We are just one day ahead before the final voting takes place tomorrow within the Spanish Senate on whether the controversial "Ley de Economía Sostenible"  or "Ley Sinde") will be passed or not, and the abundance of news articles, blog posts, tweets, etc. etc. keep flooding the Spanish Web from all over the place. Yet, it looks like things don't seem to have changed that much despite the uproar. People are even preparing to demonstrate publicly later on today to reject the passing of that law, which seems to be inevitable and which, in my opinion, will mark whether Spain is just one other modern, progressive country in the western world, where its Constitution is respected by all, or, alternatively, whether it will become *the* first banana republic in western Europe. What do you reckon?

Unfortunately, those with that power to listen to their constituents and act accordingly don't seem to want to keep doing the job for which they are getting paid for the last few years, which is serve your people, your voters, and it looks like we are just about to prepare for the worse, i.e. the law will be passed even without a discussion and just by a fraction of the entire Senate! Utterly disappointing, if you ask me!

Now, I do realise I am not an expert on politics, nor do I plan to be one; I basically do not know enough to make an educated opinion of what it is all about and how it basically works out, but I *do* pride myself on having that ability to read stuff AND think critically on information that gets thrown out to me. So when I saw the recently published article by Wikileaks under the title "10MADRID174: SPAIN: AMBASSADOR'S MEETING WITH MINISTER OF" (In English) I just couldn't, but feel appalled AND gutted at how deteriorated politics has become in general as of late when your own government, and its people!, are governed by the markets from another country, because that's essentially what's at stake over here. Whether you are in agreement of "Ley Sinde" or not that's out of the question; laws get made and passed time and time again amongst a healthy discussion in most cases. Or perhaps not. However, things, this time around, are very different...

Here we are about to find out tomorrow whether my home country, Spain, will be capable of claiming to be an independent and free state as of December 22nd 2010, or, instead, that banana republic at the service of others, just because you would want to get along with them nicely and therefore become dependent on them enough that they dictate and mandate your own laws. You could certainly debate this particular law and how it come out in the first place; you could certainly debate the validity and the methods under which Wikileaks got access to that kind of information and publish it across; but, in my opinion, and, like I said, I may not know enough about politics in the present day, you can never debate, nor put into question, the sovereignty of a free, independent state just because you may have not only political interests, but also additional commercial ones.

I am very sorry to say this, but that's basically what's at stake in tomorrow's voting from a group of Spanish senators on whether "Ley Sinde" will be passed or not. If it doesn't make it through, Spain will continue to have its credibility intact as one of the most advanced and progressive democracies from the western world that we know of (Something to always feel very proud of, I can imagine!); it it does pass we will be witnessing how Spain will become a surrogate state at the mercy of others' interests and that nightmare of becoming that first banana republic of western Europe will then become a reality.

Tomorrow, as most of you folks reading this blog post already know, we will celebrate the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the whole year; tomorrow, if the voting goes in the wrong direction, we will be having not just the darkest night BUT the darkest of days, and years to come!, for us all, Spaniards, as well and for a long while. Tomorrow we will be able to witness how much worth the vote of each and every single Spaniard really is. Tomorrow, it may well be the last day that I would treasure that unique privilege of casting a vote hoping it does make a difference, as part of a healthy and strong democratic state. If the "Ley Sinde" gets approved tomorrow, that feeling will be gone. For good! It will probably even be pointless to have them rule this country. After all, it's no longer theirs anymore, but someone else's...

Doesn't that make you feel uncomfortable as much as it does to me? Goodness, I hope that tomorrow we can still THINK! and act accordingly! For the sake of all of us, dear senators, think about what you are going to do, before it is too late. 46 million people are watching you with great interest. Please, please, please, don't disappoint us/them!

I am sure that, at this point in time, you may have read the following couple of news articles: "Lo que de verdad ocultan los Gobiernos" by El País (In Spanish), and "Not-So-Gentle Persuasion: US Bullies Spain into Proposed Website Blocking Law" by Electronic Frontier Foundation that have just been recently published and which basically come to confirm how on December 21st, my home country, Spain, will become part of that exclusive bunch of countries known as banana republics, as that's the date when a bunch of Spanish politicians will be approving, and passing!, a law that's been imposed by the US government's pressure, which basically comes to violate nothing more sacred to any so-called democracy than its own Constitution itself. If you haven't read either of those articles, I would suggest you take a few minutes and do so. You would probably be just as appalled as I am that we are in this situation in the first place altogether!

I have never thought that in my 13 years of Internet life I would ever get to blog about one of those three subjects that all along I have stayed away from, on purpose. Yes, that's right! When I first started making use of the World Wide Web, all along, and from the very first beginning, I decided that there would be three topics I would stay away from, more than anything else because of perhaps how opinionated I am myself about each of them: Politics, Religion and Sports. Yet, recent events are making me re-think that position and change that opinion; maybe, because somehow I feel, very very soon, I might not even have an opportunity to share that opinion freely as one of my fundamental rights: that of my own voice. My own self.

You may be wondering that this may well be a bit too alarmist, melodramatic, controversial and everything, but again I would strongly encourage you all to read those two articles (There are zillions more on that very same topic out there already, by the way!) to see how it's no longer about being an alarmist, but simply the defining moment of individuals / citizens to start protecting themselves from the invisible government(s) that govern them. It all comes from the recent cablegate that Wikileaks has unleashed just recently, which certainly comes to bring to question a whole bunch of topics I will be touching base on soon enough, but one that comes to mind as of late: the sovereignty of states AND their own governments given the pressures from third party lobbies / organisms, including other state governments.

I know that this blog post is probably not going to change things that much, unfortunately, just like much of what's been said all over the place already; however, I would want to take this opportunity to encourage those politicians who will be passing the law next Tuesday 21st of December to think very carefully about that vote, so that they they, finally, put an end towards alienating their own constituencies for good. I know it's not going to be easy, given all of those pressures they have been submitted for a while already, but one thing for sure, is that if my home country, Spain, enters the realm of becoming the next banana republic, I will start questioning the validity not only of our own political system, but that of the so-called state of democracy. Because somehow it will stop existing any longer from that day onwards with that free spirit of how it was born over 30 years ago.

Thus, dear politicians,

Azpiazu Uriarte, Pedro María (GV (EAJ-PNV)) – pedro.azpiazu@diputado.congreso.es
Buenaventura Puig, María Nuria (GER-IU-ICV) – prensa.icv@gpiv.congreso.es
Colldeforns i Sol, Mª Montserrat (GS) – mcolldeforns@diputada.congreso.es
Gastón Menal, Marta (GS) – marta.gaston@diputada.congreso.es
Montoro Romero, Cristóbal Ricardo (GP) – cristobal.montoro@diputado.congreso.es
Oramas González-Moro, Ana María (GMx) - ana.oramas@diputada.congreso.es
Sánchez i Llibre, Josep (GC-CiU) – jsanchez@unio.cat
Tomé Muguruza, Baudilio (GP) – baudilio.tome@diputado.congreso.es

let me remind you with this blog post that the state of democracy your fathers envisioned back in the day will be at stake on December 21st 2010 when you cast your vote and decide whether to pass the law ... or not. Please do remember who voted for you in the first place; if you took an oath to represent AND to be truthful to your constituents, that would be the perfect time when you could demonstrate it once and for all. To all of us. Not them.

Please try to make an extra effort NOT TO  turn us off and away altogether from the world of politics and, for once, fight the good fight! Not just for you and your own integrity, but that one of all of us. Your voters.

Ante la inclusión en el Anteproyecto de Ley de Economía sostenible de modificaciones legislativas que afectan al libre ejercicio de las libertades de expresión, información y el derecho de acceso a la cultura a través de Internet, los periodistas, bloggers, usuarios, profesionales y creadores de Internet manifestamos nuestra firme oposición al proyecto, y declaramos que:

1. Los derechos de autor no pueden situarse por encima de los derechos fundamentales de los ciudadanos, como el derecho a la privacidad, a la seguridad, a la presunción de inocencia, a la tutela judicial efectiva y a la libertad de expresión.
2. La suspensión de derechos fundamentales es y debe seguir siendo competencia exclusiva del poder judicial. Ni un cierre sin sentencia. Este anteproyecto, en contra de lo establecido en el artículo 20.5 de la Constitución, pone en manos de un órgano no judicial -un organismo dependiente del ministerio de Cultura-, la potestad de impedir a los ciudadanos españoles el acceso a cualquier página web.
3. La nueva legislación creará inseguridad jurídica en todo el sector tecnológico español, perjudicando uno de los pocos campos de desarrollo y futuro de nuestra economía, entorpeciendo la creación de empresas, introduciendo trabas a la libre competencia y ralentizando su proyección internacional.
4. La nueva legislación propuesta amenaza a los nuevos creadores y entorpece la creación cultural. Con Internet y los sucesivos avances tecnológicos se ha democratizado extraordinariamente la creación y emisión de contenidos de todo tipo, que ya no provienen prevalentemente de las industrias culturales tradicionales, sino de multitud de fuentes diferentes.
5. Los autores, como todos los trabajadores, tienen derecho a vivir de su trabajo con nuevas ideas creativas, modelos de negocio y actividades asociadas a sus creaciones. Intentar sostener con cambios legislativos a una industria obsoleta que no sabe adaptarse a este nuevo entorno no es ni justo ni realista. Si su modelo de negocio se basaba en el control de las copias de las obras y en Internet no es posible sin vulnerar derechos fundamentales, deberían buscar otro modelo.
6. Consideramos que las industrias culturales necesitan para sobrevivir alternativas modernas, eficaces, creíbles y asequibles y que se adecuen a los nuevos usos sociales, en lugar de limitaciones tan desproporcionadas como ineficaces para el fin que dicen perseguir.
7. Internet debe funcionar de forma libre y sin interferencias políticas auspiciadas por sectores que pretenden perpetuar obsoletos modelos de negocio e imposibilitar que el saber humano siga siendo libre.
8. Exigimos que el Gobierno garantice por ley la neutralidad de la Red en España, ante cualquier presión que pueda producirse, como marco para el desarrollo de una economía sostenible y realista de cara al futuro.
9. Proponemos una verdadera reforma del derecho de propiedad intelectual orientada a su fin: devolver a la sociedad el conocimiento, promover el dominio público y limitar los abusos de las entidades gestoras.
10. En democracia las leyes y sus modificaciones deben aprobarse tras el oportuno debate público y habiendo consultado previamente a todas las partes implicadas. No es de recibo que se realicen cambios legislativos que afectan a derechos fundamentales en una ley no orgánica y que versa sobre otra materia.

If you would want to read the English version, head over to Boing Boing and read it over here. And for a much more extensive coverage of the Manifesto click on this link.

(NOTA: Este manifiesto fue redactado conjuntamente por periodistas, bloggers e internautas, en una maratoniana sesión durante la tarde-noche de ayer. Si estás de acuerdo, difúndelo por todas las vías que puedas)