Institutional normalization in Barcelona
From Monday to Thursday, Barcelona City Council hosted the annual meeting of directors of the Cervantes Institute. During this event, Mayor Jaume Collboni took advantage of the occasion to take a step towards institutional alignment with the monarchy, an approach that had been neglected in previous administrations. The last time members of the Royal Family could be seen in this city was seven years ago, when Kings Felipe VI and Letizia made a visit due to the 2017 attacks, in which they were received by the then mayor Ada Colau. . This Tuesday marked the return of Queen Letizia to the Casa Gran.
A meeting of cultural relevance
Queen Letizia played a leading role in presiding over a session focused on multilingualism, which gave the mayor the opportunity to add another event to his agenda related to the monarchical environment. This interest in her relationship with the monarchy is reflected in a portrait of the king that has been present in her office since she took office. In addition, the mayor had an audience last year at the historic Albéniz Palace, marking a milestone as it was the first time in seventeen years that a mayor of Barcelona met with a king of Spain. To accentuate this closeness, Collboni was accompanied by Salvador Illa, a politician with no current institutional position, but whose presence reinforces the perception of normality.
An event with little public attention
Despite the relevance of the meeting, the Plaza de Sant Jaume did not present an atmosphere of great expectation. Around fifty people, mainly tourists and curious people, watched the moment when Queen Letizia got out of her vehicle and greeted those present. In contrast, parties such as TriasXBCN, ERC and BComú, which have a majority in the council, had already announced their refusal to participate in activities with the queen. However, the event passed without significant protests, except for one individual accustomed to calling for Catalan independence.
Safety measures and the general environment
The security measures implemented, which included a wider perimeter of fencing, did not affect the normal flow of pedestrians and vehicles around the town hall, suggesting that the royal visitor did not arouse fervent reactions among citizens. Inside the town hall, the eighty directors of the Cervantes Institute prepared for a family photo half an hour before the queen’s arrival. With respect to the republican and independence currents, some might think that the city has resumed the role of ‘shelter for foreigners’ that Cervantes associated with it.
