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- Identity: the
building blocks of
2. Literature
and philosophy
3. Art and
architecture
4. Performing
arts
5. Cinema
and fashion
6. Media and
communications
7. Food and drink 8. Living culture:
the details of
Most of theautonomíashave their own nationalist party (that’s the regional ‘nation’, not Spain), represented in the
regional parliament if not in the Cortes Generales. A few of the other regional parties have made their presence felt
on the national stage:
Convergència I Unió(CIU)
A coalition of two Catalan conservative, moderately nationalist parties, the CIU took ten seats in the congress in
- Until 2003 they were led by Jordi Pujol, one-time political prisoner and then Catalan President for 23 years.
Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya(ERC)
Another Catalan party, this one left wing. More openly nationalist than the CIU (and with fewer Cortes seats), the
ERC campaigns for Catalan independence.
Partido Nacionalista Vasco(PNV) (or Euzko Alderdi Jeltzalea (EAJ) to the Basques) The Basque party (there are
several) that wins most Cortes seats and traditionally dominates the regional parliament. They push a moderate
nationalism, hoping that gradually increased autonomy might one day lead to independence.
The key regional parties
Locals on the take
Local government in
Spain doesn’t enjoy the
best reputation. In fact,
it’s notoriously corrupt.
Every week the Spanish
press publishes details
of some new scandal,
usually connected to
illegal building
developments. In the
worst recent case of
municipal corruption, the
entire town council of
Marbella was sacked
over alleged involvement
in Spain’s biggest
property scandal.
