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Spain

Monthly Event Reports

January 2024 | Parliament passes historic constitutional amendments changing language on disabilities

Parliament approved constitutional amendments for the third time in the history of the 1978 Constitution (adopted after the Franco dictatorship). The changes remove the term “handicapped” (“disminuido”) from Article 49 and replace it with “persons with a disability,” a long-sought demand of disability rights advocates, including the Spanish Committee of Representatives of People with Disabilities (CERMI). The amendments additionally introduce a commitment by public administration to pursue policies that “guarantee the complete autonomy and social inclusion of people with disabilities.” President of CERMI, Luis Cayo Pérez Bueno, celebrated the amendments, and stated that they were made “hand-in-hand with civil society, social movements, and people with disabilities, and their families.” The final vote in the Senate on 26 January resulted in 254 votes in favour and three votes against from Vox party MPs, far exceeding the three-fifths majority required for constitutional reform.

November 2023 | Protests against law providing amnesty to Catalan separatists
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A controversial amnesty deal was resisted by mass demonstrations across the country, including a gathering of around 170,000 people in Madrid and riots in front of the Socialist Party (PSOE) headquarters. The agreement, finalised between Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Catalan pro-independence party Junts, offers amnesty to Catalan separatists as a concession to ensure PSOE could remain in power following inconclusive July elections. A bill pending in Parliament would require courts to end the prosecution of nearly 400 members of the Catalan separatist movement, including the leaders of the secession attempt in 2017. The amnesty does not apply to particularly egregious crimes, including torture or serious cases of inhumane treatment. The European Commission is currently analysing the draft legislation, including its potential impacts on the rule of law.

September 2023 | Catalan, Galician and Basque used in Parliament for first time

Catalan, Galician and Basque were officially used in the lower house of Parliament for the first time on 19 September, after the Congress of the Deputies approved changes to Congressional regulations, with 180 votes in favour and 170 against. Live translation and earphones were provided to all parliamentarians. The change comes as acting prime minister Pedro Sánchez tries to secure the support of the Catalan pro-independence parties for forming a new government. Far-right Vox and the conservative People’s Party (PP), who support centralisation, protested the use of regional languages in the lower house with walkouts and refusals to wear the earphones. Historically, all regional languages were censored during the Franco regime. Since then, they have been given official status alongside Castilian Spanish in their respective regions. Today, an estimated 9.1 million people speak Catalan, 2.6 million speak Galician and 1.1 million speak Basque.

August 2023 | Government approves new agency for the supervision of AI

The Council of Ministers approved the statute of the Spanish Agency for the Supervision of Artificial Intelligence (AI) (AESIA), becoming the first European country to establish a dedicated regulatory agency to ensure the responsible use of AI. The body will be attached to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation. The European Union is currently debating legislation which will require EU member states to form national supervisory authorities responsible for monitoring the enforcement of AI regulations. AESIA will be independent from the government and tasked with overseeing the use of AI in both the private and public sectors, with the ability to sanction harmful uses of AI. AlgorithmWatch has reported that the government failed to adequately include civil society when conceptualizing the agency and its functions, after civil society organisations called on the government to draw on their knowledge and experiences in a joint letter in September 2022.

Explore past monthly event reports

GSoD Indices Data 2013-2022

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Basic Information

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Population Tooltip
47 326 690
System of government
Parliamentary system
Head of government
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (since 2018)
Head of government party
PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party)
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
List Proportional Representation
Women in lower or single chamber
42.4%
Women in upper chamber
39.3%
Last legislative election
2019
Effective number of political parties Tooltip
6.07
Head of state
King Felipe VI
Selection process for head of state
Hereditary or election by hereditary state rulers
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
22/01/2020
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
91.64%
Population Tooltip
47 326 690
System of government
Parliamentary system
Head of government
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (since 2018)
Head of government party
PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party)
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
List Proportional Representation
Women in lower or single chamber
42.4%
Women in upper chamber
39.3%
Last legislative election
2019
Effective number of political parties Tooltip
6.07
Head of state
King Felipe VI
Selection process for head of state
Hereditary or election by hereditary state rulers
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
22/01/2020
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
91.64%
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Human Rights Treaties

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State Party State party
Signatory Signatory
No Action No action
United Nations Human Right Treaties
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
State Party
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
State Party
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
State Party
Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
State Party
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment
State Party
Convention on the Rights of the Child
State Party
International Convention on Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
No Action
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance 
State Party
International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
State Party
International Labour Organisation Treaties
Forced Labour Convention
State Party
Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention
State Party
Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention
State Party
Equal Remuneration Convention
State Party
Abolition of Forced Labour Convention
State Party
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention
State Party
Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment
State Party
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
State Party
Regional Treaties
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
Protocol No. 4 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
Protocol No. 6 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
Protocol No. 7 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
Protocol No. 12 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
Protocol No. 13 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
State Party
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Performance by category over the last 6 months

Representation neutral Representation
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Representation neutral Rights
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Representation neutral Rule of law
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Representation neutral Participation
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Global State of Democracy Indices

Hover over the trend lines to see the exact data points across the years

Explore the indices
Representation
Representation
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Rights
Rights
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Rule of Law
Rule of Law
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Participation
Participation
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Annual value

Factors of Democratic Performance Over Time

Use the slider below to see how democratic performance has changed over time

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