« Spanish diplomacy remains governed by Franco regulations » | Spain

Alberto Virella Gomesborn 60 years ago in Nazaré (Portugal), where he emigrated his paternal grandfather, a republican military retaliated by the dictatorship, since last December of the Association of Spanish Diplomats (ADE), which groups around 60% of the almost thousand active diplomats. After having attended the Senate on February 25, this Tuesday he has an appointment with the table and the spokesmen of the Foreign Commission of the Congress, before those who plan to expose the “very alarming situation” that Spanish diplomacy is going through his opinion. The meeting coincides with a solemn act: the delivery of offices, by the king, to the LXXVI promotion of the diplomatic career, the second in which there are more women than men.

« We have been dragging for at least two decades a series of deficiencies in resources, media and organization, » explains Virella. « It is a shared responsibility for successive governments that over time has only aggravated itself. We are at critical levels in many ways and it is extremely urgent to take measures. »

To guarantee its diagnosis, it puts the data on the table: Spain, with 49 million inhabitants, has less than 1,000 diplomats. Poland, with 38 million, 1,700: Denmark, with six million, 1,300: Portugal, with 10.4 million, 490. “Our Iberian neighbor has half of diplomats that we, but does not reach a quarter of the population. I would say that we are clearly inframed in a very competitive world. We have reached a point where you can no longer stretch more”.

One of its claims is the approval of the new regulation of the diplomatic career, « A fundamental instrument for the operation of the Foreign Ministry as a whole, » he says. A new one was approved in 2014, but the courts annulled him for a formal ruling and still in force of the 1955.

The President of the ADE denounces the breach of the Law of Action and the Foreign Service of 2014, whose third additional provision ordered, within six months, a “report on the situation of real estate and the material and personal means” of the State Administration abroad, to adapt them to the objectives of foreign policy. « It has not been done. Neither in six months nor in 11 years, » he says.

Other measures, such as the aid to schooling of the children of the officials destined abroad, have not been updated since 2001. « For example, » he explains, « Special or Infant Education is not contemplated from 3 to 6 years. » The calls roots ticketsa free round trip to Spain for personnel destined abroad and their families, which was suspended in 2013 for the crisis, has not yet recovered. « They are not vacation tickets, they are to keep the link with your country, » he says.

Virella complains that when rules are approved on officials, they always forget the foreign service. « The Public Function bill in process provides for the days of permission for illness or death of a relative as it occurs in the same town or in another within the national territory. But what happens if the official is abroad? »

He acknowledges that the Consular Net Digitalization Plan, endowed with 115 million, will involve medium -term aid, but warns that its implementation is an additional short -term problem, since it deals personnel to carry out training courses. “It would be perfect if the consulates were not supersaturated. It is not the case, when Spaniards resident abroad have multiplied by three since the beginning of the century as long as the templates have not increased or reduced in some places. ”

The president of the Adem complains that the minister, José Manuel Albares, does not respond to his letters, although he acknowledges that there is interlocution with the deputy secretary of the department, Xavier Martí, but alleges that he has “very limited” capacity to respond to his demands. Value that the Board of the race, in which diplomats participate, assign the positions abroad, but criticizes that many appointments are reserved by the minister and, especially, that « there is no transparency » on the criteria used. “We do not criticize any specific appointment, except for political ambassadors, but we ask that there are objective criteria. We are more critical with the extemporaneous cessations that are not explained « alleges.

Ask. In the Senate they only received the PP parliamentarians, do you fear that they are identified with a party?

Answer. There is no reason why it is, except for bad faith. Our claims are exclusively professional and our only aspiration is to provide the best service to Spanish society.

P. How is the majority incorporation of women to a career that until not so long ago access access?

R. We support all the measures that favor a balance between men and women, but we warn of already cases of diplomats that renounce to go abroad due to lack of family support measures. In addition, we have a traffic jam with the new promotions, because there are not enough places for them to go abroad within four years from their income, as the regulations say. That is the most concern for young people.

P. Legally, the Ade is a union. Is a diplomatic strike unthinkable?

R. (Long silence) We are in the phase of making ourselves heard by Spanish society and its institutions. We hope that it is not necessary to consider these union measures, but we cannot rule them out.