Admitting that real blood is not immune to the most basic feelings of a human being, it must not have been easy for Filipe to suggest / demand that his father Juan Carlos leave the country where he has always lived.
A well-educated son can hardly accept his mistresses, his unclear business or his father’s liking for big game, particularly elephants, but – I imagine – that does not stop him from having his voice choked when he asked him to leave the house .
Philip VI did not now forgive his father as he had not previously forgiven his sister.
In March, the current Spanish monarch had renounced the inheritance that could come to him directly. And so it gave a clear sign of detachment from the man who had occupied Spain’s throne before him for almost four decades.
Nothing very new compared to what he had already done to his sister, from whom he withdrew the title of Duchess of Palma de Mallorca, even before he saw her sitting on the dock.
Cristina, who was no longer a duchess, was accused of complicity with her husband who was tried and convicted. She was acquitted, but her brother, the King, did not wait for the verdict to remove the title that had been assigned to her when she married.
Democratic scrutiny knows only the limits of the law. In the monarchy those of inviolability, a big curse that in this case is confused with impunity.
I don’t know if Philip VI did everything well, but I realize that he did not do everything wrong. I would even say that if he were a candidate in a presidential election in Spain, subject to the evaluation of his people, he would have some chances to remain in the leadership of the country.
The problem is that he was not elected, neither he nor the father who has now thrown out of the house. That is why we do not know the current address of a man over 80, who has been the face of the country for almost 40 years.
The two enjoy the status of inviolability, that is, in the limit, Juan Carlos will never be judged and condemned for what he did … neither good nor bad. This is not compatible with a democratic regime.
Democratic scrutiny knows only the limits of the law. In the monarchy those of inviolability, a big curse that in this case is confused with impunity.
I don’t want to know what the fate of Juan Carlos is, at the limit or that of Filipe VI, but I am concerned about the fate of Spanish democracy. There will even be those who fight for it legally and loyally, but there may also be those who use it – democracy – to win votes by overthrowing the monarchy.
Hopefully, the people of Spain will be able to evaluate each other. The people will be the only ones who have the legitimacy to do so.
*Director at Plataforma
