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Maximum expectation.

It was not just another speech.

The spotlights and the pressure, more than ever, pointed towards Felipe VI.

In a year marked by the coronavirus pandemic and by information about Don Juan Carlos' opaque businesses and his judicial situation, the pressure even came from the Government to distance himself from his father.

The King has addressed the Spanish this Christmas without ignoring the matter, without any taboo: "The moral and ethical principles oblige us all without exceptions; and they are above any consideration, of whatever nature, even of people or relatives ".

The situation and the context were not easy.

Felipe VI acts, again, as King and not as son.

A veiled allusion, but clear enough.

In Zarzuela the doctrine prevails that it is not necessary to make explicit what is taken for granted.

Since March 15, when he renounced his inheritance and drew a kind of firebreak, the monarch did not address the situation of his father, in the United Arab Emirates since last August 3.

He breaks the moorings again, in his intention to uncheck his reign from that of Don Juan Carlos.

"In my proclamation before the General Courts, I referred to the moral and ethical principles that citizens demand from our conduct. This is how I have always understood it, in coherence with my convictions, with the way of understanding my responsibilities as Head of State and with the renewing spirit that inspires my reign from day one ", has been his message to the Spanish.

"Justice is the same for all"

An idea that recalls his speech in the Cortes that June 19, 2014, in which he already made reference to that commitment to regeneration, if possible even more explicitly: "The Crown must ensure the dignity of the institution, preserve its prestige and to observe an upright, honest and transparent conduct. And the King, at the head of the State, has to be not only a reference but also a servant of that just and legitimate demand of the citizens ".

It is not the first time that the Head of State has to allude and distance himself from the actions of a member of the Royal Family.

It already happened in 2011, when in the midst of the

Nóos case

that plagued Iñaki Urdangarin and Doña Cristina, Don Juan Carlos pronounced the already historic: "Justice is the same for everyone."

The economic and social crisis

In a demanding message, for all that 2020 has meant, Felipe VI, in addition to emphasizing the exceptional nature of this Christmas Eve, wanted his first words to be a memory for those who died from the pandemic or who are ill.

"In thousands of homes there is a void that is impossible to fill due to the death of your loved ones, whom I want to remember with emotion and with all respect. And also, at this time, many of you are struggling against the disease or its consequences. To all of you I send my best encouragement and affection. "

In a speech of depth and depth, with great social depth as few times, Felipe VI sends a message of optimism and hope for the future - "we have always been able to overcome serious difficulties" -, but without ignoring the harsh health reality, economic and social experience in Spain.

"Many of you live the anguish of unemployment or precariousness; the anguish of barely meeting basic needs; or you feel the sadness of having to abandon a business to which you have dedicated your days. It is logical and understandable that discouragement or distrust are very present ".

Felipe VI asks to face the future "united, with determination and security in ourselves", but reflects the present economic and social hardship that is to come due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Individuals and families must be our primary concern."

Addresses the problem of youth unemployment - "Spain cannot afford a lost generation" -;

the poverty generated by the coronavirus - "It is a matter of dignity to protect the most vulnerable and fight against inequalities" -;

and the situation of companies, freelancers, merchants - "It is decisive to strengthen the business and productive fabric; to recover our economy" -.

Commitment to the Constitution and to Spain

At a time when tension has taken hold of politics, with confrontation prevailing, the monarch asks politicians for unity, to abandon their differences and join forces in "the health, economic and social challenges that we face."

"Overcoming them constitutes a great national objective that must unite us all."

The King, who pays tribute to health workers, the Armed Forces, the Security Forces, Civil Protection or Emergencies, vindicates himself as a champion of the current State model and guarantor of the Constitution.

A reaffirmation of their commitment at a time when Pedro Sánchez's governance partners are deploying a campaign against the Crown and the State model, even from the Council of Ministers itself in the figure of United We Can.

"As King, I will be with everyone and for everyone, not only because it is my duty and my conviction, but also because it is my commitment to Spain."

"Unity, commitment and the Constitution as a guarantee of our way of understanding life. A Constitution that we all have a duty to respect; and that in our days, is the foundation of our social and political coexistence, and that represents a success of and for democracy and freedom ".

The Magna Carta as a roadmap, in a political context in which those political actors who most question and attack it enjoy relevance and prominence.

The King reminds Spaniards as a whole that progress is made from the "reunion" and the "pact", "united in an inclusive spirit, respecting plurality and differences".

The King and the Princess of Asturias, in July, in tribute to the victims of the coronavirus.

Tribute to those who died from Covid and to health workers

To the right of the King, on one of the consoles in the Audience Hall of the Palacio de la Zarzuela, there is a photograph of Felipe VI with the Princess of Asturias at the time of depositing some white roses in the wreath of the State tribute of the last July to the victims of Covid-19.

Those who died from the pandemic were very present in Felipe VI's message.

His first words were for them.

"In thousands of homes there is a void impossible to fill due to the death of your loved ones, whom I want to remember with emotion and with all respect", was his mention.

In a year marked by the pandemic and the fight against Covid, the King wanted to highlight and pay special tribute to the work of the toilets, a group that already won the Princess of Asturias Award for Concord in October.

Praise, gratitude, admiration, debt.

"We thank them for their enormous effort, their extraordinary professionalism and their great humanity with the sick. Today they continue to face this struggle with a great emotional and physical burden on their shoulders," were his words.

Felipe VI spoke of the "hope" that the arrival of vaccines gives, but, expressly, he called for "individual responsibility" and "to keep us forewarned and not lower our guard."

But he wanted to cast an optimistic look: "Neither the virus nor the economic crisis are going to break us."

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • Philip VI

  • United we can

  • Pedro Sanchez

  • Iñaki Urdangarin

  • Unemployment

  • Juan Carlos I

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  • Covid 19

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