Women's Day Event Sparks Political Clash in Alicante

It is becoming more of a norm rather than an exception for the left not to attend institutional events related to equality at the Alicante Town Hall. This year, PSOE, Compromís, and EU-Podem also did not attend the event held on Friday for Women's Day at the Town Hall. In fact, these parties protested during the banner unveiling in the square. This decision did not sit well with the government team, and the PP criticised it both in their speech and in subsequent media interactions.

The mayor criticised the parties he considers "hypocritical" and stated he would not be complicit in the "silence of some." Barcala brought national political issues to the forefront at the institutional event, subtly mentioning the Koldo case, Ábalos' hiring of prostitutes, and the Errejón case. The mayor emphasised this by saying, "this year the left has hidden because they feel ashamed." "With one hand, they fund equality courses and feminist associations, and with the other hand, from the same money pot, they went to prostitutes in the afternoons," he criticised.

The councillor boasted about "the most feminist government in Alicante's history," which consists of eight women and six men, and defended that, in terms of equality, women have many different perspectives. However, he stated that "silence is not an option" when it comes to denouncing sexist behaviour.

The opposition did not join the government team at the institutional event commemorating March 8th. On one hand, the left refused to attend due to what they consider the PP's concessions to Vox during budget negotiations, although it is becoming a tradition for them not to attend such equality-related events. On the right, Vox also justified their refusal to attend, considering it an ideologised event.

Socialist councillor Victoria Melgosa criticised what they consider a concession from the PP to the far right: the reduction of the Equality promotion budget. "Like schoolyard bullies, Vox has no problem playing with women's rights and lives. But this is not just an attack on the left. It is an attack on all the women of this city. And the worst part is that Barcala not only allows it but executes it, following orders from the far right, even if it means a historic setback in equality. What we are experiencing in Alicante is not an isolated incident. It is a planned strategy to dismantle rights, and we will not allow it," the councillor stated.

Meanwhile, Vox issued a statement advocating for "effective public policies focused on the real protection of women" against the "radical feminism that has forcibly dressed women in a victim's suit." The party's spokesperson, Carmen Robledillo, insisted that "the women of Spain deserve respect, opportunities, and security, not empty speeches or harmful laws." Through a statement, Vox called for responsible work to ensure "justice has no ideology and that equality is a real principle, not a tool for manipulation."

From the municipal group of Compromís, councillor Sara Llobell also criticised that Alicante lacks equality agents and promoters when it should have at least three of the former and five of the latter. She also insisted that "Alicante has an office whose purpose is to coerce Alicante women so they cannot have abortions."

Finally, the coordinator of Esquerra Unida, Lucía Ibáñez, highlighted that "the alliances between PP and Vox are taking us to a very dark era." "We don't want what happened in Móstoles, where they were prohibited from holding the 8M demonstration, to happen here," the representative of the formation asserted. She also wanted to remind that equality policies - which the far right labelled as "superfluous spending" - "have ensured that many women are working today under equal conditions."

While political parties clashed over their positions, the institutional event was marked by a full house of people, institutions, and entities from the city filling the Blue Hall of the Alicante Town Hall.

During the institutional event for 8M, three prominent women from different fields spoke: Laura Bañón Candela, project manager at Siemens; Nuria Pla Villena, technical director of the Valencian Community Volleyball Federation; and María Teresa Gordero Arias-Arguello, head of Equity at Municipalised Waters of Alicante, who reflected on the need for reconciliation policies by institutions and companies, as well as the importance of promoting co-responsibility in the family sphere so that women can achieve their goals in all areas.

The speeches were followed by a live musical performance, and subsequently, attendees unfurled the commemorative banner for International Women's Day in the Town Hall square.