‘Terrorist attack’ against party HQ
"Hatred and violence have no place in democracy"
THE HEADQUARTERS of political party Podemos in Cartagena suffered ‘an attack with explosive material’ in the early hours of last Friday morning, according to local spokesman and national deputy Javier Sánchez Serna.
Party leader and former national government vicepresident Pablo Iglesias described the act as ‘street terrorism’.
CCTV camera footage from inside the building shows how an incendiary device – believed a Molotov cocktail – was hurled against the façade, setting fire to it and causing damage, without the flames spreading to the interior.
Sr Iglesias has accused the far-right of being behind the attack.
However, he said they would not be cowed by such violent acts – and promised ‘democracy, freedom of speech and social justice’.
New government minister for social rights, Ione Belarra said that launching an explosive device against a political party’s office was a ‘terrorist attack’.
The hooded culprit also sprayed graffiti on the windows accusing party members of being ‘sons of bitches’ and ‘corrupt scum’.
Sr Serna said it was the third ‘attack’ in the last 12 months against their HQ in the city, noting that the windows were smashed last May and ‘threatening messages’ were daubed in September with ‘neo-Nazi symbolism’.
He noted that the scale of violence against them was increasing. Sr Serna claimed that the ‘hatred’ of the far right was being stoked in the Murcia region.
He lamented that regional president Fernando López Miras had opened the doors of his government to the ‘extreme’ right-wing and this was ‘giving strength’ and encouragement to that movement.
The deputy claimed that political ideas were being met by the ‘preaching of hatred’.
Three former members of far-right party Vox have entered the Murcia regional government
after helping Sr López Miras to defeat a no confidence vote in the Murcia parliament.
They condemned the attack but warned that the ‘unpleasant act’ should not be used politically as the perpetrator had not yet been identified.
Sr López Miras stated that ‘hatred and violence have no place in democracy’.