April 2004

Views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of the AFSC.

Spanish Tools Against Terror: Mobile Phones, Pots, and Pans

Scottish screenwriter Paul Laverty (Land and Freedom, My Name is Joe), wrote this piece from Madrid on Sunday, March 14, 2004, describing the events in the days between the March 11 train bombings that killed 191 people and injured nearly 1900 others, and the election on March 14. It was originally published on the website of Indymedia Scotland www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/scotland/.

Tribute to the dead, Madrid, Spain. Photo: Martyn Lowe, WRI/Peace News

A five minute walk from where I live in the centre of Madrid is Atocha station where two of the bombs exploded on Thursday. Last night, one hundred meters from my front door, three Moroccans were arrested for "involvement" in the crime. From my kitchen window I can see the queue of those waiting to vote in today's general election. I have just interviewed a fifty-two year old resident called Shaaban, who once worked in journalism, yet still insisted the attack was carried out by ETA. This demonstrates how effective outgoing President Aznar and his Popular Party (PP) government's manipulation of the news has been. The question on everyone's lips is "Will the truth get out in time?" It did for one grandmother I spoke to who refused to give her name. "I voted for the PP last time but I can't vote again for these thugs who led us into a war nobody wanted. They lied about the weapons in Iraq, and they're lying again today. How dare they manipulate the dead? Many of my friends think the same."

Yesterday there was growing fury as more dirty tricks by the Minister of Interior and Foreign Minister were exposed - all exacerbated by deep frustration that none of this was being covered by the main TV stations, especially TV 1, Antena 3, and Tele-Madrid, which are all pro-Government. Even after a van was discovered with detonators and a tape with Koranic verses, Aznar phoned the editor of the biggest paper, El Pais, to say he still thought it was ETA's doing, while the PP's new Presidential candidate, Mr. Rajoy, said he had "the moral conviction" ETA was responsible. But tens of thousands of mobiles were on the go, flashing messages between friends. Have you seen Bloomberg? Check the article in the New York Times. Check out Radio Ser - 95% of police are investigating Al Qaeda. On it went all day, contradicting the Government line till I received a message: "Meet outside PP party headquarters to demand the truth, followed by a "cacerolada" (literally, protest by banging of pots and pans) at 10 p.m. wherever you live. Pass it on."

By the time I arrived at the PP headquarters at 7 p.m. there were hundreds streaming from the metro and the road was already closed off. The police moved in and demanded identification papers but backed off as hundreds more arrived. Now there were around five thousand, chanting, "We want the truth before we vote. Our Dead - Your War." There was a continuous chant of "Liars! Liars! Liars!" followed by "Don´t play with the Dead." More mobiles flashing - there were demonstrations outside the PP offices in all the big cities. Spirits rose.

By the time I got home, the neighborhood of Lavapies was a cacophony of unbelievable noise, and my two month old son was beginning to look overwhelmed. Balconies were full of protesting families. The square was a throng of clinking kitchen implements. Africans, Moroccans, Latin Americans, Spaniards, children, and parents were banging their pots and pans. Some had soup spoons, and one old man, arthritic fingers gripping an enormous ladle, pounded a plastic bin with all his might. "I want the truth! Liars!," he spat. "God damn those liars!" Beside him a six-foot tall immigrant from Africa clanged a road sign with his umbrella as his friends held up a sign, "Senegal for Peace." It was overpowering: grassroots fury at the manipulation suddenly given expression. Next, news filtered through more mobiles, and it was as many suspected - Al Qaeda sympathizers had been arrested.

Another spontaneous meeting was organized in Sol, the most famous square in Spain, right at the heart of the city. At midnight thousands more arrived. More chants, including the sarcastic, "Esto es el regalo del amigo Americano." "This is a present from our American friend." On TV a Government spokesperson condemned the spontaneous meetings and warned against participation. There was speculation as to whether the riot police would take a heavy hand, as they did during the anti-war demonstrations, when peaceful marchers were battered and fired upon with rubber bullets, which forced us to rush into bars and hotels for safety, or whether they would do anything to avoid more bad publicity. It was the latter; still more protesters arrived in the square as more and more inventive slogans proliferated.

At 2 a.m. the crowd decided as one to head for Atocha station, the scene of the massacre. Suddenly, the mood changed. Hushing sounds swept though an enormous crowd from the Atocha roundabout to adjoining streets. Everyone sat down, held up their hands, and there was a stunning silence apart from the police helicopter above. Some cried, some cuddled, some prayed, and some were lost in private thoughts. After a perfectly observed two minute silence, there was spontaneous applause.

Demonstrators hung their banners and placed candles for the dead at the station wall. As each candle and sign was left, protesters made reference to the innocent lives taken in Madrid and the thousands of civilians killed in Baghdad. Some called for the end to terror - of every kind. Some referred to the "three wise monkeys" of Blair, Bush and Aznar and their infamous encounter in the Azores prior to the war, and some mentioned names of loved ones. "Sergio, I love you," one sign said. I put mine down: "No more lies."

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