A FAIR CAMPAIGN?
Do these “media clippings” describe a FAIR campaign?"
Please find here some clippings of articles about the Spanish campaign and ask yourselve, whether this activities by the government are merely - as it is demanded by Spanish law - destined to inform the citizens about the date of the referendum, the procedure to vote and the requirements and proceedings of the vote by mail. Or ... whether this is much more what the National Electoral Commission calls "PROAGANDA: Any activities or statements designed to gain or condition the public vote”.
(...) there has been no debate about the constitution. As the justice minister, Juan Fernando López Aguilar, put it: "You don't have to read the European Constitution to know that it's a good thing." Which is just as well, from his point of view, since more than 90 per cent of Spanish voters say they know next to nothing about the document. And how could they? They haven't been offered an argument between two points of view, simply a series of rallies and gimmicks aimed at boosting turnout. The "No" campaign may be languishing in single figures, but the Spanish government has left nothing to chance, launching a propaganda blitz so one-sided that the electoral commission has been moved to complain.(...) (12 Feb 2005 - Daily Telegraph)
(...) Soccer stars, celebrity actors, singers and journalists were due to kick off on Friday a government campaign aimed at explaining the European Union's new constitution, as Spain gets ready for a Feb. 20 referendum (…) The government has recruited familiar faces, including former soccer star Johan Cruyff, to read articles from the constitution in daily TV ads. The 3-million Euro program is entitled "The First with Europe." (7 Jan 2005 - AP)
(...) Although the official starting date for a campaing for 'yes' vote on the EU Constitution in Spain is the 13 January, a website run by Spain's Foreign Ministry is already up and running. It proudly announces that the Spanish will be the first people to have a chance to vote on the Treaty. "Los Primeros Con Europa" is the slogan selected to accompany the campaign whose implicit objective is to secure a 'yes' vote in the referendum on 20 February. (7 Jan 2005 – EurActiv)
"We want to make the most of the mobilising capacity of Spanish and European football to get the message out to all our citizens that the constitution is important," Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos told a news conference on Friday (…) The government is keen to avoid the embarrassment of a low turnout on February 20. Abstention has been high in the last few EU elections. (7 Jan 2005 - Reuters)
Saturday's FT reported on the Spanish referendum, and how Spain is set to overwhelmingly vote yes, despite the fact that few people have read or are interested in the EU Constitution. It also reported that the UK Government has sent observers. A Spanish Government spokesman told the FT, "We suggested that they keep politicians out of it, and to forget about big political debates or articles in the press. Enlisting media personalities, sports stars, cultural icons: that would help the government reach citizens directly." (15 Jan 2005 - Financial Times)
Spain yesterday unveiled a television campaign ahead of voting in the European constitution referendum next month. The poll will be the first of many to be held across the continent. The advertisements use well-known media, sports and pop celebrities, who are shown reading extracts from the charter. The campaign appears to be a clear attempt to persuade Spaniards to vote Yes but Miguel Angel Moratinos, the foreign minister, said it was designed simply to be educational. (5 Jan 2005 - Daily Telegraph)
The ‘yes’ side of the Constitution campaign has huge resources to help win with a convincing majority. To kick the campaign off, the Government distributed copies of a pamphlet on the Constitution at football matches, starting with the derby game between Atlético and Real Madrid. The leaflet in question has been the subject of a complaint from the United Left party, which points out that the information produced by the Spanish Government favours the Constitution, when, by law, it should be neutral. (7 Jan 2005 – CSE)
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