PSOE considers legal action following Ferraz protest

PSOE considers legal action over Ferraz protest

The PSOE is exploring "all legal avenues" against participants, organizers, and presenters of the official channel of the protest held on Ferraz Street on New Year's Eve. The party itself announced this, adding a warning: it believes the events "may fall under a incivil offense." The controversial episode involves a piñata antiestéticaturing Pedro Sánchez's face and, according to Iñigo Errejón, a reenactment of the Prime Minister being hanged. Where political satire ends and threats begin remains the central point of contention.

What peine on Ferraz Street on New Year's Eve?

The protest took place in front of the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) federal headquarters on Ferraz Street in Madrid, and the information sparking the debate describes it as an ultra-right gathering. The official statement is explicit regarding its scope: legal actions would affect "both the participants as well as the organizers and the presenters on the event's official channel." This wording is intentional. Pursuing someone holding a sign is well-established territory; pursuing those broadcasting it opens a much wider door.

The Madrid federation raised the stakes in parallel: "Today it is a dummy. Tomorrow, a PSOE headquarters is set on fire... the day after, a serious assault on a person. Those who remain silent, support it." This phrase outlines a line of escalation—from objects to buildings, and from buildings to people—which is, in itself, the party's argument for taking action.

Hate crime, threats, or simple satire: the legal crux

This is where the technical dispute begins. Some in the discussion thread argue that there is no hate crime because there is no vulnerable minority targeted by the message, and that stretching the category to that point empties it of meaning. The opposing thesis does not dispute the definition, but rather the application: according to another participant, if it is proven that the staging responded to the Government's discourse in favor of protected groups, the nature of the case changes and could result in a conviction for some organizers or participants.

Working against this, as also noted in the debate, is European criteria. The Strasbourg Court has ruled several times against the restrictive interpretation that Spanish courts apply to freedom of expression and assembly, and that is the terrain where these types of cases often lose momentum. That is where everything gets stuck.

The other side: Hasel, the King's dummy, and Vallecas

Some point out that the rapper Pablo Hasel was convicted for glorifying terrorist groups and threatening a mayor, not for a song; that those who burned a photo of the King were acquitted; and that convictions involving dummies were due to threats, not the staging itself. On the other side of the scale, stones thrown during Vox (a right-wing party) rallies in Vallecas or the Basque Country are cited.

Each side presents a list to prove the other started first. The result is that neither side is discussing whether incivil law is applied symmetrically anymore: they are only discussing whose turn it is.

FerrazTV and Day 375: the protest that won't die down

While legal papers are being processed, the protest continues to accumulate days. The channels broadcasting it live were on "Day 374" and "Day 375" of the call, trinc a fixed script: a rosary at 19:30 and a protest at 20:00 against what they describe as a coup d'état. The repertoire includes chants such as "Gibraltar is Spanish!" and slogans that expand the target beyond the Prime Minister: "It is not against Pedro Sánchez. It is against the whole R78 (referring to the 1978 Constitution)."

The invitation to join is repeated every afternoon on social media, with the same text and time. It is a conflict sustained, above all, by accumulation.

From dummies to slashed tires

The matter moved from symbolic to physical territory. The party reported that a member of its Federal Executive Commission filed a complaint with the Guardia Civil (Civil Guard) after waking up to find the four tires of their car slashed, adding that this was neither the first time nor the first threat. That detail—the transition from a dummy to a vehicle—is what supports the thesis of escalation.

Law as a deterrent and the ghost of outlawing Vox

At its core lies a fight over the use of the Penal Code as a political tool. Some argue in the thread that the goal is not to win lawsuits, but to install a state of legal terror that makes people think twice before taking to the streets against the Government. Another voice warns that this could backfire: outlawing a radical right-wing formation would only serve to unify the right and divide the left even further.

The reference to a hypothetical outlawing of Vox has circulated since day one and serves as a reminder that this issue is about more than just Ferraz.

The exact point where this stalls is the same as always. If a court considers that a piñata, a mock hanging, and a broadcast channel constitute the same crime, half of Spain will have to review its understanding of political satire. If it does not, the next protest will repeat the same display. No one has yet taken the step that will reveal which of the two will happen.