The controversy sparked by the agreement signed last August between the United Police Union (SUP) and the Desokupa company will have no consequences for the officers. The file announced by the Ministry of the Interior was closed without proposing sanctions or further investigation, as sources in the department headed by Fernando Grande-Marlaska informed elDiario.es.
The agreement, announced by the two organizations in August, involved the possibility of Desokupa providing “personal defense” training to 30,000 national police officers. The general secretary of the SUP, Mónica Gracia, described the agreement as “historic” and justified the training courses carried out by Desokupa by the “excessive violence” which, according to her, is exercised today against the security forces . “Authority has been lost,” Gracia said at the time.
The agreement between an organization representing the national police and an organization known for its violent methods and its far-right positions triggered a controversy which the Interior wanted to put an end to with the announcement of the opening of the file . But also with the message from the ministry that public subsidies to the police union, the main source of funding with contributions from its members, were threatened. Once verified that no national police agent works for Desokupa, the information file was closed, confirms an official spokesperson.
Last October, the Director General of Police, Francisco Pardo, appeared at the Congress of Deputies and was invited by the deputy of Sumar, Enrique Santiago, to explain the progress of the internal investigation into the SUP. His response did not seem to anticipate a quick or very forceful resolution. “We do what the law allows us to do,” Pardo responded on October 14.
“The disciplinary files are extraordinarily guaranteeing, but extremely guaranteeing. There are some who end up weighing several kilos because of all the documentation, evidence provided, etc. If at this time I could provide you with information beyond what I have already provided, which is quite detailed, I would do so. But I insist: trust,” Pardo declared before the Interior Committee.
The SUP was the leading union of the Spanish police until the emergence of Jupol, heir to the Jusapol association. Since its creation, the association has demanded the equalization of the salaries of the national police and civil guards with those of the Mossos d’Esquadra and has acquired very significant support within the security forces in the midst of the sovereignty process in Catalonia.
From the start, Jusapol’s methods were very aggressive towards traditional unions, including the SUP. Some of these union organizations have allowed themselves to be drawn towards extreme positions, either in their approach to Vox, or by launching radicalized messages, trying to regain the favors of the lost majority. In the last elections, the SUP recovered positions until it equaled Jupol in number of representatives in the Police Council, but with fewer votes.
From the start, the Interior Ministry denied the SUP’s claim that the Desokupa self-defense course would be “bareemable” for officers, that is, it would be taken into account in their promotion attempts. In response to the now deputy of the Joint Group José Luis Ábalos, the Ministry of the Interior explains that it is the Police Development Division which is responsible for carrying out the continuing training of officers. Ábalos asked this question outraged by the agreement with Desokupa and as an honorary member of the SUP, which he has been for more than 40 years.
The Interior’s response to the current deputy of the Mixed Group also specifies that the SUP has “legal personality and full capacity to act, so that any agreement it formalizes with private entities corresponds to the decisions of this union and has no connection with the plans and programs”. “training of members of the National Police.”
Desokupa began its journey as an eviction company that could be hired by any landlord wishing to evict, without waiting for legal proceedings, people who had illegally occupied their accommodation or who had stopped paying their rent. The company’s methods of intimidation, with frequent use of force, quickly made its actions go viral. To social networks have been added television programs intended to convince that housing occupancy is a problem of a magnitude which does not correspond to official figures.
In the heat of this television and network promotion, Desokupa leader Daniel Esteve was identified as the leader of far-right protests, whether against Mayor Ada Colau or in front of Ferraz’s socialist headquarters in opportunity for negotiations. of the amnesty law. With military paraphernalia and xenophobic and racist messages, these demonstrations sometimes gave rise to incidents.
The ‘number three’ of the Interior, during a SUP event
The relationship between the current Interior Ministry and the United Police Union was highlighted at an event a few weeks ago. The National Police Commissioner José Antonio Rodríguez, “number three” in the decision-making power of the Interior, was the protagonist of a reserved event organized by the SUP.
José Antonio Rodríguez was the guest of the last edition of the so-called Cibeles Forum, a dinner in which the SUP periodically brings together a selection of its members and a small group of journalists around a personality. The event occurred before the closure of the file opened to the union was revealed.
