I watched the protest by supporters of the far-right Vox party on Saturday through the streets of Palma. They were protesting against the lockdown and the socialist-led Spanish government.
Similar protests took place nationwide. They were also well attended. Now, the three month lockdown has been tough for all of us but I find myself supporting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez because through radical action he has steered Spain through the crisis and now the lockdown is ending and things are slowly returning to normal. Basically sending 90 percent of the Spanish population home for three months was not a decision which any politician could take lightly. There were bound to be protests at some stage. Things have been very tough but there is light at the end of the tunnel and Sanchez should win praise.
He has been a steady pair of hands. Yes, there has been some confusion about the lockdown measures, yes the national health service could have been better prepared and yes perhaps the lockdown should have started earlier but overall the government has proved effective. Now that the lockdown is coming to an end I am sure that there will be critical voices saying that things could have been done differently or more effectively. But we can have that debate now that things are returning to normal. The Spanish people deserve credit for how they have behaved over the last few months and Sanchez deserves praise for his leadership and cool head.