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Spain Disenchantment with UCD Leadership
Political change was under way. The UCD was a coalition
that
encompassed a wide range of frequently incompatible
political
aspirations. Internal conflict had been muted in the
interest of
maintaining party unity in order to protect the transition
to
democracy. When the 1979 elections appeared to affirm this
transition, the centrifugal tendencies broke loose. In the
succeeding months, the center-right UCD moved farther to
the
right, and its more conservative members were increasingly
critical of Suarez's compromises with the PSOE opposition
on
political and economic issues. At the same time, large
segments
of the population were frustrated that Suarez did not
produce a
more thorough reform program to eliminate the vestiges of
authoritarian institutions and practices.
Suarez's failure to deal decisively with the regional
problem
further eroded his popularity. Repressive police measures
met
increasingly virulent outbreaks of Basque terrorism, and
the
ongoing spiral of repression and terror contributed to a
growing
impression that the government was incompetent. The
mounting
violence further exacerbated Suarez's relations with the
military, which were already strained because of his
legalization
of the PCE. Army leaders, who had only grudgingly accepted
political reforms out of loyalty to Juan Carlos, grew
increasingly hostile to the democratic regime as ETA
terrorism
intensified. A coup plot had been uncovered in the fall of
1978,
and the possibility of military subversion continued to be
a
threat.
As discontent with his leadership grew, Suarez realized
that
he had lost his effectiveness, and on January 29, 1981, he
announced his resignation as prime minister. The king
appointed
conservative centrist Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo to replace
him.
Before the new prime minister could be confirmed, a group
of
Civil Guards, led by Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Tejero
Molina,
marched onto the floor of the Cortes and held the
representatives
hostage in an attempted coup. The plan of the rebellious
military
leaders was to set up an authoritarian monarchy under the
protection of the armed forces. That the coup failed was
primarily due to the decisive action of Juan Carlos, who
ordered
the conspirators to desist and persuaded other military
officers
to back him in defending the Constitution. Juan Carlos
then
appeared on television and reassured the Spanish people of
his
commitment to democracy. The foiled coup was over by the
next
day, but it demonstrated the fragility of Spain's
democracy and
the importance of Juan Carlos to its continued survival.
On
February 27, more than 3 million people demonstrated in
favor of
democracy in the capital and elsewhere throughout Spain,
showing
the extent of popular support for democratic government.
Data as of December 1988
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