Federación de Concejos, Pedanías y Parroquias Rurales de España

0:15 Who are you and where are we?

0:43 You’re a lawyer and a professor of administrative law at the University of León. How did you come to the Federación de Concejos?

2:10 Where does your desire to take part in a federation that defends concejos, pedanías, and parroquías rurales come from?

4:13 Does the term “Consejos” have the same meaning as “Pedanías” or “Parroquias rurales”?

4:59 When did the Federación start?

7:31 Politically speaking, which parties are represented in the Federación?

8:23 Why did you choose to be a federation?

10:33 What are the goals of the Federación de Entidades Locales Menores?

10:58 La Federación de Concejos, Pedanías, y Parroquias Rurales is represented in Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, Palencia, Salamanca, Soria, León, and Álava. Are minor local entities in the south of Spain included in the Federación or are only those in the north represented?

13:36 Can you explain what a minor local entity is?

14:39 Are there minor local entities in all municipalities?

17:28 What factors determine whether a minor local entity or a municipality is more effective at managing a territory?

19:28 How are the minor local entities organized, administratively speaking?

21:47 In 2013, the Montoro Law for the Rationalization and Sustainability of Local Administration was introduced. As a result of this law, protests have emerged in defense of the juntas vecinales. It seems that the excuse of “rationalization and sustainability” is being used to justify the elimination of these forms of popular and direct democracy: one person, one vote. From your perspective, what other factors threaten the survival of communal councils in Spanish municipalities?

27:00 How is a federation organized internally?

27:56 Can you give us some examples of the services offered by the Federación?

29:05 How is the Federación coordinated?

29:45 What are the short-, medium-, and long-term goals of the Federación?

32:06 The Federación supports the implementation of a Law of Concejos. Would this law guarantee the protection of communal lands?

34:06 Could we think of the concejos abiertos as small democratic experiments?

36:02 Article 132 of the Spanish Constitution speaks of public, patrimonial, and communal property. Can you explain the difference between these three concepts?

38:54 Historically speaking, which legal documents, besides the Magna Carta, support the legality of the concejos and the comunales?

44:07 What factors determine whether a property is meant for communal use?

46:22 We’ve talked about the longstanding tension between the historical process of enclosing communal goods for private use and the defense of communal lands. Where have the communal lands survived and what factors have contributed to their survival?

50:20 Across Spain, it’s possible to see the installation of solar farms, wind farms, and macro-farms in what used to be communal spaces. How can this occupation be explained?

51:59 From your perspective, is there a relationship between the process of rural depopulation, the threat to communal land, and the invasion of solar-, wind-, and macro-farms?

1:00:28 What legal procedures exist to transform a patrimonial or private property into one of communal use or a communal property into a private property?

1:03:16 Is there an up-to-date map that illustrates the existence of common property across Spain?

1:07:31 Legally speaking, how has the technology of communal enclosure been modernized?

1:09:40 Is the capitalist economic system incompatible with communal use and exploitation?

1:12:38 From your perspective, is there a general knowledge in society of what the juntas vecinales and the commons are?

1:15:06 Do law departments explain the reality of the concejos and communal property?

1:18:51 Are partisan interests compatible with the common interests of minor local entities?

1:20:35 Could the level of respect for minor local entities be used as a barometer to measure the democratic health of the Spanish state?

1:23:01 Do you think that the media accurately explains the importance of minor local entities and communes?

1:25:36 Do you think that the use of new communication technologies could ease the situation of depopulation in rural areas and, therefore, improve the conditions for minor local entities?

1:27:40 The Constellation of the Commons is meant to be a space for good news. What news can you share from the Federación to brighten our forecast of proposals?