? The economic situation. Another form of activity related to Spanish cooperation in Bosnia and Herzegovina is tied to a problem that has persisted for more than a decade since the signing of the peace accords: the lack of economic recovery. Destroyed by war, businesses and infrastructure are in dire need. Job creation and a competitive marketplace are needed. The poverty level - almost 20% of all citizens live on less than $4.25 per day - calls into question the degree of improvement achieved by the country. The AECI acts in this environment by supporting small businesses, building infrastructure, strengthening institutional capacity and fostering ties within the business community. In turn, the EU has encouraged the creation of five Agencies for Regional Economic Devel-
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opment within Bosnia and Herzegovina. One of the most representative projects of these agencies involves the creation of a center for agricultural development, at the request of the participating municipalities. It serves as a hub for exchange and training for the entire agricultural community and seeks to forge relationships among producers, processors, and marketers. Two universities of agricultural engineering and the Agro-Mediterranean Institute of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, all in Mostar, are involved with this center, located in the same city. Spanish Non-Governmental Organizations also support efforts to foster the country's economic development. For example, the Movement for Peace, Disarmament and Liberty (MPDL), in tandem with other organizations, supplements the management work that helps to promote bilateral cooperation with projects such as those supporting agricultural cooperatives and the community of irrigators in the Pópovo Valley, 12,350 acres of fertile land that was mined during the war and whose recovery of agricultural production has been a driving force for development in the region.
can return physically, but if they don't have work, it is very difficult to stay in an area", asserts Cristina Gutiérrez. Another effort that is part of Spanish cooperation involves mine removal and the elimination of light arms still present in the country. Both components involve a serious threat to the
● Wounds that take a long time to heal. The third side of this triangle of activity the international community is pursuing in search of economic equilibrium and political stability is the peaceful coexistence of peoples in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Nonetheless, as the coordinator of Spanish cooperation in the country says, "there are wounds that take a long time to heal; when reconciliation is needed, it is impossible to demand a faster pace". But, in addition to time for healing, there are judicial mechanisms that can reduce the pain caused by these wounds. “This field is very open to NGOs that have worked and continue working with returnees. And return also implies the ability to find a job, which points towards economic development as a very important factor in these projects. A lot of these problems begin with people having their homes rebuilt; they
in 2001, the AECI inaugurated the Technical Cooperation Office in the Balkans with expertise in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania
The removal of land mines from the country is an important task being undertaken by Spanish cooperation, due to the consequences it has for the civil population, agriculture and economic development.
security of citizens and, moreover, represent a tremendous impediment to the country's agricultural development and operations throughout the country. The AECI also supports victims of torture. One of the organizations that receives Spanish support is the Center for Victims of Torture, which offers medical and psychological assistance to those who intend to testify before the War Crimes Tribunal. "To us, this seemed like a crucial component in the continuation of the work that the State Court has per formed. In this context, a Spanish judge has also been commissioned to ser ve on the tribunals that judge war crimes in the Court. NGOsponsored efforts have also emerged for the purpose of bringing the National Court and war crimes tribunal closer to the people, creating platforms where people feel supported when they appear to testify", says Cristina Gutiérrez. “It's now or never. A lot of time has passed and many people don't even known how to appear to testify, much less what they might encounter; there are people who don't even have enough money to travel to Sarajevo to testify." When Cristina Gutiérrez arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina, having spent eleven years with a health-related NGO, she witnessed the total destruction wrought by the war. Since then, the country has overcome the phases of humanitarian and reconstruction assistance. She now maintains an optimistic outlook: “The challenges in creating structures that are functional and viable for citizens, such that they feel involved and committed to their own future. This is why it is also important to bring about a higher level of public participation, so that the citizen feels that he or she has channels of communication with those in political power. This country has a unique opportunity in its approach towards European integration, and, along with it, the relinquishment of international cooperation. I am confident that the country will seize upon this opportunity and that we'll eventually be able to pack our bags with the feeling of having done our jobs."
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Francisca Sauquillo
president of the movement for peace, disarmament and liberty
Wars aren't over once they're off the front page ❖ According to the latest figures of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), almost 35 million people are in need of protection due to their status as refugees, displaced persons, applicants for asylum or statelessness. Year after year, these figures continue to grow due to serious world problems such as armed conflict, natural catastrophes, and human rights violations committed by various perpetrators at both the national and international level. ❖ In light of this situation, it is necessary to insist upon the importance of working with these groups, confronted with the sad reality that once the brief period of political and media interest in a humanitarian crisis has passed, their problems are forgotten as the rest of the word becomes more preoccupied with its daily affairs. Avoiding this neglect is precisely the goal of our "Wars aren't over once they're off the front page" campaign, which is focused on the old Yugoslavia region, even though no one talks about it any more because they consider it a problem from the past that has already been resolved, despite the more than a half million currently displaced people or refugees. ❖ In fact, the war of the 1990s in the Balkans marked a milestone for the efforts of many agents of international cooperation and the world at large, as well as for organizations such as the Movement for Peace. Certain elements characteristic of this conflict seized our attention: the historic moment, after the fall of the Berlin wall and the resurgence of nationalist movements; its relation-
ship to the dissolution of the Soviet bloc; the strong media response, with direct television broadcasts; the region's geographical location in the heart of Europe, not to mention the fratricidal (whether considered actual warfare or not) and racist component; and the prolonged nature of the conflict.
According to UNHCR, in Bosnia and Herzegovina more than 2 million people fled their homes during the conflict in the 1990s ❖ In a significant way, the massive displacement that took place mainly in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1991 and 1995 sparked the need for enormous humanitarian assistance. According to the UNHCR, nearly half of the population of 4.4 million inhabitants fled their places of residence in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In fact, the Department of Humanitarian Assistance for the European Commission (ECHO) was created as a result of this conflict. ❖ The international community then responded broadly in the face of this catastrophic situation. Refugee camps and community centers were established, the shipment and delivery of convoys with basic goods was arranged, and the United Nations Blue Helmets were deployed. ❖ Spain became involved for the first time in this region not only as a result of its internal situation but also in response to a strong, spontaneous
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reaction to the conflict by our civil society. Spanish cooperation was and continues to be very strong in this region, as demonstrated by the continued presence of some NGOs since the outbreak of conflict and the excellent work performed by the Technical Cooperation Office since its opening in April of 2001. ❖ In addition, to this day, the organization which I head, the Movement for Peace (MPDL), has been working in the region since 1992. From emergency and reconstruction programs to development assistance, which is now more advanced, an enormous amount of effort has been expended in the region. In only the past 6 years, our legal aid projects, financed in large part by the AECI, have helped 45,000 displaced persons, refugees and returnees to obtain their rightful citizenship, to recover their land and property, to have their right to a pension recognized, or to gain access to health care in their villages, among other forms of aid. There was the case, for example, of Croat Petar Kunic, to whom the European Tribunal of Human Rights ❖ Also during this period, close to 5,000 persons from those same groups have received basic material assistance, medicine, productive aid for starting family businesses or professional training, all for the ultimate purpose of reconciliation and normalization of the lives of the population, and, consequently, for building peace in the broadest sense of the word. ❖ Without question, we are talking about a prolonged and complex challenge to bring an end to the situation of neglect and vulnerability to threats faced by thousands of people who dream of being able to enjoy a brighter future and a normal life of peace and liberty. Because the wounds opened by a conflict such as the one in the Balkans do not heal with the end of hostilities or the signing of a peace agreement. And wars simply do not end once they're off the front page.
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foreign affairs in brief Felipe González, Special Ambassador for the Bicentennial of Latin American Independence ● The Council of Ministers approved the appointment of Felipe González as Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador for the Bicentennial Commemoration of the Independence of Latin American Republics. The creation of the National Commission for the Commemoration of the Independence of the Latin American Republics demonstrates the Spanish government's willingness to contribute to the initiatives that Latin American countries plan to carry out over the upcoming years in commemoration of their independence. In this way, today's Spain shows its willingness to take advantage of the opportunity to share in the definitive consolidation of constitutionalism and democracy with its transatlantic counterparts, as well as gain a deeper understanding of the ongoing development of the Ibero-American Community in every aspect of political, economic, social, and cultural cooperation.
Felipe González in a meeting in El Salvador.
With the appointment of Felipe González as Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador, the Spanish government enriches this project with the presence of a figure who possesses the
ideal traits for channeling its contribution to the commemoration. These advantages include the relationships he cultivated with Latin American republics during his time as Spanish Prime Minister, as well as the subsequent work he did on networking and the prestige and recognition he acquired on the continent.
The Vice Prime Minister of the Spanish Government made an official visit to Latin America ● María Teresa Fernández de la Vega went on a 12-day official visit to Latin America from the latter part of July through the beginning of August, visiting 6 countries. She passed through Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Chile and Argentina with the objective of strengthening political, cultural, economic and social ties. It was the Vice President's third visit to Latin America following those made in August 2005 and 2006. She was accompanied by both Leire Pajín, the Secretary of State for Cooperation, and Trinidad Jiménez, the Secretary of State for Ibero-America. The trip's first port of call was Antigua, Guatemala. María Teresa Fernández de la Vega addressed two seminars on equality and domestic violence, reminding those present that Spain “is leading the way on policies of gender.” In Honduras, she inaugurated the new Spanish Cultural Center. In the Nicaraguan capital, the Vice Prime Minister signed a subsidy agreement with Nicaragua, donating 4 million euros, as well as confirming the cancellation of a debt of about 30 million dollars owed by the Nicaraguan government to Spain. In Ecuador, María Teresa Fernández de la Vega took part in the opening of the 10th Regional Conference on Latin American and Caribbean Women sponsored by CEPAL, and visited the Galapagos Islands. In addition, she signed an agreement on family regrouping for Ecuadorean immigrants working in Spain. In Chile, she learned about the preparatory work for the 17th Ibero-American
Fernández de la Vega with the President of Argentina, Néstor Kirchner. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
Summit of Heads of State and Government taking place in Chile this November under the motto “Social cohesion and social policies for achieving more inclusive societies in Ibero-America.” And finally, in Argentina, she chaired the closing session of the convention on “Spanish, a Language for Dialogue.” María Teresa Fernández de la Vega met with the Presidents of all six countries and held other meetings with important figures from the political, institutional and cultural arenas. She also had meetings with Spanish communities and business leaders, and visited projects financed as a result of Spanish cooperation. Bilateral relations between Spain and the six countries included on the visit are hugely important for both parts.
Carlos Castresana will head the Anti-Impunity Commission in Guatemala ● The United Nations SecretaryGeneral, Ban Ki-Moon, has appointed Spanish lawyer Carlos Castresana as head of the International Anti-Impunity Commission in Guatemala. The commission, which is the result of an agreement between the United Nations and Guatemala, aims to strengthen and assist institutions in the investigation and prosecution of those responsible for criminal offenses resulting from the actions of illegal and clandestine security groups. Likewise, the commission –whose initial mandate is for two years– will fight against criminal organizations that have become a threat to basic security in the country. Carlos Castresana, an internationally renowned lawyer, worked in the
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Casa Asia opens a center in Madrid
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, alongside Ambassador Juan Antonio March and Foundation Director Luiz Bazire, during the videoconference with Miquel Barceló. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
Meeting of the ONUART Foundation Board of Patrons ● Santa Cruz Palace, the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, was the venue for the ONUART Foundation's public presentation meeting held on September 10. Miquel Barceló was responsible for the restoration and decoration of Suite 20 in the Palace of Nations, which was the foundation's first major project in Geneva. The ONUART foundation --formed in Madrid on April 24 of this year-- is a private, non-profit organization whose purpose is to promote the presence of Spanish art at the United Nations and other multilateral forums held at the Geneva headquarters. The Min-
Spanish anti-corruption prosecution office between 1995 and 2005. In 1997 he received the Human Rights Award from the Pro Human Rights Association for his work encouraging the prosecution of those responsible for the illegal imprisonment and disappearance of
ister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation is the foundation's president. The foundation's first large project is the work created by Miquel Barceló as part of the renovation of Suite 20 in the Palace of Nations in Geneva. The work will be the most significant artistic contributions received by the United Nations since it was formed in 1945. It covers an area of approximately 1500 m², setting a new milestone not only for the UN headquarters in Geneva but for the organization in general. Barceló's dome represents an attempt to portray art as an instrument for encouraging dialogue and understanding between cultures and civilizations, as advocated by the UN. In recognition of the work's significance, the UN has decided that Suite 20 will be the future headquarters for the Human Rights Council, and for this reason it has been given the name “The Human Rights and Alliance of Civilizations Suite” The unveiling is planned to take place during 2008.
people during the military dictatorships in Argentina and Chile. In recent years he has worked in the Mexico regional center of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, and since 2006 he has coordinated the project on Drug Abuse and Crime Prevention.
● Casa Asia, whose official headquarters is in Barcelona, opened a center in Madrid at the Miraflores Palace in the latter part of June. With this opening the institution is coming to the end of an era in which it firmly established itself in Barcelona, and is embarking on a plan to expand throughout the rest of Spain, setting its sights on the Basque Country, Galicia and Valencia. Casa Asia aims to be a platform for relations between Spain and the Orient. The inauguration also served as the occasion for introducing the institution's new Managing Director, Jesús Sanz, taking over from Ion de la Riva, after he was appointed Spanish Ambassador to India.
Respectful diplomacy ● ‘Don't risk your life for anything. You are part of Africa's future.” This is the message that the Spanish Government is sending out to the Senegalese media. It is part of an advertising campaign taking place in Senegal against illegal immigration, which is responsible for 70-80% of the Africans arriving on Spanish shores, especially the Canary Islands. The newspaper, radio and television spots include the words of a mother, an ill elderly man, and a father who lost his children in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Their statements are accompanied by real images of rescues and shipwrecks. In addition, the singer Youssou Ndour conveys to viewers and listeners in song the risks associated with the cayucos (Senegalese fishing boats). His message is the same: “Illegal immigration only leads to risking your life.” In addition, the Spanish Ministries for both Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and Labor, are investing in a pioneering initiative that has begun to generate hope. Both Ministries are exporting the Spanish workshop-school model in order to train qualified personnel. It has two aims: to develop national industries in fields such as hospitality, building restoration, and
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agriculture, while the same time integrating contingents of legal immigrants with existing jobs at the request of the receiving country.
Awards for Spanish volunteer workers and technicians in Afghanistan ● The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, along with the Minister of Defense, José Antonio Alonso, and the Secretary of State for International Cooperation,
Leire Pajín, bestowed the Civil Merit Cross on the civilian personnel involved with the Spanish Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in recognition of the work carried out in the Badghis Province in Afghanistan over the past two years. Those awarded with the Civil Merit Cross on behalf of the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECI) were Pablo Yuste and Francisco López. Miguel Ángel Bermúdez, Andrés Sanz, Enrique Lardíes, José Antonio Cenador, Emilia López-Dóriga, Francisco López Mendieta-Castillo, Luis de la Fuente, Álvaro Valbuena and Marco Antonio Solís were awarded the cross on behalf of the
TRAGSA company. During the ceremony, the Minister of Defense highlighted “the brilliant work” carried out by civil and military personnel towards the reconstruction and development of Afghan society and “stability” in the country. Leire Pajín emphasized the reality of the conditions in the region where the Spanish PRT is working in “the fifth poorest province of one of the poorest countries in the world”. She also talked about the achievements of Spanish cooperation in the region, including the provision of drinking water, education, health care, and transport infrastructures in Badghis. The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation described the joint mission in Afghanistan as “not only setting an example within the United Nations mission, but also of how 21st century peace-building and reconstruction missions should be.” He also described the Spanish presence in Afghanistan as a “necessary partnership because without security, development cannot take place.” He went on to describe the joint work both by civil and military personnel as “exemplary.” Finally, Pablo Yuste, the General Coordinator of the AECI in Afghanistan, gave thanks for this recognition, both on behalf of himself and the rest of the awardees, as well as thanking their families.
Second SpanishIberoamerican Conference corporate social Newly graduated members of the diplomatic corps on responsibility ● Their Majesties the King and challenges that require audacity and
Photo of the 61st graduating class of the Diplomatic School. EFE.
Queen of Spain presided over the swearing-in ceremony at the Diplomatic School for the 61st graduating class of diplomatic officers. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation made a speech encouraging the new diplomats to carry out their work “with enthusiasm and determination.” He reminded them that “21st century diplomacy requires professionals capable of tackling ever-changing
creativity,” and asked them to have the proactivity “to face modern-day challenges and opportunities.” “This minister”, he said, “needs your hope and enthusiasm. We want Spanish diplomacy to be in touch with our citizenry, and for our citizens to identify with Spanish diplomats. I appreciate your efforts to improve the international positioning of our country and to defend our national interests.”
● The Casa de América in Madrid held the Second Spanish-Iberoamerican Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on September 20 and 21, organized by the Carolina Foundation and the Euroamerica Foundation. The conference was opened by Pedro Solbes, Second Vice President of the Government, Leire Pajín, Secretary of State for International Cooperation and Emilio Botín, President of Banco Santander. The various sessions of the
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españa07 OSCE Presidency Events The OSCE's Acting Chairman, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, urged Ukrainian leaders on July 5 to ensure that a spirit of maturity and political responsibility prevail when preparing for parliamentary elections. On July 8 of this year, during the 2007 Croatian Summit, the Spanish Presidency announced its support for closing the OSCE mission in Croatia by the end of 2007, given the progress made in completing the mission's objectives. The Acting Chairman of the OSCE passed along his best wishes to new Albanian president, Bamir Topi, and made public his appreciation for the outgoing president, Alfred Moisiu, for his contribution towards the strengthening of democracy in Albania. OSCE Special Envoy, Josep Borrell, assessed the conflict resolution process during his visit to Georgia at the end of July. He also went to Tskhinvali, where he met with Eduard Kokoity and the Commander of the Joint Peace-Keeping Forces. His motive forgoing was the missile incident in Georgia on August 6th, and on the 17th he assigned Miomir Zuzul, exCroatian Foreign Minister, as his personal representative to deal with the issue.
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conference were attended by representatives from international bodies such as the OECD, the IDB and the UNDP, as well as public and private company directors and members of Spanish and foreign universities. The conference's main objective was to put forth various initiatives and visions which, on a global scale, have been promoting corporate responsibility and encouraging public-private development partnerships. To achieve this end, special emphasis was placed on finding ways in which the the Spanish business and cooperation sectors can collaborate productively on concrete initiatives in the coming years, bringing together the economic and social development goals for developing countries. The CSR concept has become one of the focal points of new thinking on social improvement and development. With the turn of the century and a new climate of criticism aimed towards the most negative effects of the globalization process, the role of businesses in development and the private sector's contribution to social development has provoked a fascinating international debate.
fairs and Cooperation will be charged with verifying the identity of the refugees and the facts surrounding their threatened status and the causes behind it.
Help those people under threat in their countries by defending their human rights
● The amount contributed to the International Exposition (taking place in Zaragoza between June 14 and September 14, 2008) through means of sponsorship is already approaching 100 million euros (compared with a predicted 65 million). From the list that currently includes almost 150 companies, the most noteworthy contributions are the twenty or so with individual donations in the region of 2 million euros. Added to those are the companies classified as partners, whose minimum contributions are at least 2 million euros, as well as other active donations. It is predicted that 6.2 million visitors will attend the exhibition, with 30,000 season tickets and 35,000 tickets for Expo Noche selling out practically immediately after they went on sale. There will be almost 100 countries participating in the event, which will be the first true themed exposition. Zaragoza wants to become the world water capital.
● Spain will receive people who are threatened or persecuted as a result of their involvement in defending human rights and assist them in leaving the country where they work, as well as with temporary asylum in Spain. This policy was set out in a recent regulation adopted by the Spanish Government. The direct beneficiaries of these grants are people of non-Spanish nationality who are threatened or persecuted in the country where they live for their involvement in either promoting or defending human rights, as long as they meet all of the required conditions for the grant benefit listed in the General Law on Grants. The Office of Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Af-
Scale model of the Torre del Agua, on the grounds of the Zaragoza 2008 Exposition. PHOTO EXPO 2008
Corporate investment in Expo 2008 exceeds predictions
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One of the key features of Expo Zaragoza 2008 is its inclusive spirit. A literary competition is being held entitled ‘Cuentos del agua’ (Water Stories), in collaboration with the Laberinto de las Artes publishing house and the literary workshop, 'Escuela de Escritores' (Writers’ School). The competition, with water as its main theme, is aimed at Spanish-speaking writers.
Elcano courtyard in Santa Cruz Palace.
There will be a 52% increase to the MAEC budget for the 2008 fiscal year ● The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation will receive a budget of 3.4063 billion euros for 2008. The figures approved by the Government represent an increase of 52% compared to 2007 and reflect a major increase in funding from the legislature. In this way, Spain will increase its presence in international bodies and in projects promoting peace-
parliamentary
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Social cohesion as a democratic principle ● On September 11 and 12 the Third Ibero-American Parliamentary Forum convened in Valparaíso, Chile. The forum, which brings together all of the Ibero-American legislative chambers, incorporates the vital element of popular democratic representation into the dynamic of Ibero-American summits. Spain has participated in these forums through the attendance of many institutional delegations from the Congress of Deputies and the Senate, along with members of government committees and the presidents of foreign affairs, cooperation, and Ibero-American commissions from both chambers. Work is done by the forum to address the widespread problem of social cohesion and its impact on democratic processes and institutional stability. In spite of economic development in recent years, social inequality has serious consequences for Latin American countries and emigrant com-
building and development. It will also assist in dialogue with Sub-Saharan Africa, par ticularly those countries with migrator y flows towards Spain, as well as strengthen relations with the United States, Asia, and our European counterpar ts. There will also be a par ticular focus on consular affairs. The projected 2008 budget includes an apportionment of 1.686 billion euros for International Cooperation, representing an increase of 947.7 million euros compared with 2007. The budget for the Spanish Agency for Cooperation (AECI) will increase in 2008 to 942.8 million euros, an increase of 181.2 million over 2007. This means that the Spanish Prime Minister is fulfilling his commitment to increase spending to 0.5% of GDP. The Cervantes Institute will be as-
munities from the European countries within the Ibero-American Community. In our Community there are currently 205 million people living in conditions of poverty. The conclusions reached by the forum underlined the importance of social redistribution policies, supported by tax reform, in order to overcome the precarious situation created by inequality in relation to political citizenship. When people lack the basic means to exercise political citizenship, social inequality becomes institutional instability. The conclusions reached at the Third Ibero-American Parliamentary Forum can be viewed at www.foro-chile. cl, and will be a vital document conveying the thinking of heads of state and government at the Ibero-American Summit in Santiago, Chile. The forum continued in its institutionalization process, adopting mechanisms for monitoring and assessment. The Fourth Forum will be held in El Salvador during 2008.
sisted in its quest to strengthen the Spanish language with an increase of 11 million euros, giving a total of 100.6 million euros.
The Cervantes Institute will educate emigrant children ● The Ministries of Labor and Education, along with the Cer vantes Institute, have decided to jointly tackle the education of children who are descendants of emigrants by signing an agreement allowing foreign students to take exams free of charge to earn the certification in Language and Culture awarded by the Cer vantes Institute. The agreement will lead to an improvement in the conditions and education of these young people through the
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opening of new educational spaces and platforms. In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation will prepare an indepth study on the consequences of the coming into force of the new Civil Code regarding nationality. This will allow many emigrants and their children to acquire or reacquire Spanish nationality.
A visit to Retamares Military Headquarters ● Miguel Ángel Moratinos, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, held a meeting with various NATO commanders and the Spanish contingent during his visit to the Retamares Headquarters in Madrid. Along with Heidelberg in Germany, Retamares is one of only two land component command headquarters in the NATO command structure in Europe. Created in September 1999, its basic objectives are to assist in maintaining the peace and security of the members of the Atlantic Alliance. NATO also has two maritime component command headquarters, in Northwood (United Kingdom) and Naples (Italy), as well as two air component command headquarters, in Ramstein (Germany) and Izmir (Turkey).
Alliance of Civilizations Forum in Madrid ● During his visit to New York to attend the UN General Assembly meetings, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation offered the Spanish capital as headquar ters for the First Alliance of Civilizations Annual Forum. The forum will take place on Januar y 15 and 16, 2008 in Madrid, with participants including representatives from government and international bodies, as well as impor tant figures from foundations, NGOs and civil society in general. The Minister also announced that Spain is drawing up a National Plan for the Alliance of Civilizations.
Foreign Affairs Ministers Fernando Morán, José Pedro Pérez-Llorca, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, Marcelino Oreja and Carlos Westendorp, during the launch of the exhibition at the Santa Cruz Palace. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
Photo Gallery on Foreign Affairs Ministers since the Transition ● On September 18 of this year the photographic exhibition ‘Foreign Affairs Ministers since the Transition’ was launched at Santa Cruz Palace. The exhibition gathers together over 50 images to produce a graphic story of the 11 ministers of foreign affairs since the beginning of democracy, including their most significant moments. The exhibition, which was open to the public with free admission, will be moved to the Ministry headquarters in Torres Ágora in Madrid, where it will remain as a permanently updated photographic backdrop. Running simultaneously with the exhibit was an open house organized at the Santa Cruz Palace headquarters, where minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos hosted a group of students from Madrid, telling them about his work and daily schedule.
Above. Miguel Ángel Moratinos talking with senator Manuel Fraga during the launch. Below. The Minister plays host to a group of students in his office in Santa Cruz Palace. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
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spain abroad This year marks the 30th anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Spain. March 28, in particular, is a landmark date for the reunion of two nations united by a powerful historical bond. Furthermore, both countries are keenly aware that their democratic values, their common language, and their concurrence with regard to the international situation offer significant mutual advantages, which in the future will only become stronger with the establishment of new lines of bilateral, regional, and multilateral cooperation. Today may be the dawning of the brightest day in the common history of Mexico and Spain.
Spain and Mexico, A Shared History TEXT: pepe bodas. PHOTOS COURTESY: efe and the vietnamese embassy
Above. Photograph taken in April of 1977, showing Spain's head of business, Amaro González de Mesa, as he raises the Spanish flag over the former Spanish Embassy, where the Republican Government was headquartered for 22 years. Below, Their Majesties the King and Queen of Spain, during a reception held at the Embassy for the Spanish colony in November of 1978. PHOTOS COURTESY EFE.
● This year marks the 30th anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Spain. March 28, in particular, is a landmark date for the reunion of two nations united by a powerful historical bond. Furthermore, both countries are keenly aware that their democratic values, their common language, and their concurrence with regard to the international situation offer significant mutual advantages, which in the future will only become stronger with the establishment of new lines of bilateral, regional, and multilateral cooperation. Today may be the dawning of the brightest day in the common history of Mexico and Spain. Excellent relations have been formed between Mexico and Spain, a fact that was made very clear with the Spanish President of the Government, José Luis Rodríguez the recent visit to Mexico of Spanish President, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, during which the Declaration for a Deeper Strategic Partnership between Mexico and Spain was signed.
The purpose of this declaration is to expand the influence of the Binational Commission and the system of official visits and contact between the two countries and also to emphasize common points in the international policies of both countries, especially with regard to areas such as multilateralism, the United Nations, the defense of Human Rights, and the Alliance of Civilizations. The Plan of Action for this Joint Declaration represents a new level of cooperation in which both countries will pursue a wide range of objectives, which include providing greater mutual understanding and working together to find solutions for global problems, such as climate change and international terrorism. As declared by both Mexican President Felipe Calderón and President José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero in a joint statement published in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations: "Mexico and Spain, gratified by the progress that has been made, renew our commitment to continue working for the welfare and prosperity of our peoples and our coun-
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> facts about mexico Official Name: United Mexican States Area: 1,958,201 Km2 Population: 103,263,388 (2005 census) Government: Federal Republic Capital: Mexico City Currency: Mexican Peso GDP per capita: 8,138 dollars Annual Growth Rate: 1.4 (2000-2005) Inflation Rate: 3.8% (2006) Unemployment Rate: 3.58% (2006) Population Density: 52.7 inhabitants per km2 Life Expectancy: 73.4 years (2000-2005) Infant Mortality: 28.2% (2000-2005) Fertility Rate: 2.5 Language: Spanish. Indigenous languages are spoken among approximately 6.7% of the population, of which Nahuatl and Maya are the most widespread.
tries, and to help build a more responsible, just, and equitable international order."
● Economic Relations. Investment is one of the key topics on the 2007 agenda for relations between Mexico, Spain, and the EU in the context of the Free Trade Agreement. It is important to note the growing importance of investment in our bilateral economic relations, which has turned Spain into the second largest investor in Mexico, second only to the United States. Spain's principal investments have been made in the following economic areas: finance (BBVA, Santander), telecommunications (Telefónica), airport management (AENA, Dragados-Aeropuertos del Pacífico, Globalia), gas distribution (Gas Natural), electricity (Iberdrola, Unión Fenosa, Abengoa), tourism (Meliá, Riu, NH, and Iberostar), and construction and communications (OHL, CAF, Acciona, FCC, Dragados). Current outlooks indicate significant progress in Spanish investment over the
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next few years, due both to the interest of Spanish enterprise in privatization and liberalization processes (especially the opening of the power, communications, and transportation industries) and to the remarkable phenomenon of internationalization of small and medium-sized Spanish businesses in tertiary and secondary industries in Mexico.
● Trade Relations. In 2006, the volume of bilateral trade reached a historic high-Spanish exports to Mexico rose to 3.074 billion euros, at an annual growth rate of 16.1%, while Mexican exports to Spain reached 2.819 billion euros, at an annual growth rate of 3.7%. Growing Spanish investment in Mexico has made Spain the second largest investor in Mexico, after the U.S. Between 2000 and 2006, Spanish investment in Mexico totaled 16.7 billion Euros and forecasts estimate that new investments in 2007 will be in the range of 3 billion Euros. The industries providing the most exports to
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Mexico include the industrial technology (544 million euros), environment and energy production (276 million euros), and fashion (174 million euros) industries.
Images of the Spanish Embassy in Mexico City
a spaniard in mexico Xavier Aranzabal Lasagabaster, President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Mexico City
● Tourism, Culture, and Education. Tourism-related income makes up over 7% of Mexico's GDP. Mexico receives over 21 million tourists every year. Spain is the second largest foreign investor in Mexican tourism, having invested over 300 million dollars. Over 100 Spanish hotels with a total of more than 40,000 rooms currently operate in Mexico. Both Spain and Mexico are currently enjoying a fruitful period of mutual exchange characterized by visits at every level, by regular, productive contact between public and private entities in both countries, and by the organization and execution of over 400 activities and projects related to cultural and academic cooperation, the promotion of Spanish culture, and culturally-based development activities. It is important to point out that both Mexico and Spain share principles that guide our cultural actions abroad, especially the concept of cultural liberty as a fundamental
element for human development and the acknowledgement of cultural diversity as a vehicle for promoting peaceful coexistence, governability, and social cohesion. It is also important to account for the ever-greater cultural presence of the Autonomous Communities within Mexico, the increasing support of culture-related projects by the Spanish private sector, and the cultural movement generated through the joint efforts of universities in both countries. With regard to education, young Mexicans have shown a growing interest in Spain, which translates into the granting of over 5,000 student visas annually to Mexicans enrolling in Spanish universities. The National Distance Learning University of Spain (Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia) has an Associate Center in Mexico's capital city. Furthermore, the Open University of Catalonia, the Barcelona Polytechnic University, and the Santillana Group Postgraduate University Institute have also opened branches in Mexico. Bilaterally, Mexico participates in the education center quality and management training program for professors.
“The Spanish business person carries an image of honesty” — How do you feel about Spanish-Mexican relations, especially economic relations? — Both countries are at one of the best moments in their history. Large Spanish businesses have found a potential for growth in Mexico that you would expect in a country with a very promising future. If Mexico is able to resolve its structural issues, its potential for growth is tremendous. — How have they evolved in recent years? — The success of large businesses has been absolutely amazing, but we're still waiting for that same development to extend to small and medium-sized businesses. I see enormous de-
velopment potential for small and medium-sized businesses in the context of Spanish-Mexican co-investment. — Do you see being a Spaniard in Mexico as an advantage or a disadvantage in doing business? — Money doesn't care about race, creed, or nationality, but as a Spanish businessperson, it is true that you carry an image of honesty and uprightness. Being a Spaniard is more of an advantage than a disadvantage, but it will never determine whether or not a business is able to sustain itself. — How well has the Spanish colony become integrated into Mexico? — The Spanish colony identifies
very well with Mexican culture and is an active participant in nearly every aspect of national life. However, the recent wave of residents that have come to Mexico with the large businesses show somewhat less integration. — What are some of the best reasons for choosing Mexico as a place to work and live? — Economic conditions in Spain today are very different from those of the era of great emigrations. However, Mexico continues to provide entrepreneurs with the opportunity for considerable economic success in an environment where the culture, values, and traditions are very similar to those found in Spain.
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viewpoint
Carmelo Angulo
Spanish Ambassador to Mexico
Spain and Mexico, Striving for Excellence ❖ It is almost a cliché to say that relations between Mexico and Spain have never been better and that perfect harmony has been established at nearly every level, but it is important to realize that in recent years a powerful network of common interests and shared world views has been formed, that our respective societies understand and respect one another even more, and that meaningful, trustworthy political relations have been established. We are talking about a qualitatively powerful relationship--a firm alliance-that exhibits vast potential for the future. ❖ In ef fect, nearly 20 billion dollars worth of Spanish investment in key sectors of the Mexican economy have, since the year 2000, ensured a powerful Spanish presence in the banking, tourism, infrastructure, and energy sectors, while helping to raise Mexico's competitiveness and generate stable employment in both countries. With over 100 hotels and more than 45,000 rooms, Spain's presence in Mexican tourism has opened the way for a flood of several million Spanish visitors who have learned to understand and respect Mexico's powerful identity, the beauty of its unparalleled cultural heritage, and the creative force found in its architecture, its landscapes, its food, and the warmth of its people. ❖ In my opinion, it is this strong economic presence that has made Spain the second largest investor in Mexico, coupled with the constant flow
of tourists and the endless stream of musicians and artists that has allowed each society to increase its own self worth, respect the other's idiosyncracies, and learn to deliberate together on common projects and actions taking place on an international level. Thus, President Rodríguez Zapatero's recent
President Rodríguez Zapatero's recent visit to Mexico demonstrated the carefully cultivated relationship that exists between both governments visit in July brought to light the carefully cultivated, systematic relationship that exists between our governments, who share common visions and common values, as do the representatives of civil society; and it is precisely these shared values and visions that have allowed the old clichés to be broken down and allowed us to more properly align our positions with regard to the important global issues of the day, namely human rights, the
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environment, the promotion of democracy, and joint efforts to strengthen the Community of Ibero-American Nations. ❖ Today, the timeless and almost mythical names of Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Octavio Paz, Carlos Fuentes, Juan Rulfo, Carlos Monsiváis, and many others are joined by a new generation of writers such as Ángeles Mastretta and Laura Esquivel; musicians such as Maná, Luis Miguel, and Lila Downs; film-makers such as Arturo Ripstein, González Iñárritu, Guillermo del Toro, Alfonso Cuarón, Gael García Bernal, and others, all of whom we have seen as members of our own family and all of whom have allowed their Ibero-American identity, together with their powerful ideals and values, to shine before the entire world. Likewise, our most famous writers and artists have had a similar effect in the libraries and on the stages of Mexico. ❖ There is a special Spanish-Mexican magic that goes beyond politics and culture-that is to be found in mutual admiration and shared values arising from the closeness of our identities, the strong basis of rite and custom, and our position as key references in both America and Europe. The secret lies in how we are turning this deep, exciting relationship into a set of structured commitments--a true strategic alliance--that are becoming ever richer, ever more detailed, and ever more permanent. As Carlos Fuentes pointed out during his acceptance speech for the Prince of Asturias Literature Prize in 1994, both countries must develop a culture for a new century, "a culture of inclusion; a culture that can do away with the empire of violence and establish the empire of peace; in short, a culture that will serve the highest good, which is the continuity of life on this planet." This is the path our countries have chosen: to draw ever closer as irreplaceable and trustworthy partners.
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Navantia a national paradigm in international naval construction TEXT: pepe bodas. PHOTOS COURTESY: navantia
● Navantia's principal client is the Spanish Navy, for which it currently has 17 ships under construction; however, it also has contracts with the navies of other countries including Norway, Malaysia, India, and Venezuela. Navantia was recently selected by the Australian Navy to design three frigates and build two amphibious ships--a clear indication of the company's competitiveness in the foreign market. Navantia closed its 2006 fiscal year with booked orders ex-
Navantia is the leading naval construction company in Spain. Its size and technological capabilities make it one of the top companies in the industry in Europe and in the world. A member of the State Society of Industrial Participation (SEPI), it was established in 2005, but has over 260 years of experience, as an offshoot of the former Bazán National Company. A contract with the Australian Government for the construction of three F-100 frigates and two amphibious ships is a sign of its competitiveness in the foreign market.
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Photograph of the S-80 submarine, which is built by Navantia and represents the cutting edge in ship production. Right, an aerial view of the Navantia shipyards in El Ferrol
ceeding 5.5 billions euros--the highest in the company's history. Its bookings consist principally of contracts with the Spanish Navy and its future projects. However, it has also achieved optimal returns on exports and repair work. Currently, all work centers are operating near 95% capacity, thus ensuring full usage of all production units until the year 2012.
● History. Navantia has inherited extensive experience with naval construction, which arose from the arsenals of the Spanish Navy. Its rise to fame began in 1730 with the creation of the historic military arsenals in Ferrol, Cartagena, and San Fernando, whose shipyards were designed for building and repairing the ships of the Spanish Navy. In 1908, these same shipyards were taken up by
the Naval Construction Company (La Naval), which also owned civil shipyards, such as those found at Matagorda and Sestao, which were later incorporated into the Astilleros Españoles Company (AESA). After the Spanish Civil War, the State took charge of military arsenals, and in 1947, Bazán, a naval construction company initially dependent on foreign technology, was established. Later, as its technical expertise grew, Bazán began to develop its own shipping projects. In 2004, the Spanish Government decided to authorize publicly-traded Izar to create a new company that would be capable of withstanding the economic crisis that had plagued it since the outset and fulfill its obligation to return all aid unrelated to military naval construction within the European legal framework to military naval construction. The agreement signed by Izar and the unions opened the way for a solution to the problems at hand and a future for the shipyards. Navantia, a public company dedicated to naval construction, was established in 2005 as a result of the splitting of Izar into two separate companies in an attempt to achieve greater business efficiency. In short, the same dry docks and slipways that now give life to cuttingedge ships such as the F-100 frigates and Scorpene submarines, were silent
NAVANTIA FACTS
5.5
billion Euros is the amount in its order books for the 2006 fiscal year
2012
is the year through which full operation of production units is guaranteed, based on current orders
witnesses to the birth of the world's first electrically-powered submarine, the "Isaac Peral", and to the construction of the first Spanish gas turbine-powered ship, the carrier "Prince of Asturias", among others.
● Facilities. Navantia is divided into three geographic centers that include shipyards for new construction, repair facilities, and engine and systems factories: Ría de Ferrol, Cartagena, and Bahía de Cádiz. Company headquarters are located in Madrid. The Navantia Production Units in Ría de Ferrol, in northwestern Spain, are equipped with some of the most advanced naval construction technology in the world and use a revolutionary production model, known as integrated construction, which helps reduce costs and production times. These centers
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are where the company builds its next generation military ships, such as frigates, with the AEGIS combat system, amphibious ships, aircraft carriers, fleet tankers, corvettes, etc. It is also renowned for its ship repair and reconversion capabilities. Located in southern Spain, Navantia's Bahía de Cádiz facility is the larg-
SIX CUTTING-EDGE SHIPS ON THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET
F-100 FRIGATE In its day, the design of this ship posed a challenge, as it represented an attempt to place the most advanced combat system in the world, the AEGIS, which up to that point had only been used in American cruiser-sized ships, inside a ship the size of a frigate. Navantia has supplied the Spanish Armada with 4 F-100 frigates and a fifth is currently under construction. The capacity of these frigates makes them a valuable tool for both conventional operations and peacetime missions.
F-310 FRIGATE
Activity at all work centers is currently approaching 95% est, in terms of area, of all the company's facilities (over one million square meters). In addition, it has one of the largest dry docks in the world, where ships measuring up to 500 meters in length can be constructed. It is also home to the largest port crane in Spain. This center specializes in the construction of tall patrol ships, large military ships, high speed patrol ships, and specialized ships. It also has a systems factory employing the latest technology where combat systems, weapons, ship control systems, and maritime security systems, as well as other products with non-military applications, such as the "Bosque" forest fire detection system, are developed. Navantia's Cartagena facility in southeastern Spain has a large covered area for the construction of specialized ships, such as submarines and minesweepers. The Cartagena facility also specializes in fiberglass, yacht repair, and the production, sale, and maintenance of four-stroke diesel engines for a wide variety of applications, ranging from power plants, to cogeneration plants, to railroad engines, to tanks.
Taking advantage of Navantia's experience in the construction of the Spanish Navy's F-100, the Norwegian Navy ordered 5 F-310 frigates, which are slightly smaller than the F-100s, but are likewise equipped with the AEGIS combat system, and also meet a set of specific requirements for operation in northern waters.
STRATEGIC ASSULT SHIP The purpose of this amphibious ship, designed for the Spanish Navy, is to allow the transport of Marine as well as Ground Forces. It has significant cargo space for tanks and storage, as well as a flight deck for airplanes and helicopters. It also has amphibious capacity for 8 landing units.
S-80 SUBMARINE This new submarine was designed by Navantia for the Spanish Navy. Four units are planned for construc-
tion. This craft represents a new twist on the conventional submarine, as it is equipped with an AIP airless propulsion system, which will allow it to remain submerged for longer than any other conventional submarine. It is equipped to carry out antisubmarine and antisurface operations, as well as transport operations for ground attacks, mine placement, and other specialized operations.
BAM MARITIME ACTION PATROL SHIP This is a medium-sized ship with reduced weaponry, designed for high maneuverability and extended time at sea. It is ideal for low-intensity sea control, naval presence, protection and escort, humanitarian aid, disaster recovery, drug- and human-trafficking operations, environmental oversight, and pollution prevention situations. It has a flight deck suitable for medium-sized helicopters, a fixed hangar, and a hospital area.
COMBAT REPLENISHMENT SHIP Navantia is currently building one craft for the Spanish Navy. Its design was based on the previous combat replenishment ship "Patiño", but with a double hull, in accordance with international regulations. This ship also has facilities for health support, repair shops, and a hangar for helicopters.
 getting to know spain
Atapuerca
the origin of t If the study of DNA is the key to determining the genetic structure of every human being, then Atapuerca, in the mountains of Burgos, can lay claim to being a sort of "bone map" for uncovering the mysteries of all of humanity. Located between the ArlanzĂłn River and the Demanda Range, Atapuerca winds along the Bureba corridor, a land that has connected the Ebro and Tajo valleys since remote antiquity.
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Several images of the Atapuerca site in the Demanda Range of Burgos.
the first europeans TEXT: david merino. PHOTOS: efe and the atapuerca foundation
â—? Nature first created,and human progress later discovered, one of the greatest paleontological treasures in the world, officially declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2000. In order to understand this work of nature, one must imagine a time when only the highest reaches of today's mountains were not submerged below the ocean's surface. This orography changed drastically as the ArlanzĂłn River formed its valley over time. The drop of the river's also lowered the level of the subterranean waters that wore away the porous rock, forming the sinkholes, depressions, and caves where the first Europeans would later live. Once nature had created the perfect conditions for warehousing an immense volume of human information in the form
of fossils, human progress assumed the task of uncovering that information. The modern age arrived in Spain as a result of European investment, which, in the case of Burgos, took shape in the form of the Sierra Company Limited, led by British entrepreneur Richard Preece William in the latter part of the 19th century. The company's charter was to extract coal and iron from the Demanda Range and then transport these minerals to the Biscayan blast furnaces, at that time the pinnacle of the Spanish steelmaking industry.
Atapuerca's scientific potential is so vast that new discoveries continue to be published based on its fossil remains
The construction of the required railway led to the discovery of the various sedimentary deposits that marked the Atapuerca Range. Within these deposits, the most important human remains lie in at the sites known as Gran Dolina, Sima de los Huesos (Pit of Bones) and Sima del Elefante (Pit of the Elephant). The research group, which received the Prince of Asturias Prize for Scientific and Technical Research in 1997, works in a part of the world that is unique due to its abundance of fossils, its sound conservation practices and its scientific importance. The preserved remains are not only of humans, but also of many types of flora and fauna that have inhabited the peninsula since the Lower Pleistocene more than one million years ago, up to present day. In the Grand Dolina site alone we can identify 11 distinct geological levels that narrate our prehistory through the millenia.
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● The hominids of Atapuerca. Discoveries made during the 2007 campaign could increase to four the number of hominid species in the Atapuerca Range. Until now, the oldest human being on record in Western Europe had been Homo antecessor, who arrived from Africa and lived in the Atapuerca Range 800,000 years ago. In Atapuerca, there are also bones of the 400,000year-old Homo heidelbergensis (Heidelberg man) and of Homo sapiens. Now, a 1.3-million-year-old tooth could supplant Homo antecessor by providing evidence that a different hominid is the oldest in Europe. This finding at the Sima del Elefante site, though yet to be confirmed, occurred exactly ten years after the co-directors of the Atapuerca research efforts --Juan Luis Arsuaga, José María Bermúdez de Castro and Eudald Carbonell-- proved that Homo antecessor, a hominoid discovered in Atapuerca and who practiced cannibalistic rites, was the ancestor of both Neanderthal man and of modernday humans. In fact, the Homo antecessor that arrived in Europe 800,000 years ago evolved on our continent into Homo heidelbergensis and later into Neanderthal man. Homo sapiens, on the other hand, arose from the Antecessor species that remained in Africa, and would later would migrate to Europe where it would coexist with Neanderthals for millennia. Heidelberg man (named after the German city), also represents a milestone in the evolution of hominids. This species developed humanity's first funereal sanctuary, which suggests the idea of abstract and symbolic thought that approximates our own. This burial site is known as the Sima de los Huesos site, where 90 percent of the world's fossil remains found for this species have accumulated. “Excalibur,” a stone implement that may have been left as a tribute to some of its members, was found among these remains. ● Latest discoveries. Atapuerca's scientific potential is so great that new findings based on its fossil remains continue to be published. One
A large number of researchers work at the excavation sites.
of the most recent studies on Atapuerca, presented in September, demonstrates that language could have emerged one million years ago, much earlier than previously thought. Similarly, another study has proven that the hands of our ancestors were as agile as our own and were endowed with the same reper toire of movements.
● So close, yet so far. Practices such as cannibalism lead us to believe that these men shared little in common with us, but when we recall that they developed abstract thinking, had the ability to speak, and possessed hands with full articulation, it is not difficult to identify with them and to imagine the difficult times in which they lived, when survival was the focus of life.
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❖ The Atapuerca Rangehas become a true encyclopedia for the study of human evolution. In this range, located in the province of Burgos, some of the most well-guarded secrets of human evolution in Eurasia are being discovered. The work conducted by the Atapuerca Research Team over three decades has produced documentation of the human population on this continent dating back ad least 1,300,000 years. ❖ The exceptional nature of these findings provides answers to three basic questions. The Burgos Range is located geographically at the point of confluence of the Duero and Ebro river basins, in an area of maximum diversity and biological wealth. At the same time, the confinement of the fluvial basins allowed the caves of this range to remain sealed, "trapping" information from successive ecosystems in its sedimentar y layers for thousands of years. The conser vation ability of these layers and the ideal conditions that contributed to the fossilization process have also been determining factors. Finally, the labors of an interdisciplinar y team over the past 30 years have borne fruit. Summer after summer, the team has conducted excavation campaigns in the field and then spent the remaining months of the year in arduous lab work, leading to the design of an unprecedented research program in the field of prehistor y and human evolution. Several thousands scientific publications have marked the progress of the Atapuerca research team, including submissions to prestigious magazines such as Nature, Science, and the Annals of the Academy of Sciences in the United States. ❖ Thanks to the work in Atapuerca, we have learned, among other things, about the oldest human presence on the European continent, dating back 1,300,000 years, the way of life of humans living 800,000 years ago, the evolution of technology throughout the
Viewpoint
Eudald Carbonell, José María Bermúdez and Juan Luis Arsuaga co-directors of the atapuerca project
Atapuerca, a shared history Pleistocene age, the possibility that human language began 500,000 years ago, and the origins of animal domestication and agriculture within the past 6,000 years. In addition, we have verified the presence of two extremes of human behavior: the cruelty of cannibalism, documented at the Gran Dolina site (800,000 years old) and later on, the tender care of the elderly and respect for the deceased which can be inferred from the study of the Sima de los Huesos site (500,000 years old). All of this is part of human nature, which we now know is not the exclusive heritage of our own species. ❖ Currently Atapuerca stands out as an exemplary project, as a result of the organization of work conducted there. Each summer, some 150 individuals work at 7 separate sites, developing a model that combines professionalism with the training of young professionals in scientific disciplines related to the study of human evolution. ❖ A model has also been developedto help some of the researchers
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obtain citizenship. Articles and books of findings, facial reconstructions of humans that preceded us, videos, web pages and a series of other materials are all utilized by the Atapuerca Foundation (www.atapuerca.org) to promote the dissemination of knowledge surrounding human evolution in general and Atapuerca in particular. ❖ Finally, various public, local, regional, and state government bodies have pooled their efforts for the institutionalization of this research project. In the city of Burgos, an international research center for prehistory and human evolution is being built, along with a center for the interpretation of human evolution. The latter is expected to become a very important adjunct to the guided tours that have been conducted at the sites for many years. ❖ The Atapuerca Range is attracting a growing number of visitors due to its scientific and social significance. As a result, the potential of the Atapuerca Range continues to grow each year as a destination for sustainable cultural tourism and is also starting to become an economic engine of growth for the surrounding communities. ❖ This is a development model that must be profiled in coming years as part of the goal of transforming Burgos and the surrounding area into a destination for cultural tourism related to human evolution, joining Castile and Leon as sites endowed with a rich cultural heritage. ❖ Atapuerca is also an asset to all of civil society, as it fosters a process of social and cultural knowledge of universal interest--a project for the socialization of science and culture never before witnessed in the field of human evolution. And so, the Atapuerca Project continues unabated, spurred on by the progress achieved to date and by the tenacity of a team and a society that seeks to broaden awareness of our own humanity.
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Since 1981, the Prince of Asturias Foundation has awarded annual prizes for scientific, technical, cultural, social, and human endeavors carried out by individuals, groups or institutions at the international level in eight categories: Communication and Humanities, Social Sciences, Arts, Literature, Scientific and Technical Research, International Cooperation, Concord, and Sports.
Prince of Asturias,
a Spanish prize of international acclaim TEXT: carlos franganillo. PHOTOS COURTESY: efe and fpa
> 2007 prizes ■ Arts.
● Each October,more than a thousand journalists from around the world descend upon Oviedo, the beautiful thousand-year-old capital of the principality of Asturias in the north of Spain, which for a brief period becomes the informational epicenter and the setting for one of the most important cultural events on the world stage. During this time, it isn't unusual for the city's more than 200,000 residents to rub elbows with figures such as Stephen Hawking or Nelson Mandela, or dine at a cafe with Claudio Magris, Woody Allen or Günter Grass. Since the Prince of Asturias Prizes were awarded for the first time 27 years ago, the ritual has been repeated each year and the prestige of the prizes and its message have reached all corners of the world. With the mission of recognizing "scientific, technical, cultural, social and human endeavor by individuals, groups or institutions at the international level," as the award invitation announces, this honor roll for humanity continues to grow year by year. While the event has today become a well-coordinated production, it bears
Bob Dylan Sciences. Ralf Dahrendorf ■ Communication and Humanities. Science and Nature Magazines ■ International Cooperation. Al Gore ■ Scientific and Technical Research. Peter Lawrence and Ginés Morata ■ Literature. Amos Oz ■ Sports. Michael Schumacher ■ Concord. Yad Vashem ■ Social
recalling that the project came into its own during the 1970's on little more than dreams and determination. Spain was still unveiling its new democracy. The will to create a new countr y and to look to the future with confidence grew out of this environment. Society flourished, particularly the media, which experienced the transformation of the countr y firsthand. In this environment of optimism and freedom, the Asturian journalist, Graciano García, the Foundation's current director, came up with the idea of a series of prizes capable of establishing a strong link between the Heir to the Spanish Throne, whose
historical title as the Prince of Asturias had just been revitalized by recently approved Constitution, and rewarding the work of exemplar y individuals and institutions in different fields of human endeavor. The project's success was far from certain, and required a great deal of institutional and financial support. But enthusiasm and good fortune converged in the decisive role of the Asturian general Sabino Fernández Campo, then Secretary General of the Household of His Majesty the King. “Sabino and I knew each other,” explains the Foundation's director, Graciano García. “I called him at the Reconquista Hotel in Oviedo where we were staying, and when I shared the idea with him, it took him less than five minutes to decide that it had to become a reality.” Fernández Campo's advocacy with the Royal Family was pivotal in setting the institution on a sure path. The backing of the Crown and support from financier Pedro Masaveu, the first president of the Foundation, served as the point of departure. The Foundation began its journey with a modest budget of just under 70,000 euros. Now, thanks to the contributions of its donors, the budget currently stands at 20 million euros.
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Image of the Campoamor Theater during a prize awards ceremony.
In September of 1980, the King and Queen of Spain presided over the signing of the Foundation's charter in Oviedo. One year later at the Campoamor Theater, an amphitheater linked to the histor y of the prizes, the first ceremony took place, with the Prizes awarded to philosopher María Zambrano, orchestra director Jesús López Cobos, economist Román Perpiñá, biochemist Alberto Sols, poet José Hierro and then-president of Mexico, José López Portillo. In an especially moving ceremony, a young Prince Felipe, only thirteen years of old, delivered his first speech. “I have wanted the first public words spoken in my life to be under the banner of the Principality of Asturias, whose title I bear with honor," he said to a full theater. That third day of October was to become the historical link between the Prince and his Principality,
Upon approaching thirty years of history, the Prince of Asturias Prizes are earning greater recognition and their international acclaim is gaining momentum. and it became a significant date on the cultural calendar. Over the years, the Prizes have been awarded to an large group of important figures and have allowed the recipients to share their work with the public at large. This important human capital was at the center of the twentyfifth anniversar y celebrations, attended by many previous award winners. With an intense program of activities between 2005 and 2006, Asturias has
become an international focal point in the cultural arena. Scientist Stephen Hawking, 1989 Concord Prize winner, opened the program with a lecture, followed by other award winners such as Woody Allen (2002 Arts Prize), Claudio Magris (2004 Literature Prize), Günter Grass (1999 Literature Prize), and Jean Daniel (2004 Communication and Humanities Prize). Music also took center stage, with the per formance of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra's "Concert for Peace-Homage to Edward Said," before an audience of more than 1,400, conducted by Daniel Barenboim, who together with Said received the 2002 Concord Prize. Many other events, such as a per formance of 'Memor y of the greats' in homage to important figures of the 20th centur y, a forum with astronaut Pedro Duque (1999 International Cooperation Prize), celebrations
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of World Poetr y Day in Asturias, and a series of debates, along with various photography exhibits, together encompassed an intense program that lasted several months. The institution's quarter-centur y celebrations received the backing of the European Parliament and the support of UNESCO, which recognized, in a declaration that was unprecedented for this type of institution, "the exceptional contribution of the Prince of Asturias Prizes to the cultural heritage of Humanity." For almost three decades, the various awards ceremonies have produced moments that will pass into the annals of histor y and provide hope for the human condition. The Concord Prize, shared by Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat, president of the Palestinian National Authority, ser ved as one such moment. The leaders of two peoples in conflict came together to receive the statuette, de-
The Prince of Asturias, accompanied by the King and Queen of Spain, after delivering his speech at the first awards ceremony for the Prince of Asturias Prizes. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
signed by Joan Miró as a symbol of the prizes. Another especially emotional and unforgettable moment occurred when seven women, including Rigober ta Menchú, Somalí Mann, Fatana Ishaq Gailani and Emma Bonino, were awarded the 1998 International Co-
operation Prize. “To me, the joining of their hands in salute to the audience, a representation of the common struggle for the defense of the rights of women, children, and, in general, the weakest among us, and the quest to overcome ideological and cultural boundaries, is an unforgettable scene,” says Graciano García. Upon approaching thir ty years of histor y, the Prince of Asturias Prizes are getting stronger and their international acclaim is gaining momentum. Its director, Graciano García, wagers a guess on his hopes for the future of the prizes: “I see the Foundation and the Prizes as first-rank international symbols and as our countr y's ambassadors to the entire world. Awards of prestige delivered by an institution respected by all, in a free and democratic Spain, united, cultured and walking a sure path in solidarity towards the future.”
> outstanding prize winners Communication & Humanities ■ María Zambrano, philosopher (1981) ■ Julián Marías, philosopher and Indro Montanelli, journalist (1996) ■ Václav Havel, president of the Czech Republic, and Cable News Network (CNN) (1997) ■ Umberto Eco, semiologist (2000) ■ Jean Daniel, journalist (2004) ■ National Geographic Society (2006) Arts ■ Antonio Tápies, painter (1990) ■ Joaquín Rodrigo, composer (1996) ■ Vittorio Gassmann, actor (1997) ■ Sebastião Salgado, photographer (1998) ■ Santiago Calatrava, architect (1999) ■ Woody Allen, filmmaker (2002) ■ Pedro Almodóvar, filmmaker (2006) Social Sciences ■ Enrique Fuentes Quintana, economist (1989) ■ Rodrigo Uría, jurist (1990) ■ Joaquim Veríssimo, historian, and Miquel Batllori, historian (1995) ■ Pierre Werner, former prime minister of Luxembourg, and Jacques Santer, president of the European Commission (1998) ■ Raymond Carr, historian (1999) ■ Carlo María Cardinal Martini, Arch-
bishop of Milan (2000) ■ Anthony Giddens, sociologist (2002) ■ Jürgen Habermas, philosopher (2003) ■ Paul Krugman, economist (2004) ■ Giovanni Sartori, political scientist (2005) ■ Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland (2006)
■ Arthur Miller, playwright (2002) ■ Claudio Magris, writer (2004) ■ Paul Auster, writer (2006)
Scientific and Technical Research ■ Guido Münch, astrophysicist (1989) ■ Santiago Grisolía, biochemist (1990) ■ Valentín Fuster, cardiologist (1996) ■ Atapuerca Research Team (1997) ■ Robert Gallo, Luc Montagnier, researchers (2000) ■ Lawrence Roberts, Robert Kahn, Vinton Cerf, Tim Berners-Lee, founders of the ■ Internet (2002) ■ Jane Goodall, ethologist (2003) ■ Antonio Damasio, neurologist (2005)
Concord ■ Stephen Hawking, scientist (1989) ■ Doctors Without Borders and Médicos Mundi (1991) ■ King Hussein I (1995) ■ Yehudi Menuhin and Mstislav Rostropovich, musicians (1997) ■ Muhammad Yunnus, Vicente Ferrer, ■ Nicolás Castellanos and Joaquín Sanz Gadea (1998) ■ Spanish Charities, (1999) ■ World Network of Biosphere Reserves (2001) ■ Daniel Barenboim, musician, and Edward Said, writer (2002) ■ San Vicente de Paúl Sisters of Charity (2005) ■ UNICEF (2006)
Literature ■ Juan Rulfo, writer (1983) ■ Ángel González, poet (1985) ■ Mario Vargas Llosa, writer, and Rafael Lapesa, linguist (1986) ■ Camilo José Cela, writer (1987) ■ Claudio Rodríguez, poet (1993) ■ Francisco Ayala, writer (1998) ■ Günter Grass, writer (1999) ■ Augusto Monterroso, writer (2000)
International Cooperation ■ Raúl Alfonsín, president of Argentina (1985) ■ Jacques Delors, president of the European Commission, and Mikhail Gorbachev, president of the USSR (1989) ■ Frederick W. De Klerk, president of South Africa, and Nelson R. Mandela, president of the African National Congress (1992)
■ Yitzhak Rabin, Israeli prime minister, and Yasser Arafat, president of the Palestinian National Authority (1994) ■ Helmut Kohl, chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (1996) ■ Government of Guatemala and the Revolutionary Union of Guatemala (1997) ■ Fatiha Boudiaf, Olayinka Koso-Thomas, Graça Machel, Rigoberta Menchú, Fatana Ishaq Gailani, Somaly Man and Emma Bonino (1998) ■ John Glenn, Valery Polyakov, Chiaki Mukai, Pedro Duque, astronauts (1999) ■ Luiz Ignácio Lula da Silva, president of Brazil (2003) ■ Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (2006) Sports ■ Sebastian Coe, athlete (1987) ■ Sergei Bubka, athlete (1991) ■ Miguel Indurain, cyclist (1992) ■ Hassiba Boulmerka, athlete (1995) ■ Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, tennis player (1998) ■ Lance Armstrong, cyclist (2000) ■ Brazilian National Soccer Team (2002) ■ Tour de France (2003) ■ Hicham El Guerrouj, athlete (2004) ■ Fernando Alonso, Formula 1 driver (2005)
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prince of asturias prizes
Viewpoint
Graciano García
director of the foundation prince of asturias
Spain's contribution to the world ❖ The Prince of Asturias Prizes have been an international clarion since their founding. The spirit that they have awakened transcends nationalities, peoples and the geographical boundaries drawn by humankind, with the purpose of recognizing those who serve as a source of inspiration for the whole of humanity, so that the work and positive influence of all of these exemplary and extraordinary individuals and institutions may extend to all corners of the planet. ❖ Thanks to the Crown's unwavering support, to their international prestige, and to the work carried out over the years by our institution, the Prizes now enjoy broad and unanimous international recognition, echoed by the support and acclaim for the other events surrounding the ceremony. The stories of journalists fill the pages and airwaves of the world's most influential newspapers, television and radio programs. Such a prestigious newspaper as The New York Times, for example, finds it extraordinary that a hidden corner of Europe has generated an initiative with such great impact. This vision illustrates the scope of our work and is proof that our efforts are moving in the right direction. And now, through television, the most important news medium, the Prizes are broadcast to a potential audience of one billion
people in more than 120 countries throughout the world. ❖ Some international organizations,such as OTI and Eurovision, have held their annual meetings in Oviedo as a public acknowledgement of the prestige of our Prizes. As a result of both meetings, more than 150 television stations from around the world were represented in Asturias to discuss its future projects.
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direct effect upon academic life, this was very important to my international reputation,” he said. Likewise, the words of sociologist and economist Anthony Giddens, winner of the Social Sciences Prize, filled our hearts with pride when he called the awards ceremony "the most important cultural ceremony in the world.” ❖ An important indicator of the transcendence of the awards is reflected in Spanish public opinion. According to the latest polls, 86 percent of Spaniards consider the Prizes to be a great source of Spain's cultural and moral heritage. Such a high percentage clearly indicates that the Prizes have become a cultural standard on the international stage, endorsed by UNESCO and recognized by the European Parliament on the twentyfifth anniversar y of the awards. They are the faithful reflection of a countr y living under progress, embracing culture, science and humanitarian action, declaring its will to live in commitment and solidarity with all the peoples of the Earth. ❖ All of these circumstancesserve to elucidate the relevance of this distinction, which is tied to the Heir to the Spanish Throne. An award that has been forged of work and perseverance, which fills us with pride and encourages us to reaffirm our ideals.
❖ But beyond these simple statistics,there are other, more human, dimensions that serve to better illuminate our work. This is evident in the response of the prize winners, who are always moved and grateful upon receiving the prize. For astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, for example, the Concord Prize was “a great honor" and “although the prizes should have no
❖ The nature of the times we live in can only be understood in global terms, and we would like to put forth our message and the message of our prize winners in this context. We aspire to attain our ultimate goals, to continue enriching a project that our Prince has defined as the "great work of Spaniards united before the world.”
culture and society Spain, among the top countries in the world for life expectancy
Homage paid to Chano Lobato at the International Cante de las Minas Festival
● According to current population estimates published by the National Institute for Statistics, Spain is among the best countries in the world for life expectancy. According to the study, if the mortality rates from the last few years are maintained, girls born in 2007 are expected to live for 83.76 years while boys are expected to live to 77.33. These figures do, however, show a slight decrease from the previous year. These studies prove to be particularly useful because they allow various policies to be implemented in advance in order to keep the population pyramid under control.
● This year La Unión hosted the 47th International Cante de las Minas Festival. Held at the beginning of August in Murcia, the event, declared an international tourist attraction, boasted the top names in flamenco and cante jondo. The festival attracts the industry's elite and aspiring novices alike in the hope of winning its top prize: the Lámpara Minera. This year's festival was a tribute to the Cádiz-born singer Chano Lobato. Guests included José Mercé, Enrique Morente, Miguel Tena, Niño de Brenes and María Jucal. This year, the Lámpara Minera was
awarded to Granada's Juan Pinilla Martín, while Juan Antonio Silva Campallo and Patricia Pérez Guerrero won the Guitar and Dance prizes, respectively.
Spain creates an Ibero-American Erasmus program for young researchers ● At the end of July, the Minister of Education, Mercedes Cabrera, announced the Spanish initiative to create a system of grants that would encourage the mobility of young Spanish researchers throughout Latin America, Spain and Portugal. The project was announced at the 17th Ibero-American Conference for Education Ministers, held in Chile at the end of July. The grants will initially be made available to Masters and Ph.D. students for the purpose of developing human resources in research and technological training in response to the needs of those countries.
SEACEX exhibits in Washington
One of the 250 ton components passes underneath Venice's famous Rialto bridge. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
Santiago Calatrava builds the first bridge in Venice in the last 125 years ● The Valencian Santiago Calatrava, one of the greatest exponents of Spanish architecture, has created a new bridge currently being built in the Italian city of Venice. The importance of this work lies in the fact that it is the first bridge in 125 years to cross the Grand Canal along with the Academia, the Rialto and the Scalzi. The structure will be 94 meters in length and 10 meters wide and will cross to the Piazza Roma. The building process has posed a real challenge for the city of canals, as the various components have to be transported by water, passing beneath the existing bridges. The project is expected to have a final cost of about 6.4 million euros.
● Legacy: Spain and the United States in the Era of Independence, 1763-1848’ is the title of the State Agency for Overseas Cultural Affairs (SEACEX) exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington. The exhibition looks at the support given by the Spanish monarchy to the creation of the United States of America. The exhibition pays homage to an important time in the history of the United States, focusing on how Spanish diplomatic, financial and military support helped pave the way to independence. It is open to the public until February 10.
Spain's commitment in the fight against climate change ● During his speech at the UN High Level summit on Climate Change, the Span-
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ish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, announced this issue to be of the utmost importance for Spain and called for the international community to act as one in order to prevent and minimize its threat. He also announced the generous donation of an additional three million euros to develop the Global Strategy for health and climate change. The Spanish premier made it clear that the United Nations must take the lead in working with and ensuring the commitment "of all countries in the fight against global warming." Earlier in his speech, the Spanish prime minister detailed the policies and measures adopted by Spain that had contributed to a 6% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in 2006. He said that Spain was at the forefront of the development of renewable energy sources, stating that it is "one of the biggest investors, if not the biggest" in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
ippines, Equatorial Guinea, Israel, or Morocco can enter the Rey de España Awards by presenting work published in the above countries in either Spanish or Portuguese. The Don Quijote and IberoAmerican awards each carry a prize of 9,000 euros (about 12,000 dollars), while winners of the press, television, radio, photography and digital photography awards will receive 6,000 euros each (about 8,000 dollars).
25th Rey de España Journalism Awards ● The EFE agency and the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECI) have announced the next Rey de España Journalism Awards. Carrying a total prize fund of 39,000 euros and a bronze sculpture by Spanish artist Joaquín Vaquero Turcios, these awards recognize the work carried out by professionals working in radio, television, photography, digital journalism and the press in Spanish and Portuguese. The Ibero-American award is given to the journalist who makes the greatest contribution to communication and shared knowledge among Ibero-Americans. This competition includes the 4th edition of the Don Quijote Award, sponsored by the regional government of Castilla-LaMancha, which rewards linguistic ability and the good use, defense and enrichment of the Spanish language, prizing quality over the importance or relevance of the chosen subject. Any journalist from Ibero-American countries, the United States, the Phil-
A girl looks at the painting ‘Santa Rufina’. EFE
Seville keeps Velázquez' ‘Santa Rufina’ ● Diego Velázquez's painting “Santa Rufina” was put on sale for 9 million euros and there was more than one interested buyer. However, Seville's Focus-Abengoa Foundation managed to ensure that one of the artist's last works stayed in private hands. The picture had aroused a great deal of interest in the painter's native city, leading the Velázquez Association to organize a charity collection in Seville. The Hospital de los Venerables will be dedicating a room to Velázquez where the painting will be displayed alongside the ‘Imposición de la casulla a San Ildefonso’, owned by Seville's City Hall. The agreement between Seville's City Govern-
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ment and the Foundation is valid for 75 years. The last time 'Santa Rufina' appeared on the market was in 1999 at an auction held by Christie's, New York, where it was valued at three million dollars.
Official Opening of the Spanish Cultural Center in Tegucigalpa ● During her visit to Honduras, the First Vice-President of the Spanish Government, María Teresa Fernández de la Vega, presided over the official opening Tegucigalpa's first Spanish Cultural Center. The building had been renovated in order for it to meet the needs of a modern Cultural Center. The minimalist yet functional architecture has strived to preser ve the building's most important features. The center, which belongs to the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation's (AECI) network of Cultural Centers that stretches throughout Ibero-America and Equatorial Guinea, is the first of its kind in Honduras. It is hoped that its existence will boost the long tradition of Spanish cultural affairs and cooperation in Honduras. The Cultural Center will act as a meeting place for Hondurans, Spaniards and all Ibero-Americans. Like the others centers in the AECI network, it will provide a wide range of participatory cultural events free of charge.
Financial incentives announced to promote foreign mobility ● The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, through the Secretar y of State for International Cooperation, has announced a system of financial incentives that are to be offered to ar tists, researchers and scientists in order to favor the promotion of the ar ts and sciences as a way of improving cultural relations between Spain
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and other countries. The incentives are aimed at individuals or organizations who wish to take part in prestigious international biennials, competitions, festivals and conferences, as well as those developing projects with artists and scientists of different nationalities. Funding will be offered to projects and activities that began or will take place in 2007. In our global society, cultural and scientific interaction is increasing, and so promoting the mobility of those artists and researchers is vitally important. The promotion and exhibition of Spanish art, culture and science abroad is a priority in the MAEC's policy of cultural cooperation.
Experts in Cultural Cooperation meet in Madrid ● Some twenty specialists met in Madrid over three days to analyze the role played by international cooperation in the promotion of cultural diversity. At the meeting presided over by the Secretar y of State for International Cooperation, Leire Pajín, the par ticipants worked on proposals for the development of the UNESCO Convention for Cultural Diversity passed on October 20, 2005 at the General Conference. In her speech, Leire Pajín urged the participants to "transmit clear ideas to those countries that receive development aid about how the principles encompassed by the UNESCO convention will become opportunities to safeguard their cultural diversity and sources of aid in order to strengthen all aspects of their culture." The most innovative outcome of the meeting was the proposal to incorporate culture and cultural diversity as a new dimension to development. The conclusions reached by those in attendance will be relayed to the Intergovernmental Committee for the UNESCO Convention to be held in Ottawa (Canada) in December.
Goya's "El Quitasol" was used for the promotional posters for the "From Titian to Goya" exhibition. PHOTO EFE.
The Prado Museum in Beijing ● In June,their majesties the King and Queen of Spain opened an exhibition which sees the best of the Prado Museum on display in the National Art Museum of China (NAMOC) in Beijing. The exhibition "From Titian to Goya: The Great Masters of the Prado Museum", which has been in Shanghai since the end of August, comprises 52 works of art. It follows the history of European Art from the 16th to the 19th century and has attracted 260,000 visitors in the Chinese capital; on its first day, the exhibition broke the record for the number of visits in the one day with 11,800 visitors. In the words of the
Living Spain, at the SaintÉtienne Design Biennial ● ’Living Spain’ is the title given to the exhibition organized by the General Bureau of Cultural and Scientific Relations of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in collaboration with the State Agency for the Development of Design and Innovation (DDI), aimed at supporting Spanish participation at the 20th Saint-Étienne Biennial held between November 22 and December 3. Living Spain brings together a selection of furniture, lighting and home ac-
Prado's director, Miguel Zugaza, the selection is "an art lesson in which one can learn about Titian's sophistication, El Greco's expression, Rubens' sensuality, Ribera y Zurbarán's realism, Velázquez's impressionism and Goya's modernity". This initiative, devised and promoted by the Prado in collaboration with SEACEX, has been one of the most highly acclaimed by all who have worked to make the Year of Spain in China a success. The relationship that has been established between the Prado and the NAMOC could lead to an exhibition of contemporary Chinese painting in Madrid in 2008.
cessories that have been designed by young designers and produced by Spanish firms that are internationally recognized for their excellence in this field. As the exhibition's organizer, Marcelo Leslabay, points out, "the creativity and talent of the designers under the guidance of these firms have produced a unique collection of products that are distinguished by their innovation and quality; they are not only attractive but reflect the Spanish way of life." Following its presentation in SaintÉtienne, Living Spain will be touring various European cities over the course of next year.
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Spain: From country of emigrants to destination ● The Francisco Largo Caballero Foundation, in collaboration with the Secretary of State for Immigration and Emigration, has put together a new exhibition that looks at various Spanish cities, retracing the emigrant past of our country and its current status as a destination for others. “Spain: From country of emigrants to destination” is made up of 400 original photographs, documents and objects found in Spanish, European and American archives
Baltasar Gracián, a sales success in Japan
● 'The Art of Worldly Wisdom', written by the 17th Century Spanish intellectual, Baltasar Gracián, has made a deep impression on the Japanese. The author of works such as “Goodness, if brief, is twice as good” and “Where Desire Ends, Fear Begins”, has managed to reach third place in the sales rankings of affordable books in Japan, selling 140,000 copies. The book by the classical baroque author of "The Criticon" has broken into the Japanese market thanks to Japanese translator Noriko Saito, a Spanish resident, who suggested the book to the publishing house Discover 21. But Baltasar Gracián is not the only Spaniard at the top of the Japanese book
as well as contributions from private collections. The purpose of the exhibition is to remind us who we were, a country of emigrants, so that our memory can help us to become what we want to be, a destination for others. The message it hopes to transmit to all Spaniards is that we too were emigrants, we too were illegal... We too crossed oceans and borders in search of a better future, to start again in a foreign land.
charts. Francisco Muro Villalón has sold some 200,000 copies of his book "The fish that did not want to evolve," though the Japanese edition was named "Why do executives play golf?" a title which, according to the book's editor, Satoshi Kawakami, would be more attractive to the Japanese public.
‘Alumbramiento’ named Best European Short at Venice ● The Spanish film “Alumbramiento”, by Eduardo Chapero-Jackson was awarded the prize for best European short at the 64th Venice Film Festival. “Alumbramiento”, which tells a family story about death, beat 17 other shorts from all over
the world to win the Golden Lion in this category; a prize for which Chapero-Jackson had already competed in 2005 with his first short, “Contracuerpo”. Upon winning the prize, the film, starring actress Mariví Bilbao, was entered into the pre-selection of short films that will compete in this category at the Oscars. Produced by Pepe Jordana, it was shot on high definition digital video with Juan Carlos Gómez in charge of photography. The son of a Spanish father and American mother, Chapero-Jackson has been the only Spanish director to take part in the Venice Film Festival since José Luis Guerín entered with his film "En la ciudad de Sylvia" in the hope of being the second Spanish director to win the Golden Lion for Best Film. No Spaniard had won it since Buñuel in 1968 with "Belle de Jour."
The Chinese giant pandas have arrived in Spain ● In a symbolic act, Queen Sofia received two panda bears that had been given to Spain by the Chinese Government during the monarchs' official visit to the country in June. The two bears, one male and one female, will be kept at the Madrid zoo. The public will be able to visit them as soon as they have become acquainted with their new surroundings. The male panda, Bingxing, is 7 years old and weighs 150 kilos; the female, Hua Zui Ba, is 3 and weighs 100 kilos. Both will live at Madrid's Zoo Aquarium in an enclosure measuring 1,100 square meters, with a climate-controlled refuge in the shape of a pagoda. The Madrid zoo has not had any panda bears since Chu-lin, the first panda born in captivity in Europe, died in 1996. China had given Spain the bear, the offspring of Shao Shao and Chang Chang, during the king and queen's visit to the country in 1978. The zoo, which has more than one million visitors a year, hopes to boost ticket sales with its two new residents. Giant pandas are one of the world's most endangered species. There are
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Paradiso Spezzato, flying the Spanish flag at the Venice Biennale
Bing Xing arriving at Barajas airport.
currently a total of 1,590 in the Sichuan province; the only place in the world where the species exists. More than 200 live in captivity in various zoos outside of China. Since 1984, China has implemented a program for leasing the animals out to foreign zoos on a longterm basis, in order to ensure reproduction and therefore the preservation of the species.
Latin American Art, in 80 works ● In a bid to promote Latin America's artistic heritage, BBVA is displaying 80 works from collections held in various Latin American countries in its headquarters at the Palacio del Marqués de Salamanca in Madrid. The exhibits date from pre-Colombian cultures to the final decades of the twentieth century and include pots from the Moche and Nazca civilizations, oils painted by Diego Rivera such as his 'Mujer sentada' and various sculptures. The exhibition has been divided into four sections, each of which is managed by a different specialist. Andrés Ciudad, professor in anthropology at Madrid's Computense University, is in charge of the first section: 'Art in prehispanic Andean America'; the Peruvian art historian Luis Eduardo Wuffarden is responsible for 'The age of the Viceroyalties'; the University of Granada professor of art history, Rodrigo Gutiérrez, has organized the 'Nineteenth Century' section; and gallery owner and historian Guillermo de Osma has chosen works from the twentieth century.
● Four artists with very different creative fields, career paths and ages are taking part in the Paradiso Spezzato project, brainchild of organizer Alberto Ruiz de Samaniego, which will represent Spain at the Venice Biennale. It is based on two conceptual axes: the idea of creating a positive hybrid of contemporary artistic practices and the idiosyncrasy that symbolizes Venice through a new reading of modern culture's most important exponents, such as Pound, Nietzsche and Proust. The Spanish presence in Venice has been organized by the State Agency for Overseas Cultural Affairs' General Bureau for Cultural and Scientific Relations, together with the State Agency for Overseas Cultural Affairs and the Galician autonomous government. The artists taking part in the project are film director José Luis Guerín, photographer and poet Manuel Vilariño, the Los Torreznos group who work in conceptual exploration and Rubén Ramos Balsa, photographer and audiovisual artist.
'Art and Cavalry in Spain,’ in China ● Since September 28th, the State Agency for Overseas Cultural Affairs (SEACEX) and National Heritage's exhibition 'Art and Cavalry in Spain: the Royal Armory, Madrid' has been on display in Beijing's Forbidden City. Sponsored exclusively by the Caja Madrid Foundation, it is the last large-scale exhibition in the wideranging program promoted by SEACEX in celebration of the Year of Spain in China. The program has enjoyed the support of many Spanish and Chinese organizations. Organized by Álvaro Soler, curator of the Royal Armory at Madrid's Palacio Real, the exhibition displays 150 pieces selected from one of the most important collections of its kind. The aim of displaying these exhibits, many of which are
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unique, is to give the Chinese public insight into this particular art form, testimony to the age of chivalry. The collection's luxury weapons come from countries all over Europe.
A piece from the exhibition in Beijing.
The Royal Armory's collection can only be understood within the context of Spanish history. It was created at the behest of King Felipe II of Spain from the armory that belonged to his father, Emperor Carlos V, who had also preserved his ancestors' weapons. The decision to establish the collection in Madrid, where it continues to grow, was respected by its successors.
The Quetzal Route 2008 will explore the canals of Panama, Castille and Aragon ● The Minister of the Environment, Cristina Narbona, the Secretary of State for Latin America, Trinidad Jiménez, the president of the BBVA, Francisco González and exhibition director Miguel de la Quadra-Salcedo, have announced the Twenty-Third BBVA Quetzal Route, the Jungle of the River of Crocodiles. Panama - Chagres River. The 320 young
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participants will explore the canals of Panama, along with those of Castilla-LaMancha, Castille and León, and Aragon in Spain, where the Zaragoza 2008 Exposition will be held with this year's theme of Water and Sustainable Development. The Quetzal Route is an adventure which provides the young people who take part with an education in the values that will help them to overcome inequalities, encouraging solidarity, equal opportunity, and mutual respect and effort.
SEACEX exports Spanish photography ● Beijing's Yonghe Museum will be home to an exhibition organized by the State Agency for Overseas Cultural Affairs (SEACEX) as part of the Canton Photography Biennial, where the work of ten highly-respected Spanish photographers born between the 1950 and 1970 will be displayed. A total of
‘A Thousand Years of Good Prayers’, Concha de Oro’ ● The 55th San Sebastián International Film Festival lowered its curtain until 2008 with a closing ceremony that saw the US director Wayne Wang's 'A Thousand Years of Good Prayers' win the Concha de Oro award for best film. “When the screening finished the other day and I saw your faces and your appreciation, I realized I had connected with you, and this is the best thing that could have happened.” These were Wang's words on receiving the award from the head of the jury, American author Paul Auster. At the ceremony held in San Sebastian's Kursaal auditorium, Wayne Wang also accepted the Concha de Plata for best actor on behalf of the film's protagonist, Henry O. The Spanish actress Blanca Portillo was unable to collect her award for best actress due to theatre commitments. Gracia Querejeta, director of “Seven French Billiard Tables,” read a message given to her by the actress. The prize for best director went to British filmmaker Nick Broomfield for his film “Battle for Haditha,” which used non-professional actors to recreate the massacre that took place in Iraq on November 19, 2005. There was a very emotional moment at the closing ceremony when the young female Iranian director Hana Makhmal-
125 photographs taken by Cristina García Rodero, Alberto García-Alix, Ferrán Freixa, Cristóbal Hara, Chema Madoz, Angel Marcos, Ouka Lele, Javier Vallhonrat, Bleda y Rosa and Xabier Ribas. In selecting the work, special attention was paid to find elements of particular interest to the host countr y, while also facilitating a greater familiarity with the culture and traditions of our countr y. Those that particularly stand out are Cristina García Rodero's work on feast days and rituals, Xavier Ribas' work on leisure and Ángel Marcos' work on the icons and symbols of a shared histor y and culture. Ouka Leele's painted photographs are also of great interest, given the Chinese tradition of retouching photographs with colors.
Agustín Chiappe wins the First Ibero-American Story Writing Competition Actor Richard Gere was awarded the Donostia Prize in 2007. PHOTO EFE.
baf collected the jury's award for her film “Buddha Collapsed out of Shame,” in which she denounces the bad influence the war-torn environment has on young Afghan boys who live in it. "Thanks to cinema and poetry, the world is not just violence," she said as she received her award.
● 'The Orphanage' is named as the Spanish nominee for the Oscars. Juan Antonio Bayona's film 'The Orphanage,' starring Belén Rueda, has been chosen by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to represent Spain at next year's Oscars. The candidates will be named in January. “The Orphanage” was up against Garci's “Luz de Domingo” and “Trece rosas” by Martínez Lázaro. The film, produced by Guillermo del Toro, is set in an orphanage on the north coast of Spain and envelops its protagonists in an unnerving atmosphere of terror and suspense.
● In Spring, the Casa de América and BBVA founded the 'First Ibero-American Story Writing Competition: the young people tell their stories,' in order to promote creative writing in Spanish among young Ibero-Americans between the ages of 15 and 18. 329 original works from 17 Ibero-American countries were submitted to this first competition. The members of the jur y, led by the organizer of the BBVA Quetzal Route, Miguel de la Quadra-Salcedo, included the writers Edmundo Paz Soldán (awarded the Juan Rulfo Prize in 1997) and Rolando Menéndez (1997 Cuban Casa de las Américas Award), who were unanimous in their decision. The winning stor y - In the Town of Suicides - was written by the 15 year-old Agustín Chiappe Berrrini who currently lives in Alicante (Spain) and has just finished middle school. The jur y praised the winning piece's ironic social critique, together with its simple yet direct language, its thematic twists and turns and sophisticated humor which was not lacking in innocence or originality.
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o .. . in d e b t t cadé Anna mer t) o u r n a l is g a r c ía (j o b o c ja by
Take the money and..... get to work
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She has developed a system that offers financial aid to help Spanish women set up their own businesses using microcredit, and is committed to continue helping women who have no other business prospects. And, for the time being, hers is a rock solid institution. ❖ It was probably the experiences of her father's family that inspired such dedication in this former philosophy and literature student at Barcelona's Central University who was financially independent at the age of nineteen and who paid for her studies working as a nursery school teacher, a job she held for twenty years. ❖ “My father's mother was from Vilabella in rural Tarragona. She was a skilled seamstress and would sell her clothes in the surrounding towns using a horse and cart. Her older brother, the heir, had kept all of the family's land. So when things turned bad and famine struck the area, my grandmother, Rosalina Pie, took her husband and four small sons (my father was not yet born), loaded them into the horse and cart and took them to Barcelona with very little to their name. The journey took weeks. In Barcelona they packed in tight so they could sublet rooms and she resumed her work as a seamstress until she had made enough money to found her first bakery. Later, my father was born. He went on to study and open five more bakeries throughout the city.” ❖ As far as her feminism is concerned, this perhaps comes from knowing that her mother had to give up singing opera in order to care for the family. “It seemed unfair to me that the girls had to stay at home and have children. There were six of us and my mother had to leave the opera to raise us.” ❖ The instrument through which this daughter and grand-
daughter of entrepreneurs was able to help so many women in financial difficulty was the International Foundation for Female Entrepreneurs (FIDEM), which she runs herself and maintains thanks to generous voluntary donations made by businesswomen. It has just two employees. ❖ “I introduced the use of micro credit to Spain in 1997. Back then, people laughed at me. They would tell me, 'the women will take the money and run'. But this was not the case. With a million pesetas, the amount I used to lend back then, they were able to set up their own businesses. Of course, these businesses were basically a form of selfemployment; they were really setting up micro-enterprises. But there was no alternative, because in Spain the banks do not lend money. For those who did not have any capital, this was the only way to get it. The fact that we tracked each of the projects has given us ten years of experience. And we can safely say that even though we were terrified that the money would never be paid back, this only happened in 4% of the cases,” Anna explained. ❖ The amounts of money put into circulation by this type of program are pitiful compared to the turnover of the credit institutions that lend it in the first place. However, the importance of such programs that allow us to mend the holes in the social fabric is, as Josep Pla would say, not only indisputable, but limitless. And this is exactly how classical liberal economists see it. Whatever situation these and many other female entrepreneurs may find themselves in today, we can imagine that it would be worse were it not for such programs. For this reason, it is crucial that institutions with funds to spend on social programs continue to believe in people like Anna.
cooperation The United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues has stated that the term "indigenous peoples" can be applied to over 5,000 different groups and over 370 million individuals in 70 countries. Many of these peoples inhabit areas of high biodiversity and play a fundamental role in the conservation and development of those ecosystems. Therefore, August 9 was designated as the International Day of the World's Indigenous People
Spanish Cooperation and Indigenous Peoples TEXT: ‘MIRADAS AL EXTERIOR’. photo: EFE AGENCY
● Indigenous peoples are in an extremely vulnerable position, as they are currently the group that is furthest from fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). While they represent only 5% of the world's population, they make up 10% of the planet's poorest people. Today, matters involving indigenous groups have come to occupy a prominent place in the international system. This is clearly manifested by the drafting of the Universal Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. After years of intense, difficult negotiation, the declaration was finally approved in May of 2006, under the sponsorship of Spain and others. ● Spanish Cooperation and Indigenous Peoples. A New Strategy. Given the situation, the priority placed
by Spanish cooperation on indigenous peoples as an especially vulnerable group among many comes as little surprise. In addition, the 2005-2008 Spanish Cooperation Master Plan calls for the drafting of a specific Work Strategy--now a reality--that will place Spanish cooperation at the forefront. The Strategy itself is based on the essential nature of indigenous peoples' right to decide their own future in accordance with their own models of development. Thus, every activity that could affect them directly or indirectly--and not only cooperation projects--may not be carried out without their prior free and informed consent. Because Latin America is a priority for Spanish cooperation efforts, working with the indigenous peoples of the American continent clearly has special importance. The nearly 40 million indigenous Latin Americans are the recipients of these co-
operation efforts. Every so-called "country program" incorporates elements for working with these groups, which also receive special attention in NGDO aid conventions. The Spanish International Cooperation Agency (AECI) also has a Specialized Technical Unit--the Indigenous Peoples Program--whose purpose is to oversee the fulfillment of the Strategy and promote sensitization and training in this regard among those who actually implement Spanish cooperation efforts. One of the most important functions of this program is to provide support for the participation of indigenous representatives in international forums. The unwavering commitment of Spanish cooperation to indigenous peoples is a just, dignified, and consistent way to ultimately ensure that development and respect for individual identity go hand in hand.
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International Becas Líder Scholarship Convention ● Cartagena de Indias hosted the First International Becas Líder Scholarship Convention, organized by the Carolina Foundation and the Santander Group, with additional support from the Spanish International Cooperation Agency (AECI). Over 200 scholarship recipients from 21 Ibero-American Community countries, together with presenters from diverse academic fields, met for four days in this Colombian city to discuss the management of social change in Ibero-American countries, human development, the future of the region in the 21st century, and Ibero-American identity. Conference presenters included former presidents Felipe González, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Belisario Betancur, and Andrés Pastrana, current Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, and writers Sergio Ramírez and José Saramago.
José Saramago with former Colombian President Belisario Betancur in Bogotá. PHOTO COURTESY EFE.
At the inaugural ceremony, the Nobel Laureate in Literature José Saramago questioned the significance of the term "Ibero-American identity," and pointed out that the idea of a "Latin America" imposed a limit to the greatness of the continent and implied an unseen tutelage. Mr. Saramago then stated that the future of America would depend greatly on the emergence of the native peoples, because an America that recovered its own first identity would be a very different America. Some of the principal objectives of the Becas Líder scholarship program are to
provide tomorrow's Latin American leaders with a better and deeper understanding of Spain and Portugal; to create bonds that can result in greater collaboration between their countries of origin and Spain and Portugal; to promote a new outlook on relations by focusing more on matters that tend to unite the opposing sides of the Atlantic, rather than draw them apart; and to expand the participants' human and professional leadership capabilities. To do this, 60 of the top bachelor's degree-holders from Ibero-America were selected for the scholarship (48 from the Americas, 2 Portuguese, and 10 Spanish).
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most disadvantaged individuals is a key element of fair trade. One of the industry priorities of the Spanish Cooperation Master Plan is to facilitate target countries' access to international markets.
Fair Trade Training: An Alternative Way to Market Latin American Handicrafts ● The Spanish International Cooperation Agency's Training Center in Antigua, Guatemala, hosted a training course titled "Fair Trade as a Market Alternative for Artisan Industries". The purpose of this course was to provide Latin American artisans with the knowledge required to make fair trade an alternative way to market their products. These courses are an extension of the Ibero-American Specialized Technical Training Program, which is a forum for exchange and debate intended to improve the quality of life of artisans in these regions. Courses are held at the three Spanish Cooperation in Latin America Training Centers (in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia; Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia; and Antigua, Guatemala). According to the Spanish Foundation for Artisan Innovation, fair trade is an alternative to conventional marketing that is characterized by the establishment of trade relations that reduce the number of middle-men as much as possible and is guided by social and environmental concerns, in addition to economic considerations. Training artisans in the guiding concepts and tools that will allow fair, dignified market participation by even the
Sami Nair, Algerian Professor and Sociologist.
Euro-Mediterranean Regional Conference on Traditional Architecture ● Barcelona hosted the first Euro-Mediterranean Regional Conference on Traditional Mediterranean Architecture--an initiative that represents the culmination of the RehabiMed project. The conference was inaugurated by renowned Algerian sociologist and professor of French, Sami Nair, and brought together attendees from 30 different nations. The RehabiMed Project is a technical cooperation program for the rehabilitation of traditional architecture in the Mediterranean region, and has been in operation since 2004. The objectives of this program are to promote rehabilitation and maintenance as factors in sustainable development (social, economic, and environmental) in all Mediterranean countries, to help improve living conditions for a wide range of the Mediterranean population, to preserve the historical and cultural identity of traditional Mediterranean architecture, and to create transnational synergies and neworks of experts in the various aspects of
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building rehabilitation and maintenance. RehabiMed is part of the European Euromed Heritage program, which was conceived as a cultural program following the 1995 Barcelona conference for the promotion of peace and prosperity in the Mediterranean Basin. At the Barcelona conference, the AECI presented its Heritage for Development program, which gave rise to intense debate. The agency also showed some of the work currently being done with the support of Spanish Cooperation, including work in Walata, Mauritania; the central market in Larache, Morocco; rehabilitation projects in Hebron, Palestine; the community development project in Ouadane, Mauritania; and the rehabilitation of the Khan Al Khayyatin in Tripoli (Libya).
An alcove in Walata, Mauritania, where the AECI has carried out numerous projects. PHOTO COURTESY EFE
'Communication and Development' Course at the Menéndez Pelayo International University ● Juan Pablo de Laiglesia, secretary general of the Spanish International Cooperation Agency (AECI), officially closed
the "Communication and Development" course held at the Menéndez Pelayo International University (UIMP) from July 23 to 27. The course, organized by the Carolina Foundation and headed by Mario Lubetkin, director general of the IPS agency, was attended and taught by members of organizations such as the AECI, the OECD, the World Bank, the UNDP, Autonomous Community development agencies, non-governmental development organizations, and individuals from academia and the press. Discussions revolved around the role of communication and education as key factors in the sensitization of society with regard to the international development agenda. During the closing ceremony, Juan Pablo de Laiglesia emphasized the great efforts that have been made by all agents during the last three years to establish the basis for a new cooperation system. "The new development cooperation policy", he explained, "is based on consensus among all players involved in cooperation efforts, on the administration's commitment to continue to increase funding, and on improving the quality of aid and accountability, in accordance with the principles set forth in the Paris Declaration. The moment has arrived", said de Laiglesia, "to begin to make earnest efforts to explain this new policy to our citizens, so that they understand what its purpose is. Information regarding development cooperation must become more permanent and more deeply ingrained in the media," he added.
4th Forum on 'The Challenges of Governability in Central America’ ● A forum entitled "The Challenges of Governability in Central America" was organized in Guatemala by the Latin America Regional Office of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Democratic Governability in Latin America Program of the Spanish International Cooperation Agency (AECI), in the
context of a joint program titled "Latin America: Towards Integrated, Inclusive Development." Through this forum, both organizations hope to promote dialogue and an exchange of ideas for improving democratic governability within the Central American region. This fourth session focused on tax reform--a fundamental element intended to provide countries with sufficient resources for the development of public policy capable of providing essential goods and services. The AECI, the Public Tax Administration, and the Institute of Fiscal Studies are working together in this regard in order to provide the region with the tools it needs to establish a modern, effective public administration. Forum participants included the heads of Central American public administrations responsible for taxation and funding, members of congresses and parliaments who work on commissions responsible for tax reform, and the representatives of international institutions working for tax reform in Latin America. Previous sessions have focused on judicial systems, election reform processes, and Public Administration reform processes.
Tourism Cooperation as an Instrument for Development ● Nearly 30 high-level officials from several National Tourism Administrations met at the Spanish Cooperation Training Center facilities in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia for the 3rd Ibero-American Convention on Tourist Destination Marketing, organized by Spain's Department of Tourism. Firmly aware of the impact tourism can have on the present and future principles and objectives for economic and social development in Ibero-America, and following the guidelines drafted in the 2005 Zamora Declaration adopted by Ibero-American tourism authorities, this convention focused on facilitating the exchange of information, knowledge, experience, and examples of best practices in online marketing and market research. In addition, the convention was intended to
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promote the development of tourism as an ideal tool for fighting poverty and for stimulating economic and social development in Ibero-America. Spain is considered a world power in tourism. Furthermore, its experience and knowledge of the industry provides additional support for Spanish cooperation programs and projects.
Spain's contribution to the fulfillment of the MDGs: “Spanish development cooperation policy has taken the MDGs as its own goals. Since 2004, we have doubled our Official Development Aid. This year, Spanish aid reached 0.25% of its GDP and will reach 0.42% in 2007. The Government has committed itself to achieving 0.5% in 2008, which is over 5 billion euros, and we hope to reach 0.7% during the next legislative term." Spain's commitment to reaching the Millennium Development Goals received new impetus at Playa del Mal Pas beach in Benidorm, where a large, independent beach party, attended by hundreds of locals and tourists, was held in support of the MDGs and for the eradication of poverty.
17th Premio Bartolomé de las Casas Awards Ceremony ● The 17th annual Premio Bartolomé de las Casas awards ceremony was held by the Secretary of State for International Cooperation and Casa de América, as has been done since 1991, at Tribuna Americana, a forum for political, institutional, and academic debate, in the Bartolomé de las Casas Hall. Bartolomé de las Casas was a Dominican friar and chronicler of the Indies, who symbolizes the defense of human rights and ethnic vindication; the ceremony that bears his name was established to promote the understanding and appreciation of past and present cultural manifestations of the indigenous peoples of America. The purpose of the award is to recognize,individuals or institutions on an international level who have exhibited extraordinary merit in their efforts to bring about understanding and harmony with indigenous peoples. The prize is awarded by His Royal Highness Prince Felipe, and in previous years has recognized the work of the Cabildo Mayor (tribal council) of Colombia's U'wa People (1997), Otilia Lux de Cotí of Guatemala (2005), Miguel León-Portilla of Mexico (2000), and in 2006, the Center for Amazonian Theological Studies (CETA) in Peru, among others.
Fulfillment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ● Halfway to the deadline for reaching the Millennium Development Goals
● cooperation
Development aid requires the commitment of all nations. PHOTO COURTESY EFE
(MDGs), a United Nations report has indicated that progress is not taking place at the desired pace--only five countries have reached the proposed goal of allocating 0.7% of their GDP to development aid. According to the document presented, the MDG numbers are both encouraging and discouraging. For example, the report states that while 300 million individuals, living mostly in China and India, have risen out of poverty since the year 2000, Africa continues to show no significant progress. During the presentation of the report, adjunct director of the UN Offices in Belgium, Nicola Harrington, specifically mentioned "Spain's high commitment to achieving worldwide welfare"; she also listed the achievements of the MDG campaign and sternly reminded governments of all that remains to be done in the fight against poverty. “The MDGs are still achievable," stated Ms. Harrington, "but their success is uncertain. They will require unified action by the international community and additional, urgent investments in critical regions and areas”. The Secretary General of the AECI, Juan Pablo de Laiglesia, emphasized
September 8, Cooperation Day ● The second annual Cooperation Day was held with the motto "Tu solidaridad va con ellos" (Your solidarity lies with them). The celebration was established following approval last year by the Cooperation Statute, which designates September 8 as a day to recognize the work of all Spaniards involved in cooperation for the fight against poverty. The day was highlighted by two cultural activities: A development cooperation-themed comic strip contest and a concert by the Moroccan group H-KAYNE. The comic strip was required to make a statement about poverty, the defense of human rights, gender equality, environmental sustainability, and respect for cultural diversity. Meanwhile, the concert by Moroccan group H-Kayne kicked off a series of activities put together by the Spanish International Cooperation Agency (AECI) in commemoration of Cooperation Day, not only in Spain, but in all countries where Spanish citizens carry out their cooperation work. H-Kayne, which means "Wassup?" in Moroccan, hails from the city of Meknes, Morocco and is considered one of the top hip-hop groups in the country.
miscellany This section is intended as an open door to all of our readers, a forum where our readers can share reviews of common interest. Institutions, organizations, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MAEC) officers who wish to contribute to this section may submit their work to the following address: “miradas al exterior” magazine. General Bureau of Foreign Communications. Serrano Galvache, 26. 28034 MADRID
Diplomacia y perioDismo ¿cooperación o competición? Santiago Jiménez Martín
11/05/2007 10:14:58 PORTADA LIBRO.indd
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> ‘Diplomacia y periodismo ¿cooperación o competición?’, Santiago Jiménez. General Bureau of Foreign Communications. Diplomacy has traditionally been a behind-the-scenes endeavor, rarely exposed to the bright light of journalism and public opinion. Today's information society, however, exposes diplomats to a new reality that doesn't always let them stay in their comfort zone, yet which they must learn to thoroughly prepare for. At a time of structural changes to the foreign service and with new legislation under development, the emerging field of "public diplomacy" is sure to occupy a preeminent place in the curricula of new diplomats. From the privileged viewpoint offered by the General Bureau of Foreign Communications (formerly know as the OID), the author provides a starting point for considering what the objectives and methods of this new discipline should be, and even who should carry it out. Scientific analysis shares its pages with
some eminently practical guidelines that could prove useful for any public official who works closely with the media. After turning the last page, the reader will be able to answer for himself the question posed by the title, "Diplomacy and journalism: cooperation or competition?"
> ‘La Función Diplomática’, Amador Martínez Morcillo. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and Ibersaf Editores In his latest book, Ambassador Amador Martínez Morcillo (Valencia, 1932) takes a look at the relationship between diplomacy and public service for the purpose, as stated by the author, of "studying and approaching an understanding of just what diplomats do, and why they do it the way they do. "Readers, including diplomatic professionals, can find specific answers in this essay to their questions about the true role played by diplomats as public servants who occupy a welldefined space in the life of the state. “The Role of Diplomacy”, with a foreword by Miguel
Ángel Moratinos, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, begins with the definition of diplomacy and includes a historical timeline of diplomacy from its origins to the present day. In addition, several chapters are dedicated to elements related to the profession such as representation, negotiation, observation and information. Amador Martínez Morcillo has served as Spain's ambassador to Ethiopia, the Seychelles, Djibouti, China, and the Geneva Disarmament Conference. In the field of teaching, he has held the post of professor of diplomatic and consular law at the Complutense Unversity of Madrid and was a professor in the School of Diplomacy and the International Officer Corps. He is the author of books such as “Los privilegios e inmunidades diplomáticos" and “Diccionario Diplomático Iberoamericano”.
> ‘Me gustaba ponerme su bata’, Lola Millás. Huerga & Fierro Editors. Solitude, desire, dreams, appearances, and the divergent realities that surround us are some of the themes that are explored in depth through the protagonists of the novel entitled "Me gustaba ponerme su bata," by the Valencian writer Lola Millás. Founder and director of the Film Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Lola Millás has always been involved with the world of film, as a juror
for several competitions, as co-founder of international film festivals, and as the author of books related to the seventh art. Among the most noteworthy of these are works entitled “De Madrid al cine: una pantalla capital" and “Agustín González: entre la conversación y la memoria". She is also author of “Edipo Tango”, a book of stories.
> ‘Homenaje a Fernando Valderrama Martínez’, by Maria Victoria Alberola and ‘Las relaciones hispano magrebíes en el siglo XVIII’, by Mariano Arribas Palau. AECI Both publications present selected reprints from the personal libraries of Mariano Arribas Palau and Fernando Valderrama Martínez. After their respective deaths, the libraries were donated by their families to the Islamic Library. Once the sources were catalogued, there was a desire to offer researchers a relevant cross-section of their works found in different publications. Each of the publications includes an introduction with biographi
Con la ayuda de todos, luchamos contra la pobreza La Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional (AECI) es el órgano de gestión de la política española de cooperación para el desarrollo. Adscrita al Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación, la AECI tiene como objetivo principal contribuir al crecimiento económico y al progreso social, cultural, político e institucional de los países en desarrollo, de acuerdo con los principios de la defensa y la promoción de los Derechos Humanos y del desarrollo sostenible, participativo y equitativo para hombres y mujeres.
www.aeci.es
54 miradas al exterior publications
● miscellany
> ‘Legado. España y los Estados Unidos en la era de la Independencia, 17631848’. SEACEX. The National Portrait Gallery, the Smithsonian Latino Center, the State Society for Foreign Cultural Affairs, and the Spain-United States Council Foundation have assembled a collection examining Spain's contribution to the development of the United States through images and documents. “Legado: España y Estados Unidos en la Era de la Independencia” is the title of the exhibit as well as the collection that accompanies it.
cal and bibliographic information on the authors. Both share the experience of having developed their teaching careers in the Spanish Protectorate of Morocco over many years, as well as a strong common interest in the histor y and civilization of that countr y. Fernando Valderrama Martínez's main interests lay in issues related to ethnographic study and education. He was the institutional professor and educational advisor to the High Commission of Spain in Morocco for nineteen years. Mariano Arribas, on the other hand, dedicated his work to researching Spanish-Maghribi relations in the 18th century.
Through almost one hundred images, texts, maps and documents, the exhibit in Washington seeks to examine the key role that the Spanish Crown played in the Revolutionar y Way and the founding of the United States. The exhibit spans from the 1763 Treaty of Paris, in which Spain retained control of more than half of the current territor y of the United States, and culminates with the annexation of California to the United States through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed by Mexico in 1848.
> ‘Diccionario del uso del español. María Moliner’. Editorial Gredos. Contemporary terms such as chat, wireless, SMS, or pilates, as well as expressions such as "gender violence" and "come out of the closet" are among the neologisms found in the third edition of the Dictionary of Spanish Usage, by María Moliner, published by Editorial Gredos and Círculo de Lectores. It contains 12,000 new terms and a total of 94,000 entries, reflecting language currently used in such divergent fields as technology, leisure, sexuality, politics, economics, and sports. In 1998, Editorial Gredos published the second edition of “María Moliner,” containing 7,700 new entries. Although based on the Spanish language as spoken in Spain, the new “María Moliner” incorporates many Americanisms. The price of the Dictionary is 130 euros, but it will also be published in paperback format. A CD-ROM is included. > ‘Relaciones Económicas entre España y Brasil’. During President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's visit to Spain in September 2007, the Brazilian Embassy in Spain, the Royal Elcano Institute and the Spanish-Brazilian Cul-
tural Foundation presented the joint publication entitled 'Spanish-Brazilian Economic Relations'. Its authors are Alfredo Arahuetes and Célio Hiratuka. The work represents the most complete effort to date to analyze the restructuring of economic ties undergone by both countries in recent years. In addition to its breadth and wealth of information, the book is notable for focusing on each issue from both perspectives: the Spanish and the Brazilian.
> ‘Anuario Asia-Pacífico 2006’. (2007 edition) The Cidob Foundation presents the third edition of the Asia-Pacific Yearbook, a project intended to serve as a tool for understanding the current affairs of a continent that is exerting a growing influence over global dynamics. This new volume focuses on India as a nation that continues to consolidate its power, while underscoring that China and India represent the existence of a tremendous potential for growth and dynamism, which, nonetheless, must overcome colossal obstacles such as the fight against corruption, growing economic inequality, chaotic urbanization and new forms
miradas al exterior publications
of poverty, the overuse of resources and the degradation of the environment, factors which together are capable of destabilizing societies undergoing rapid changes to their system of values and which are trying to find their own interpretation of modernity. The publication includes articles dedicated to recent issues: nuclear proliferation in North Korea, the rise of terrorism, the challenge posed by Iran, the worsening of the conflict in Afghanistan, the political crisis in the former Soviet republics of Central Asia and the vast environmental problems of the small Pacific island states, among others.
> ‘El Gran Duque de Alba’, William S. Maltby. Edición Atalanta. Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, the third duke of Alba, was one of the most powerful and controversial personalities of his time. A warrior by vocation and a courtier and diplomat by necessity, he was involved in the most prominent political and military issues of the sixteenth century, although he is mainly known for his six tragic years as gover-
nor of the Low Countries under the reign of Philip II. In spite of his unassailable historical importance, it was his character, more than anything else, that either fascinated or repelled his contemporaries and that has captivated the imagination of later times. Editorial Atalanta, headed by Jacobo Siruela, a descendant of the duke, has republished the The Grand Duke of Alba, printed in the 1980s by William S. Maltby from the Epistolary of Álvarez de Toledo, which shed light on his political and military thinking. The great American historian dedicated twelve years of his life to researching and writing the now republished book, undoubtedly the most complete and in-depth study in existence concerning the figure known as the Duke of Alba. Maltby places him in the complex labyrinth of his times, though an accurate but subtle portrait tinged with lights, shadows, achievements, and contradictions.
> ‘Revista ALEF. Actualidad informativa Casa Sefarad-Israel y de Cultura Judía. Casa Sefarad-Israel. Published monthly. At the end of September, the Sepharad-Israel House began monthly publication of the cultural magazine Alef, conceived as a gathering place for those interested in learning about Jewish culture in Spain and throughout the world. The magazine's main purpose is to enable its readers to gain a deeper understanding of the remnants of Spain's Sephardic Jewish past and to contribute to a strengthening of
alef
ACTUALIDAD INFORMATIVA DE CASA SEFARAD ISRAEL Y DE CULTURA JUDÍA
Casa Sefarad Israel
NÚMERO 1 1 OCTUbRE 2007
actividades
noticias de España
noticias exterior
Noa canta para el Casa Sefarad-Isra
SEFARADNOA CANTA PARA CASA TO LA CANTANTE ISRAELÍ DE OCTUbRE EN UN CONCIER ISRAEL EL PRÓXIMO 2 R DE MADRID EN EL TEATRO ALCÁZA innumeradesde entonces ha ofrecido España. Su trables conciertos por toda momentos clave: yectoria encierra dos del 2001 por la gira realizada en febrero Instituto CervanIsrael, invitados por el en Madrid tes de Tel Aviv; y su actuación de la Memoria con motivo del Día Oficial Prevención de los del Holocausto y la el 26 de Crímenes contra la Humanidad, enero de 2006. 2 Sefarad Israel. ¬ CONTINúA EN PáGINA a escena el A continuación, pasará Sirma. El nomsefardí música de grupo hace referencia a bre de este conjunto plata propio de de hebras con un tejido Sirma nació en los judíos españoles. el obla primavera de 1997 con jetivo de difundir la músiy ca tradicional sefardí,
el Teatro El próximo 2 de octubre,
los actos másdesAlcázar acoge uno de de actividades tacados del calendario el concierto de la Casa Sefarad Israel, más internaciode la artista pop israelí con unas nal, Noa. El acto comenzará del periodista palabras de bienvenida dará paso a la proGuillermo Fesser, que de Casa yección del video institucional
the bonds between Spain and the Jewish world. The 16-page publication contains widely ranging content, divided into several sections: the institution's activities, special reports, articles and news from Spain and abroad related to Jewish culture. The magazine can be downloaded in PDF format from the following website: www.casasefarad-israel.es
> ‘Revista de Defensa’. Ministry of Defense. The opening topic of the latest edition of the Spanish Defense Magazine is the recent commemoration of the creation of the Ministry of Defense, presided over by King Don Juan Carlos and the Prince of Asturias, which brought together the former ministers of the Department. The National section includes reports on the changing of the guard in peacekeeping operations, as well as the
● miscellany
55
awarding of Spanish decorations to Uruguayan blue helmets for their assistance at our Embassy in the Republic of the Congo during the attack suffered on March 22 of last year. Among other issues of interest and current affairs, a special report examines the work —begun in 1999— of military personnel deployed in international missions to teach Spanish language and culture through the Cervantes programs.
> ‘Europa Unida. Orígenes de un malentendido consciente’. Victor Gavín. University of Barcelona. Faced by those who believe that we have lost the spirit of pan-europism that infused the early efforts to achieve a united Europe, it can now be confirmed that the early days were not exactly the way many remember them. This exhaustive work by Víctor Gavín, published by the University of Barcelona in European and American versions, demonstrates that the objectives of the European initiative, which continues to the present day, were established within the first four years of that project, and that while they do not coincide with the ideas that were being expressed in public at the time, they do match the pronouncements of current leaders. Surprisingly, the United States was a lone voice in advocating a true continental union that would transcend national boundaries. “It is a tragedy that such a union cannot be brought into existence, given the many advantages that it would produce,” said the future president of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower.
the interview His goal is still to play at the highest level possible. A sure-fire recipe for success is being able to combine effort with a large portion of enthusiasm and plenty of motivation for a job well done. And his record as an athlete proves it: Pau Gasol isn't lacking any of these values. He tries to pass these same values on to the kids taking part in the basketball camp that he organizes every year with the help of a financial institution. This is something that makes him feel particularly proud, as well as responsible.
"with humility and gratitude” and thinks that he should interpret the public's affection “as a great reward for the work he has put in”. What's more, he recognizes that in spite of the fact that sometimes it can difficult to control his “ego”, he tries to be just like everybody else. In any case, he knows that he holds a privileged posi-
tion and that he is a globally renowned star. This is why he also feels particularly proud to represent Spain, another responsibility that he approaches “seriously and affectionately”. He defines himself as a “simple person”, but “yes, very ambitious too”. In this interview, Gasol tells us about all of the above.
“The public's
In spite of it all, he deals with his huge popularity and the shower of praise he receives
affection is my great reward for the work I have put in
“
This Catalan basketball player's commitment to young people doesn't end there. He is also a special ambassador for UNICEFand when he can, he travels to developing countries to raise awareness of the poverty and underdevelopment suffered there, especially by children.
Pau gasol
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â—? the interview
57
58 miradas al exterior pau gasol
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Enthusiasm is what keeps you happy and motivated to keep doing what you're doing
TEXT: luis sánchez pérez
— I've read that your grandfather was a fan of R.C.D. Espanyol, but wasn't able to turn you into a soccer fan. But you began playing basketball as a child, playing in the school junior leagues. What attracted you to basketball that you didn't find in soccer? — Maybe it was because I went to watch my dad's basketball games; I enjoyed both sports but with basketball I was truly in my element. I don't think it was just because I was taller, because as a child I really didn't stand out, nor did I
Spanish basketball and its generation of champions ✒The story of this generation
of basketball players began a long time ago. In 1999, Spain defeated the USA in the final of the World Junior Championships held in Lisbon. ✒In other sports, it is often the case that the successes of the junior national teams
I know that I stand out in my profession and I try to be the best that I can be
have as many skills as I do now. — I imagine that your height as well as other physical attributes were the determining factors. I would like you to go back with me your first steps on a basketball court. As a child could you imagine that in the future basketball would be something more for you than just pure fun? When were you certain that you would become a professional? — Well I was never that certain; it sort of happened as I went along. The opportunity came, I kept growing and things went well; I was 18 when I got the
The recipe for success is to have clear goals and work hard to achieve them
chance to become a professional basketball player and I gave up on the idea of studying medicine, which was what I had wanted to do. — Your life story is quite well known, as are your sporting achievements. You are a sports idol admired all over the world. How do you deal with so much praise? — Well, with humility and gratitude. I realize that I have to think of the public's affection as my great reward for the work I have put in over the years. It is an amazing thing, which I am always thankful for.
notes by D. Jesús García de Viedma Palacios do not later translate into successes with the senior teams. With this generation of players, however, we have been able to enjoy repeated international success, culminating in winning the world championships in Japan last year. ✒The winners of the world junior championships in 1999 laid the foundations for this success. Assisted by veterans such as Garbajosa and Jiménez, as
well as by younger players like Rudy and Sergio Rodríguez, the Gasols, Cabezas, Reyes, Calderón, and Berni, they all gave us goose bumps with a perfect championship that culminated in a 23-point victory over Greece in the final, in spite of the absence of Pau Gasol, who was injured in an agonizing semi-final played two days before against Argentina, where Spain won the match in the
closing seconds. ✒Before the World Championship, the Spanish basketball team had already won silver and bronze at the European Championships in Sweden (2003) and Turkey (2001) respectively. ✒The arrival of coach José Vicente “Pepu” Hernández (coach of Club Baloncesto Estudiantes for ten seasons) to the national team took them on an unstoppable run, ending in them winning the
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59
I am successful at what I do and I have achieved all of my aspirations
— Don't you find it difficult to keep your ego in check and not feel superior to the majority of human beings? — I fully understand that I am very fortunate to be able to do what I do. I am outstanding at my job and I try to be the best I can be. I just try to be like everybody else although sometimes it is difficult. You just can't, because sometimes things happen to me or I find myself in situations that don't happen to everybody, but I do try. — To be among basketball's elite and win in the most important, demanding and toughest basketball league in the
world, the NBA, undoubtedly requires a great deal of effort and sacrifice. Can you stand so much pressure without being enthused about the job you do? — I think it is enthusiasm that keeps you happy and motivated to do what you're doing. The moment you lose that excitement is when things start to go wrong. I think it is vital never to lose that enthusiasm, and to keep the excitement level up by creating new goals. — What is your recipe for success? — Exactly what I just said; have clear goals and when you have achieved them, find yourself new challenges and
work hard towards achieving those. — Have you ever regretted choosing this path, like for example, giving up on studying medicine? — No, I don't have any regrets, I am successful at what I do and I have achieved all of my goals, so I haven't had any reason to think about what I might have done and second-guess myself. — The career of a top sportsman is relatively short. What do you see yourself doing when you retire from competition? Will you still be involved with basketball in some way, or will you go back to studying medicine?
gold in Japan. Also, this September they won the Silver in the Eurobasket in Madrid, losing at the buzzer against Russia in a final that could have gone either way. ✒These achievements already form a part of our collective memory, as does the fact that 5 Spanish players are going to be playing in the NBA next season. They are: Pau Gasol and Juan Carlos Navarro for the Memphis Grizzlies, Jorge Garbajosa and
José Manuel Calderón for the Toronto Raptors, and Sergio Rodríguez for the Portland Trail Blazers. ✒The path blazed by the 'Gasol Generation' and company is being followed by many outstanding young players. They are playing at a very high level and are either already playing for the national team like Rudy Fernández, or will soon be a part of it, like Ricky Rubio. We should all enjoy it.
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— No, I don't think so. Once I finish my basketball career I will continue to be involved with sports, but I will concentrate on having a family and enjoying it, giving them my time and affection. — In recent years we have seen an increasing number of doping cases taking place in top-level competitive sports. It sends out a clear message to youngsters: the most important thing is to win at all costs. There is no worse example. — That's why we have anti-doping agencies. You should never risk being penalized, you have to distance yourself from illegal substances and work hard to get there on your own merit. With hard work you can always fight to win, but at the end of the day you can't always win. I see nothing good in trying to win by cheating, especially when it can also damage your health. I just don't see it. — Your commitment to children and young people is undeniable, given that you are a special ambassador for UNICEF and this summer you held the second edition of the Pau Gasol Banco Popular Basketball Camp, which is aimed at children. What motivated you to follow this route? — My heart tells my to follow this route, it is how I feel day in and day out. For me, these are very important things and that's why I do them. I think it is important and beautiful thing. — Are you aware that you are a role model for thousands of kids? Does this responsibility weigh you down? — No, for me it is more than a responsibility, it is an honor. Being able to be in this situation carries with it a huge responsibility, but at the same time it gives you the opportunity to instill your values in a whole range of youngsters who want to follow in your footsteps. I think that having that amount of impact is a fortunate position to be in. — You recently visited Angola as a UNICEF ambassador and you were able to witness the terrible conditions suffered in Africa. What can the developed world do to resolve or at least alleviate this situation? — First of all, raise your awareness and learn about the conditions that I think are
We all need to pull together to help the developing world For me it is an honor to represent my country Anyone can always improve, we can look within ourselves and improve Every year is a challenge I am a simple person, but yes, I have a lot of ambition, too experienced by all of these countries. To some extent they are all underdeveloped and many of them, the great majority in fact, are in a precarious situation. That's why we all need to pull together to help these countless millions of people. — Given your international profile, we could also consider you a special ambassador for Spain. Are you pleased with this responsibility?
— For me it's an honor to represent my country in sport, but there are also other sides to it and I approach them both seriously and affectionately. As I said before, it is an honor that carries with it responsibility. — I imagine that you interact fairly often with employees of the foreign service or Spanish diplomats. How do you rate the job they are doing? Have they ever gotten you out of a tight spot? — Up to now there has never been the need (he laughs). I have a good relationship with the people that I have had the opportunity of meeting in these circles, but so far I have never been in a tight spot and I hope that it stays that way. — Quite often you travel to different countries. How do you think that people see Spain and Spanish people from a foreign perspective? — A country with a variety of different things; a great cuisine, a country that is worth visiting, and with the highest quality of life in the world, not just in Europe. — You can offer some criticism too, if you like. In which areas can we improve, what faults should we eliminate, what complexes can we overcome? — Anyone can always improve, we can look within ourselves and improve on a personal level and from there we can improve to higher levels: in communities, small towns, cities, look around you and make your country a better place. We must be aware that we have a lot to offer and this is obvious when you go abroad and see the differences. — You already have an enviable sports record that is difficult to match. What goals do you still have, both in your personal and sporting life? — Every year is a challenge. My goal is to play to the best of my ability, and whatever comes out of this will be my reward. To look after my health, be with my family and, in the future, have my own family and look after them. — Of course, and finally. Who is Pau Gasol, how would you define yourself? — Well, as a simple person, but with a great deal of ambition, happy, friendly, and very grateful.
Recuerda que en el extranjero
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62
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PROFILE Pau Gasol
is a giant, both in basketball and in sport in general, and we aren't just talking about his 7-foot frame. ● We are talking about his capacity for leadership and his ability to carry with him the aspirations of an entire nation; thousands upon thousands of fans who see him as their role model. This was demonstrated in the recent European Basketball Championships that had all of Spain on the edge of its seat. No matter that their victory in the final faded away as Pau's last-second shot rimmed out of the hoop. If the shot had gone in the Spanish team would have won the championship. ● The defeat by a razor-thin margin at the hands of the Russians in the European final was without a doubt a disappointment, especially for the players themselves: a team that wanted to reinforce the World Championship they had won the year before in Japan. ● Regardless, Spanish basketball fans are convinced that Pau and his team have learned their lesson and plan to give it their all in the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing. And of course they will again find themselves at the top. ● This ease in instilling confidence, as well as belief in their potential, is perhaps the greatest achievement both for Pau, the undeniable team leader, and the rest of this exceptional group brought together by the Spanish national coach, Pepu Hernández. ● Pau Gasol Sáez, born in Sant Boi de Llobregat (Barcelona) on July 6th, 1980, grew up in a fam-
ily with links to medicine (his mother is a doctor and his father a nurse), a vocation that he thought about following early in life. He even began studying medicine. ● However, by the time he was 18 he was already sure that basketball was for him and that his future lay with the sport. It was impossible to juggle both professions. ● Pau started as a player in the junior leagues at Collegi Llor and from there he moved
also won the European Youth Championship and the Albert Schweitzer trophy with the Spanish national team. ● In 1999 he was also crowned world champion with the Spanish junior national team after defeating the USA in the final. ● In spite of his youth, he had already earned a significant amount of international recognition, resulting in several offers from American universities. However, he preferred to stay
2006
2001
2001
2006
onto CB Cornellá, which was then a development team for FC Barcelona. ● The scouts from the claret and blue club quickly noticed young Pau's skills, especially his tremendous ball control. At 16 he was already a CF Barcelona player and with them he won the Spanish Junior Championship in the 1997-98 season. This wasn't his only triumph that season, as he
2006
with CF Barcelona, making his debut for the team in the ACB league in January 1999. ● His finally broke into the Barcelona lineup in the 1999-2000 season, where he matured, becoming what he is today; one of the best players in the world, winning the ACB league and the Copa del Rey. ● That same year he won the bronze medal with
the Spanish national team at the European Championships in Turkey. ● He made the leap up to the NBA one season later. He was taken 3rd in the 2001 draft by the Atlanta Hawks. At the time it was the highest position ever achieved by a player that hadn't trained in the USA. ● Atlanta traded him that same year to his current team, the Memphis Grizzlies, where he quickly began to shine by winning “rookie of the year” unanimously. ● Gasol has always felt proud to be a part of the Spanish national team. He is fully committed and has taken part in all of Spain's major competitions, not counting Eurobasket 2005 in Serbia, which he had to sit out due to injury. ● Among his many personal triumphs, and in addition to those already mentioned, we should point out that he was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and at the World Championships in Japan, 2006. ● That same year he was selected as an All-Star player in Houston, representing the Western Conference. ● He was named to the all-tournament team at the World Championships in Sweden, as well as being the competition's top scorer. ● These are just some of the awards that Pau Gasol has received over the course of a fruitful career, although we can still highlight one very special award: in 2006, he received the Prince of Asturias Award for Sports for being a member of the Spanish national basketball team, as well as an individual award.
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