The Prime Minister and the four delegated competent authorities during a meeting of the Coronavirus Technical Management Committee.
of resources in our history”, he said on
Tuesday 17th at the press conference
following the Council of Ministers. Within
this framework, actions will be put into place
in four priority areas: supporting families;
protecting employment; injecting liquidity
into the business fabric; and strengthening
scientific research to develop a vaccine
against the virus. During this week and the
following weeks, measures will be taken to
extend protection to the most vulnerable
groups.
The state of alarm was also amended
in certain aspects: new restrictions were
placed on movement and more exceptions
were made for shops that could remain
open, such as veterinary clinics; the
authorities were given the power to
suspend any activity that could pose a risk
of contagion; and the door was opened
for any future amendments by the Ministry
of Health. In line with the decisions taken
by the European Union, the Government
closed the land borders, after Spain had
suspended the Schengen Agreement to
contain the spread of the virus. The closure
“This virus will
make us stronger
as a society”,
declared King
Felipe VI
day, all the autonomous communities
suspended classes. By nightfall there
were 3,000 cases, up 800 on the previous
day at the same time. The crisis had
definitely risen to national level, the
population had suddenly become aware
of the problem and the collapse of the
health system was feared.
On the morning of Friday 13th, the
streets of Madrid were empty, particularly
on the outskirts, although in the centre
a few solitary tourists and passers-by
could still be seen. It was then that Pedro
Sánchez announced he would declare a
state of alarm.
REINFORCEMENT MEASURES
In order to launch a set of measures to
reinforce the state of alarm, the Prime
Minister and the four delegated competent
authorities met at Moncloa Palace on
Sunday 15th. These measures were aimed
at strengthening the National Health
System, reducing the supply of public
passenger transport services under the
jurisdiction of the State —road, rail, air
and sea— by 50%, establishing common
criteria for all of the Security Forces and
Corps and initiating defence actions. On
the same day, Margarita Robles chaired
a coordination meeting at the Ministry
where the actions to be undertaken by the
Armed Forces were discussed and the
single command was activated.
Pedro Sánchez also announced
a 200-billion-euro emergency plan to
cushion the impact of the crisis. “This is the
greatest economic and social mobilization
does not affect goods to avoid production
and the supply chain coming to a halt.
The King addressed the country on the
night of Wednesday 18th. King Felipe VI
called on all Spaniards to show “unity” and
“solidarity” and expressed his admiration
for the health professionals, “Spain’s
vanguard in the fight against this disease”,
recalling that, “from streets all over Spain”,
“moving and heartfelt, sincere and just
applause” could be heard for their work.
“This virus will not stop us”, he declared.
“On the contrary, it will make us stronger as
a society: a society that is more committed,
more supportive, more united, standing up
to any adversity”.
On Sunday 29th, the Government
tightened the general confinement of
the population by approving the total
restriction of movement, except for
workers in essential activities. By then, the
figures in Spain had already surpassed
72,000 infections and 5,600 deaths.
In the extraordinary plenary sessions of
March 18th and 25th, Parliament, with a half-empty
chamber to avoid contagion, gave
the green light to the state of alarm and
its extension, as well as to the economic
and social measures adopted. Pedro
Sánchez appeared on Saturday, April 4th to
announce the holding of another plenary
session to debate a new extension, until
midnight on April 26th. In this appearance
the Prime Minister sent a hopeful message:
“In the next few days”, he said, “the curve
will bend and the peak will be left behind;
we are close to reaching it”.
Santiago Fernández del Vado
April 2020 Revista Española de Defensa 11
Pool Moncloa/J. M. Cuadrado