It’s illegal in Spain for members of the armed forces to make political statements. In this situation, the Defence Minister is invested with the duty and power to ask the military police to detain the offender.

As should be pretty obvious from the story, ‘citing the constitution’ was not the problem here. The problem is that even after a generation of peaceful democracy, the Spanish army still contains elements opposed to democratic reform. Elements who are willing to overthrow the government should they deem it necessary. The very act of making this speech was a focused effort to disrupt the democratic reforms currently being debated.

But what if he simply said that he didn’t think the Kurds should be allowed to use their language, and that people like Orhan Pamuk should not be allowed to ‘denigrate Turkish history’, and that if necessary the army could come out of barracks to make sure, you agree, I take it, that that would not be a major indication that Turkey was fundamentally undemocratic.

I would think he would make the same comments about an islamist takeover and be relieved.

Hasn’t he rather been confined to base by his commanding officer here. And being an officer and a gentleman, he’s allowed to consider his home his castle.

Doesn’t the ordinary citizen forgo the right to bear arms as part of an implicit pact with the state, and isn’t one part of that pact the idea that those authorised to bear arms don’t then threaten to turn them on the civilian citizens.

Maybe living in a mature democracy you are not so sensitive to this issue as those who have seen threat turned into practice in relatively recent times.

And I repeat, would you be laughing all this off so easily if the statement had been made about Kurdish autonomy by a Turkish general, rather than Catalan and Basque autonomy by a Spanish one?

Well I can’t clarify very much, I’m not a constitutional lawyer, still less an expert on the Spanish Constitution.

Since the detention has been ordered by the minister of defence, my guess is the relevant law here is military law. The speech could be interpreted as a call to insurrection, although of course it wasn’t really, it was just the expression of a bigoted opinion. But technically….

I don’t really see what you are worried about. The action of the defence minister is perfectly legal. Obviously if Aguade wants to participate in politics, he will soon be a civilian again, and will be free to do so.

Meantime the Spanish parliament should also feel free to debate issues as it sees fit without having to worry about whether or not the Spanish army agrees. If this was happening in Turkey, someone or other would be busy pointing out how the armed forces are still in control there.