Andalusian nationalism
Encyclopedia
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
advocating the recognition of Andalusian people
Andalusian people
The Andalusians are the people of the southern region in Spain approximated by what is now called Andalusia. They are generally not considered an ethnically distinct people because they lack two of the most important markers of distinctiveness: their own language and an awareness of a presumed...
as a "nation". It is considered to be represented primarily by the Andalusian Party but there are also lesser political organisations that identify with Andalusian nationalism. Some political forces without parliamentary presence like Nación Andaluza and Asamblea Nacional de Andalucía may be found advocating independentism.
Brief history
The predecessor of Andalusian nationalism is the peasant anarchism of 19th century. During the reign of Isabella II of SpainIsabella II of Spain
Isabella II was the only female monarch of Spain in modern times. She came to the throne as an infant, but her succession was disputed by the Carlists, who refused to recognise a female sovereign, leading to the Carlist Wars. After a troubled reign, she was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of...
, Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
was a hotbed of anarchist insurgency
Anarchism in Spain
Anarchism has historically gained more support and influence in Spain than anywhere else, especially before Francisco Franco's victory in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939....
. Later, these anarchist cores became protagonists in conflicts between local people and Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
.
With the declaration of the First Spanish Republic
First Spanish Republic
The First Spanish Republic was the political regime that existed in Spain between the parliamentary proclamation on 11 February 1873 and 29 December 1874 when General Arsenio Martínez-Campos's pronunciamento marked the beginning of the Bourbon Restoration in Spain...
in 1873, various nationalist currents began to emerge in Andalusia. In 1883, an assembly gathered at Antequera
Antequera
Antequera is a city and municipality in the province of Málaga, part of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia. It is known as "the heart of Andalusia" because of its central location among Málaga, Granada, Córdoba, and Seville...
drafted a constitution styling Andalusia as an autonomous republic inside a federal state (República Andaluza o Estado libre o autónomo de Andalucía, in Spanish). This constitution is known as Constitución Federal de Antequera.
Blas Infante
Blas Infante
Blas Infante Pérez de Vargas . Blas Infante was an andalusist politician, writer, historian and musicologist, known as the "Father" of Andalusian fatherland ....
, a Georgist idealist and founder of modern Andalusian nationalism, initiated an assembly at Ronda
Ronda
Ronda is a city in Spanish province of Málaga. It is located about West from the city of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is approximately 35,000 inhabitants.-History:...
in 1918. This assembly adopted a charter
Charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
based on Antequera Constitution and also adopted the current flag
Flag of Andalusia
The current flag of Andalusia was adopted in 1918. Blas Infante , the "Father" of the Andalusian Fatherland , initiated an assembly at Ronda in 1918...
and coat of arms
Coat of arms of Andalusia
The coat of arms of Andalusia is the official symbol of Andalusia, an autonomous community of Spain. It bears the Pillars of Hercules, the ancient name given to the promontories that flank the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar.-Origin:...
as "national symbols". During the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
, the Andalucismo was represented by the Junta Liberalista, a federalist political party led by Infante.
Andalusian nationalism was revived when Alianza Socialista de Andalucía or ASA (Socialist Alliance of Andalusia) was founded in 1971, at the last period of Francoism in Spain. Andalusian nationalism drew limited but considerable support from the western part of Andalusia, particularly from provincial
Provinces of Spain
Spain and its autonomous communities are divided into fifty provinces .In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian , sing. província.*Galician , sing. provincia.*Basque |Galicia]] — are not also the capitals of provinces...
capitals like Cádiz
Cádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
and Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
.
The road to autonomy
After dictator Francisco FrancoFrancisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
's death, the new Spanish Constitution of 1978
Spanish Constitution of 1978
-Structure of the State:The Constitution recognizes the existence of nationalities and regions . Preliminary Title As a result, Spain is now composed entirely of 17 Autonomous Communities and two autonomous cities with varying degrees of autonomy, to the extent that, even though the Constitution...
established in its Article 2 the right of "regions and nationalities" to self government. This followed a popular outcry in Andalusia for its own right to autonomy, with a total of over a million and a half people demonstrating in the streets of most Andalusian towns and cities on 4 December 1977, while the constitution was still being drafted. This campaign would lead to the inclusion of two articles regarding autonomy in the finished constitution text: Article 143, which would give all Spanish regions the chance to become autonomous communities, with fewer devolved powers
Devolution
Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
; and Article 151, that would set the roles of autonomous communities with a higher degree of autonomy.
Article 151 was automatically applicable to the so-called historic nationalities, which have previously enjoyed autonomy during the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
, as reflected in the Spanish Constitution of 1931
Spanish Constitution of 1931
The Spanish Constitution of 1931 meant the beginning of the Second Spanish Republic, the second period of Spanish history to date in which the election of both the positions of Head of State and Head of government were democratic. It was effective from 1931 until 1939...
. Nevertheless, this article also offered the possibility of other regions or nationalities accessing the same level of autonomy if approved on referendum.
A separate statute of autonomy for Andalusia had been written by Blas Infante and submitted, approved by parliament in June 1936, to be voted in referendum in September 1936. However the start of the Civil War in July and the assassination of Infante by Franco's rebels in August of the same year put an end to the autonomist project for Andalusia.
In spite of this, Andalusia was never recognised as a "historic nationality" in the 1978 constitution. This caused a great deal of indignation at the time and fired the fuse of a popular campaign which would lead to a successful referendum vote on 28 February 1980 that required a supermajority
Supermajority
A supermajority or a qualified majority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level or type of support which exceeds a simple majority . In some jurisdictions, for example, parliamentary procedure requires that any action that may alter the rights of the minority has a supermajority...
. Andalusia would still have to wait two more years of political turmoil and unfulfilled promises by the central government to join the Basque Country, Catalonia and Galicia on earning its right to a higher degree of autonomous government. The new Statute of Autonomy was approved by the Spanish parliament in 1981.
A proposal for the reform of the Statute of Autonomy
Autonomous communities of Spain
An autonomous community In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian .*Galician .*Basque . The second article of the constitution recognizes the rights of "nationalities and regions" to self-government and declares the "indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation".Political power in Spain is...
for Andalusia was finalised by the Andalusian Parliament on May 2006. After being debated and posteriorly approved in the Spanish Parliament, the original wording of the statute was amended to define Andalusia as a "Nacionalidad" (Historic Nationality). This has led to severe criticism by the Andalusist Party
Andalusist Party
The Andalusian Party is a nationalist centre-left political party from Andalusia , with an important presence in provinces such as Cádiz and Seville although in the past they have stood in other provinces and even won seats in Barcelona to the Catalan Regional Assembly...
and other political forces for falling short of the steps taken in the 2006 Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia
Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia
The Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia provides Catalonia's basic institutional regulations. It defines the rights and obligations of the citizens of Catalonia , the political institutions of the Catalan nationality, their competences and relations with the rest of Spain, and the financing of the...
, where this territory defined itself as a Nation.
The amended text was approved by both the Senate of Spain and the Congress of Deputies of Spain
Spanish Congress of Deputies
The Spanish Congress of Deputies is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislative branch. It has 350 members, elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation in constituencies matching the Spanish provinces using the D'Hondt method. Deputies serve four-year terms...
and was voted in referendum on February 18, 2007.
History
- History of Andalucismo
- Biography and thought of Blas Infante, Blas Infante Memorial Foundation
Political Parties and Unions
- Andalucista Party, in Spanish.
- Socialist Party of Andalusia (refounded), in Spanish.
- Asamblea Nacional de Andalucía, in Spanish.
- Nación Andaluza, in Spanish.
- Major standpoints of Nación Andaluza (in English)
- CUT-BAI, a nationalist trade union, in Spanish.