The day I forgot how to speak english...

The morning of March 11th, 2004, Spain woke up with the tragic news of a series of bomb attacks over the train system that links Madrid with its surroundings. It was a hit right on the heart of the Spanish capital… And right on the heart of Spanish society. In just a few minutes, around 8:00 am, almost 200 people died and over 1500 were injured. It was, of course, unexpected and awfully traumatizing.

That morning, I woke up early and, as I usually do if so, I turned on the news. Half an hour later there was this breaking news report informing about an attack on Madrid commuter’s trains. Not knowing about victims or the brutality of the attack yet, it didn’t take me two seconds to exclaim “motherfuckers!!!”, immediately assuming that the Basque terrorist band ETA would be responsible for it. Something that, being Spain a country where Basque terrorism has been active for three decades (with almost 900 people dead as a result) probably millions of Spaniards thought exactly at the same time.

A few short hours after the attacks, the first official press release came out and the official spokesman for President Jose Maria Aznar government made it clear that they thought ETA terrorists were behind the bombings. People believed him. And considering the tragedy that Madrid was enduring, right at that very moment, I don’t think anyone would have suspected the government was not telling the truth. But…

As the day developed, new reports and TV crews started to depict a massacre that surpassed anybody’s imagination… and that it didn’t fit at all with ETA terrorist methods. Mostly reduced throughout the years to minor intensity bomb explosions and selective murder of politicians, police officials or opposing figures to Basque nationalism, the increasing number of victims and the brutality of the train attacks in Madrid soon started to look like too big a job for ETA’s hands (both in terms of intentions and capabilities). But a second official press conference took place that afternoon and the government did not hesitate in reaffirming his previous position: According to the facts they had, ETA was the number one suspect of the crime and the prior line of investigation.

That same afternoon, however, after two official declarations had charged suspicions on ETA, one nationwide radio station had the guts to break the silence about responsibilities most media had fallen into (in honest respect for such a painful tragedy and the investigation, in most cases, I believe) and aired a report saying that police forces were not precisely trailing ETA, but clues that most definitely confirmed the action of Islamist terrorists. This aired on the afternoon and I believe was just as shocking as the attacks themselves. Could the government be really hiding information? Were Spaniards being told the truth? What the hell was really happening on one of the most painful days in the history of Spain?

With elections two days ahead, on March 14, the nature of attacks being attributed to ETA or Islamist terrorists meant a whole different thing, at that moment. Being in government and with polls slightly on his favour, Jose Maria Aznar’s Popular Party (right-wing) had been heading for what most people considered a sure re-election… until those bombs exploded in Madrid. If ETA was to blame, that would have most probably secured his re-election or, at least, not played against his intentions. But if the attack was the work of an Al-Qaeda cell or Islamist related, that meant a lot trouble for Jose Maria Aznar and the Popular Party’s campaign. The strongest supporter of George W. Bush’s policy on Iraq, after Tony Blair, Aznar has decided to back up the invasion of Iraq with over 90% percent of Spanish society fiercely opposing his decision. So if those bombs in Madrid came out to be the work of Islamist terrorism, with only two days of campaign left, the road towards re-election would have, indeed, become a lot, lot more complicated.

As night approached on the day of the attacks, masses of people started to crowd the streets of most Spanish cities to protest with a simple cry: “?Quién ha sido?” (Who did it?). You could see the pain in every single face. Deep pain caused by the brutal murder of those innocent people in Madrid and a raging pain derived from seeing the essence of democracy stumble right in front of you. History proved not only that the whole world knew of the true nature of the attacks that same day (long before Spanish society could see it confirmed on their own media), but also that Jose Maria Aznar government insisted on blaming ETA almost for almost two days after the attacks and even when police investigation was confirming all the contrary. It was (and it is) one of the most despicable examples of people manipulation ever seen on a democratic society (not as much for the idea of politics manipulation itself, of course, but for the repulsive and unbelievable attempt to try something like that in such a delicate moment). Two days later, obviously, Jose Maria Aznar lost the elections.

During manifestations that same night, an American tourist approached me and asked me what was going on. I babbled a couple of words and then I just couldn’t go on. Of course, I felt horribly sad by the attacks. But I was even more pissed off and shocked by the government’s response… And I had not realized how desolated I felt until I went language blind and I just couldn’t link two sentences together in English.

I remember I did not shed any tears. But I’m sure I was crying.