These days I've been following Spanish revolution aka 15M movement. It all started a year ago as protests of "los Indignados" - outraged. Some people kept discussing the situation, possible solutions and people's participation in politics.
I don't claim to know exactly what they did, achieved or haven't. What I see is that some people feel like taking back the power of giving solutions to their problems. And no wonder they feel outraged seeing politicians looking for the solutions for the markets and the finances. The most important question for me is the real participation in decision making.
In my life I voted only once, in the European parliament elections a few years ago. I'm not saying voting is irrelevant but still it has no direct influence on the politics making. There are no guarantees that the party I vote will stick to their program. That's why I'm happy hearing alternatives to this imperfect system of illusory democracy for people who believe they live in freedom.
This weekend 15M movement was celebrating a year of existence on the squares of major cities uprising all sort's of reactions and analysis by intellectuals, specialists and media. So I also want to put my grain of sand.
Some criticise that the movement is going nowhere. Well gathering so many people from different ways of life and ages makes me think that it is a work in progress. The importance doesn't lie in the political achievements but in transforming people's attitudes towards politics. It's just a seed that have been sown and still politicians do seem to fear it. They are trying to limit the right to demonstrate and that's a big deal. By doing so they are criminalizing one of the few ways people have to show their opinion or disagreement.
My own experience of participating in marches and pretests made me reconsider the freedom I had as well as how easy it is for the media and the politicians to manipulate the events. Once marching next to a row of policemen I realized how their presence there made us enemies, just because we were exercising our right. Without being there any violence the menace of violence was in the air. I remember coming back from a protest just to watch on TV how the few people left turned it into a fight. And thus four or five hours of pacific marching where turned by the media into violent wrangle between a group of hippies and the police.The aim of 15M should be more than that to a big enough portion of the society.
Other expect it to turn into an organized political force. Well I don't see it happening, because that would mean to accept the rules of a game so many are tired to play. Which is the reason for the protests in the first place.
The movement is questioning the democracy we have and was sold to us as the best thing ever. Well it probably was at the time but society evolves, evolution makes us want something better. I hope for a better Democracy and a better society. I know, the idealist in me never dies.
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