Importance of the Spanish Constitution of 1978

In most countries the Magna Carta or Constitution establishes the course of a nation, since it is the general legal framework in which the coexistence. The so-called regime of 78 is currently being debated and there are two antagonistic positions on it.

Constitutionalist political parties

PP, PSOE and Ciudadanos are political formations with conflicting ideological approaches. However, they all agree on one thing: the framework of the 1978 Constitution must be defended and any possible reform must be done respecting the criteria established in the text itself constitutional.

For these parties, the current Magna Carta has been helpful in many ways:

1) Spain has established itself as a modern state comparable to its surrounding nations in the European Union,

2) its approval through a referendum was supported by the vast majority of citizens and

3) The approved text was the result of a consensus among all the political formations of the time and made it possible to overcome the wounds of Francoism and initiate a stage of national reconciliation.

The nationalist parties and PODEMOS defend the need to overcome the 1978 regime

In the preliminary title it is specified that Spain is indissoluble and that it cannot be divided, but at the same time the right to autonomy is recognized policy of the different territories of the nation. On this point, the nationalist parties of Catalonia and the Basque Country maintain that the unity of the homeland should not be a principle immovable, since the inhabitants of the autonomies should be able to express their will freely and democratically and decide their future as a nation sovereign.

Consequently, they consider that the Spanish Constitution represents an obstacle against their legitimate aspirations.

The representatives of PODEMOS and other formations have another line of argument: the new generations have not expressed their will with with respect to the general framework of the nation and, therefore, a new referendum should be considered to approve a new proposal constitutional.

On the other hand, those who oppose the Magna Carta consider that the system of government (monarchy or republic) should also be put to a vote.

Image 1. web, 2. Fotolia Cristinaduart