Spain is a European country located on the shores of the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, sharing a border with Portugal, France, Andorra. The population of this country is approx 4,91,53,000 with 5,05,990 square kilometers area. Ethnically 81% white, 7% Latino, 1.6% mixed, 1.3% Romani, 1% Arab, 0.3% black, etc., Official language is Spanish. Religiously 61% Christian, 27% atheist, 11% agnostic, etc. 85% of the total population are Spanish, the rest are foreigners or immigrants.
According to the Spanish constitution, the internal structure of political parties must be democratic. The authorities must guarantee an adequate income for citizens in old age through pensions. Likewise, they must address specific issues such as health, housing, culture and retirement through a social services system.
These are positive aspects. Now let's discuss the negative aspects.
Spain has a monarchy. Although it is symbolic, it is utterly ridiculous in the 21st century.
Admirable Articles of Spain's Constitution
Section 6
Political parties are the expression of political pluralism, they contribute to the formation and expression of the will of the people and are an essential instrument for political participation. Their creation and the exercise of their activities are free in so far as they respect the Constitution and the law. Their internal structure and their functioning must be democratic.
Section 14
Spaniards are equal before the law and may not in any way be discriminated against on account of birth, race, sex, religion, opinion or any other personal or social condition or circumstance.
Section 16
1. Freedom of ideology, religion and worship of individuals and communities is guaranteed, with no other restriction on their expression than may be necessary to maintain public order as protected by law.
2. No one may be compelled to make statements regarding his or her ideology, religion or beliefs.
3. No religion shall have a state character. The public authorities shall take into account the religious beliefs of Spanish society and shall consequently maintain appropriate cooperation relations with the Catholic Church and other confessions.
Section 21
1. The right to peaceful unarmed assembly is granted. The exercise of this right shall not require prior authorization.
2. In the case of meetings in public places and of demonstrations, prior notification shall be given to the authorities, who can only forbid them when there are well founded grounds to expect a breach of public order, involving danger to persons or property.
Section 31
1. Everyone shall contribute to sustain public expenditure according to their economic capacity, through a fair tax system based on the principles of equality and progressive taxation, which in no case shall be of a confiscatory scope.
2. Public expenditure shall make an equitable allocation of public resources, and its programming and execution shall comply with criteria of efficiency and economy.
3. Personal or property contributions for public purposes may only be imposed in accordance with the law.
Section 33
1. The right to private property and inheritance is recognized.
2. The social function of these rights shall determine the limits of their content in accordance with the law.
3. No one may be deprived of his or her property and rights, except on justified grounds of public utility or social interest and with a proper compensation in accordance with the law.
Section 38
Free enterprise is recognized within the framework of a market economy. The public authorities guarantee and protect its exercise and the safeguarding of productivity in accordance with the demands of the general economy and, as the case may be, of economic planning.
Section 49
The public authorities shall carry out a policy of preventive care, treatment, rehabilitation and integration of the physically, sensorially and mentally handicapped by giving them the specialized care they require, and affording them special protection for the enjoyment of the rights granted by this Part to all citizens.
Section 50
The public authorities shall guarantee, through adequate and periodically updated pensions, a sufficient income for citizens in old age. Likewise, and without prejudice to the obligations of the families, they shall promote their welfare through a system of social services that provides for their specific problems of health, housing, culture and leisure.
Facts of Spain's Constitution
Section 56
1. The King is the Head of State, the symbol of its unity and permanence. He arbitrates and moderates the regular functioning of the institutions, assumes the highest representation of the Spanish State in international relations, especially with the nations of its historical community, and exercises the functions expressly conferred on him by the Constitution and the laws.
2. His title is that of King of Spain, and he may use the other titles appertaining to the Crown.
3. The person of the King is inviolable and shall not be held accountable. His acts shall always be countersigned in the manner established in section 64. Without such countersignature they shall not be valid, except as provided under section 65(2).
Section 57
1. The Crown of Spain shall be inherited by the successors of H. M. Juan Carlos I de Borbón, the legitimate heir of the historic dynasty. Succession to the throne shall follow the regular order of primogeniture and representation, the first line always having preference over subsequent lines; within the same line, the closer grade over the more remote; within the same grade, the male over the female, and in the same sex, the elder over the younger.
2. The Crown Prince, from his birth or from the time he acquires the claim, shall hold the title of Prince of Asturias and the other titles traditionally held by the heir to the Crown of Spain.
3. Should all the lines designated by law become extinct, the Cortes Generales shall provide for succession to the Crown in the manner most suitable to the interests of Spain.
4. Those persons with a right of succession to the throne who marry against the express prohibition of the King and the Cortes Generales, shall be excluded from succession to the Crown, as shall their descendants.
5. Abdications and renunciations and any doubt in fact or in law that may arise in connection with the succession to the Crown shall be settled by an organic act.
Section 58
The Queen consort, or the consort of the Queen, may not assume any constitutional functions, except in accordance with the provisions for the Regency.
Section 65
1. The King receives an overall amount from the State Budget for the maintenance of his Family and Household and distributes it freely.
2. The King freely appoints and dismisses civil and military members of his Household.
