THE SPANISH GOVERNMENT has come under fire after police forcibly dissolved a public gathering of Catholics praying the rosary in Madrid. This occurred following a recent period of national unrest.
On November 27, the Spanish authorities were ordered by the ruling Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) administration to shut down a gathering of Catholics peacefully gathered on the steps of the Inmaculado Corazón de María church on Ferraz street – only a short distance from the ruling party’s headquarters.
According to reports corroborated by the government, some 500 people were in the area that evening– which was the 26th day of protests across the country by Spanish unionists and conservatives following news the government were planning to pass a controversial bill involving absolving Catalan separatists of crimes.
Arrests were made after lay Catholics refused to disperse and desist from prayer. The arrests included a 60-year-old woman who was filmed being pushed into a police car and was shared widely online.
The events have sparked fierce debates across the country.
The Spanish Foundation of Christian Lawyers filed a formal complaint against the governmental delegate in Madrid who was ordered by the government to shut the gathering down.
Its president, Poland Castellanos, did not rule out taking legal action against the local police and announced his group would be willing to represent anyone detained for the mere act of prayer.
“This government has undertaken a real persecution against Christians. They are not going to be able to intimidate us,” he added.
Furthermore, José Andrés Calderón, the organiser of the event, published the official document which revealed the intervention of the governmental delegate in order to suppress the event.
This edict mandated that for 48 hours all similar gatherings would be prohibited, in an act which multiple opponents and advocacy groups have complained obstructs citizens’ freedom to practise their Catholic faith.