Spanish health minister Salvador Illa and other leading Spanish politicians have attended a huge party of the Madrid elite. A hundred and fifty guests were present for an awards ceremony in Madrid, violating all the regulations that the Spanish health authorities have imposed on the public, starting with the ban on gatherings of more than six people. The occasion was the fifth birthday of Pedro J. Ramírez's digital newspaper El Español and, despite coinciding with one of the worst moments in the pandemic in Spain - and the second night of curfew - neither the awards ceremony nor the party were cancelled, and nor did 150 VIP guests, including senior PSOE, PP and Cs politicians, see fit to decline the invitation.
Muy mal lo de los chavales y sus botellones. pic.twitter.com/lfxnOQVBds
— Gabriel Rufián (@gabrielrufian) October 27, 2020
Translation:
"Very poor behaviour, these young people with their booze parties on the street"— Gabriel Rufián (ERC party MP)
Entonces ¿Estaba o no estaba Arrimadas en el evento? No me ha quedado claro. pic.twitter.com/uqtnJLWetP
— Yeyo de Bote 🇪🇸🔻 (@yeyodebote) October 27, 2020
"So was or wasn't Ciudadanos leader Inés Arrimadas at the event? I'm not clear about it."— Yeyo de Bote
Newspaper director Pedro J. Ramírez (right), PP leader Pablo Casado (centre) and Spanish health minister Salvador Illa (centre in top photo) at the El Español party | GTRES
La policía llegó a poner multas en una fiesta multitudinaria sin mascarillas en un casino de Madrid. Ah no, que son el Alcalde, el Ministro de sanidad y demás amiguetes ayer mientras reportaban mas de 200 muertos en los hospitales de España. pic.twitter.com/1VQghHej65
— Marighby (@Sapo_concho_) October 27, 2020
"The police came to fine those at a massive party, with guests not wearing masks, in a Madrid casino. Aah no, it's the Madrid mayor, the Spanish health minister and other buddies yesterday - at the same time as more than 200 deaths were reported in hospitals in Spain."— Marighby
The list of VIPs present included important figures in all the Spanish unionist parties except Vox: there were Socialists (PSOE) such as the defence, justice and health ministers (Robles, Campo and Illa) and the president of Castilla La Mancha, García-Page. From the Popular Party (PP) the entire top brass turned up: leader Pablo Casado, Madrid mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida and regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the Murcia regional president Fernando López, and other senior PP members Teo García Egea, Cuca Gamarra and Ana Pastor. From Ciudadanos (Cs), leader Inés Arrimadas, along with Edmundo Bal and Begoña Villacís. Also present at the event, Spain's chief of defence staff, General Miguel Ángel Villarroya, Spain's attorney general Dolores Delgado, Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez and other well-known business figures.
On social media, there was no shortage of disgusted reaction to the event - from Catalonia as from elsewhere:
Només faltaria que a les elits madrilenyes se’ls apliqués el mateix decret que sí han de complir la resta de ciutadans. https://t.co/GCgF8ul961
— Quim Torra i Pla (@QuimTorraiPla) October 27, 2020
"The last thing we needed was to see the Madrid elite abiding by the same rules that everyone else does"— Quim Torra i Pla (president of Catalonia)
La paraula "ejemplaridad" la tenen en desús. https://t.co/EDUiVEtHfX
— Lluís Llach (@lluis_llach) October 27, 2020
"The expression "setting an example" is one they don't use much."— Lluís Llach (musician)
A la nit no pots sortir.
— Albano-Dante Fachín (@AlbanoDante76) October 27, 2020
Et tanquen el cap de setmana.
Surt només per treballar.
Ni se t'acudeixi queixar-te perquè et diran "negacionista".
Mentrestant, la màfia que ens desgoverna i desinforma, fa les seves festes.
Això no ho podem acceptar. https://t.co/DYlvzydkUM
"You can't go out at night. They close you in at the weekend. You only go out to work. Don't even think about complaining because they will call you a 'denier'. Meanwhile, the mafia that misgoverns and misinforms us, is having its parties. We can't accept this."— Albano-Dante Fachín (journalist)
Estan exigint a la gent que si organitza sopars no siguin més de 6 i que acabin abans de les 22h. Però l’elit política i empresarial espanyola es reuneix en un sopar de més de 100 persones i a estones sense mascareta i tot. Deu ser que “el virus no entén de classes” com diuen. pic.twitter.com/ZVSgXw7BSo
— Albert Botran Pahissa (@albertbotran) October 27, 2020
"They demand maximum group size of six for dinners and to finish before 10pm. But the Spanish political and business elite gather for a dinner of more than 100 people and at times even without masks. It must be that "the virus does not understand classes" as they say."— Albert Botran Pahissa (CUP party MP)
¿Que puñetera necesidad hay de saltarse el estado de alarma para hacerle el caldo a Pedro J.? Aguafuerte de las élites de Madrid por encima de todo. Y me fastidia porque había gente a la que aprecio pero la han cagao...
— Elisa Beni (@elisabeni) October 27, 2020
"Why the hell do people need to violate the State of Alarm to suck up to Pedro J.? A portrait of the elites of Madrid above all. And it annoys me because there are people I appreciate but they have f*cked up badly..." — Elisa Beni (journalist)
A scandal in Madrid that demands explanations, by all those who were present and by the person who invited them. Cynicism in the Madrid elite.