The president of the Balearic Parliament, Gabriel Le Senne (Vox), who is the subject of a judicial investigation for having torn a photograph of Aurora Picornell, victim of Francoism, during a plenary session of the Autonomous Chamber , called for lowering the level of tensions in parliaments and urged his counterparts in other regional chambers to “not fall into the temptation” of “abusing the position of power” to censor or silence critics. The photograph of Picornell and the rest of the “Rojas del Molinar” – the name by which these anti-fascist activists were known – was placed on the computer of a PSOE MP while the plenary session was debating the repeal of the law on the democratic memory of the Balearic Islands.
This is how Le Senne expressed himself this Friday in the opening speech of the meeting of the Conference of Presidents of Autonomous Parliaments (Coprepa), which is being held in Palma in the presence, among others, of the President of the Senate, Pedro Rollan. . Le Senne regretted that the growing tension in parliaments had “degraded” the level of political debate, which represents “a lack of respect both towards our institutions and towards the citizens” that he claims to “serve”. As he stated, it is not possible to engage in a high-level debate “if the words or arguments of the political opponent are distorted, manipulated or exaggerated.”
“We must flee the demonization or dehumanization of those who do not think like us. (…) Lack of respect can only lead to the crisis of democracy”, continued Le Senne. He thus called on the presidents of regional parliaments to act with “exemplarity and transparency, ensuring that each of them their decisions are oriented towards the common good”. He also specified that, throughout 2024, the 17 regional parliaments managed an annual budget of around 440 million euros, funds of which he called for “austere and efficient use”.
Le Senne also alluded to the fact that the regions, despite their differences, “are part of the same homeland”. “However, the development of the Autonomous Communities has led to a complicated situation. (…) We cannot allow regional singularities to be used to generate inequalities or tensions which endanger the cohesion which must be the foundation of our democratic coexistence,” he declared.
Rollán, who also spoke a few words during the opening ceremony of Coprepa, made comments along the same lines. The President of the Senate, in addition to defending the importance of the territorial forum and its necessary evolution, highlighted the principles of equality that, according to him, regional parliaments should preserve.
“The future of Spain passes through each of the territorial chambers, which must face challenges that can only be resolved through dialogue, cooperation, generosity and, in capital letters, equality. Our responsibility is to put general interests before individual or partisan interests,” he said. “A country’s true progress is measured not only by its economic growth, but by its ability to guarantee the freedom, dignity and equality of all citizens, regardless of where they reside,” concluded the president of the Senate.
