The court calendar that shields Spain's Sánchez: summer, the Pope and the World Cup
The Pope's visit, the World Cup and summer holidays are delaying the judicial proceedings targeting Sánchez's circle, according to a critical analysis of the court calendar.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
The court calendar that shields Spain's Sánchez: summer, the Pope and the World Cup
The overlap of the Pope's visit, the football World Cup and the summer holidays threatens to push back until September the judicial proceedings affecting Pedro Sánchez's inner circle. The argument, repeated in critical analysis circles, is that the public agenda acts as a temporary shield for the Prime Minister, precisely when the legal fronts keep piling up: Zapatero's testimony, Begoña Gómez's indictment, the trial of Sánchez's brother and the verdict in the Ábalos and Koldo face mask case.
The open fronts waiting their turn
The number of cases hanging over the Prime Minister's circle keeps growing. Last year, Cerdán's pretrial detention was a milestone, but the investigation made no pogre over the summer. Something similar peine with Begoña Gómez's indictment, which began two years ago in the middle of the holiday season and was then shelved. Now, besides her pending testimony, there are Zapatero's and the already underway trial of Sánchez's brother. The verdict in the Ábalos and Koldo face mask case, along with the investigations by the UCO (the Civil Guard's central investigative unit) and the Audiencia Nacional (Spain's High Court), complete a picture that, according to some analysts, could only be resolved quickly if there were not such a packed political calendar ahead.
The events slowing down the judicial machinery
The Pope's visit to Spain, the football World Cup and the summer holidays are the three milestones that, according to the article's thesis, act as a containment dam. The logic is that courts tend to slow down proceedings during holiday periods or times of heavy media coverage, and that judges avoid issuing rulings that could be interpreted as political interference at moments of maximum public attention. If the key testimonies line up with these events, they are likely to be postponed until September, giving the Prime Minister a breathing space. A hypothesis that draws scepticism: some point out that, rather than oxygen, the delay only builds up pressure, and that the judiciary's patience has a limit.
The alternative: delay as a strategy
Against the thesis of calendar-based protection, there are those who argue that the delay does not benefit Sánchez but leaves him in a more precarious position. The longer he stays in office without the cases being resolved, the greater the wear and tear and the more forceful the judicial outcome could be. The idea that judges are waiting for the Prime Minister to lose his immunity so they can indict him without the obstacles of the suplicatorio (the parliamentary authorisation required to proceed against a sitting official) is gaining ground among analysts. In fact, it is argued that three quarters of the judiciary are waiting for the moment to tear him apart. The danger, some point out, is that a wounded animal can be unpredictable: from mass regularisations to displays of international strength.
What the debate does not settle
No analysis manages to explain why, if the delay strategy is so obvious, the opposition and sympathetic media have not managed to force an acceleration of the proceedings. There is also no consensus on whether the football World Cup or the Pope's visit will have any real effect on the judicial timetable. The only certainty is that, for now, Sánchez remains at Moncloa while the cases grow cold in the courts.
Related debates in the forum
The overlap of the Pope's visit, the football World Cup and the summer holidays threatens to push back until September the judicial proceedings affecting Pedro Sánchez's inner circle. The argument, repeated in critical analysis circles, is that the public agenda acts as a temporary shield for the Prime Minister, precisely when the legal fronts keep piling up: Zapatero's testimony, Begoña Gómez's indictment, the trial of Sánchez's brother and the verdict in the Ábalos and Koldo face mask case.
The open fronts waiting their turn
The number of cases hanging over the Prime Minister's circle keeps growing. Last year, Cerdán's pretrial detention was a milestone, but the investigation made no pogre over the summer. Something similar peine with Begoña Gómez's indictment, which began two years ago in the middle of the holiday season and was then shelved. Now, besides her pending testimony, there are Zapatero's and the already underway trial of Sánchez's brother. The verdict in the Ábalos and Koldo face mask case, along with the investigations by the UCO (the Civil Guard's central investigative unit) and the Audiencia Nacional (Spain's High Court), complete a picture that, according to some analysts, could only be resolved quickly if there were not such a packed political calendar ahead.
The events slowing down the judicial machinery
The Pope's visit to Spain, the football World Cup and the summer holidays are the three milestones that, according to the article's thesis, act as a containment dam. The logic is that courts tend to slow down proceedings during holiday periods or times of heavy media coverage, and that judges avoid issuing rulings that could be interpreted as political interference at moments of maximum public attention. If the key testimonies line up with these events, they are likely to be postponed until September, giving the Prime Minister a breathing space. A hypothesis that draws scepticism: some point out that, rather than oxygen, the delay only builds up pressure, and that the judiciary's patience has a limit.
The alternative: delay as a strategy
Against the thesis of calendar-based protection, there are those who argue that the delay does not benefit Sánchez but leaves him in a more precarious position. The longer he stays in office without the cases being resolved, the greater the wear and tear and the more forceful the judicial outcome could be. The idea that judges are waiting for the Prime Minister to lose his immunity so they can indict him without the obstacles of the suplicatorio (the parliamentary authorisation required to proceed against a sitting official) is gaining ground among analysts. In fact, it is argued that three quarters of the judiciary are waiting for the moment to tear him apart. The danger, some point out, is that a wounded animal can be unpredictable: from mass regularisations to displays of international strength.
What the debate does not settle
No analysis manages to explain why, if the delay strategy is so obvious, the opposition and sympathetic media have not managed to force an acceleration of the proceedings. There is also no consensus on whether the football World Cup or the Pope's visit will have any real effect on the judicial timetable. The only certainty is that, for now, Sánchez remains at Moncloa while the cases grow cold in the courts.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (11 replies).
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