The People's Party (PP) seeks to force the government to "condemn the vandalism" of heritage sites following the attack by Futuro Vegetal on the Naval Museum and the silence of Urtasun.

In September 2024, the Senate Plenary approved a bill against vandalism to historical heritage, thanks to the absolute majority held by the People's Party (PP). The bill is currently stalled in the Culture Committee of the Congress of Deputies and shows no prospect of success, as the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) voted against the initiative in the Senate. That's why the PP wants to force the government to take a position on this issue following the attack by two activists from Futuro Vegetal on a painting of Christopher Columbus at the Naval Museum.

The Popular Party (PP) Parliamentary Group has now presented a non-legislative motion in Congress to force both the PSOE and Sumar to speak out on these cases. According to the text of the initiative, which EL MUNDO has had access to, the PP proposes "adopting whatever measures are necessary to protect Spanish cultural heritage" and "condemning its vandalism."

To this end, the National Action Plan (PNL) points out that "conduct that attacks protected cultural assets must be appropriately classified," amending the Historical Heritage Law and including "potential damage to assets," such as "their permanent deterioration." It should also include "new social and economic sanctions, such as community benefits, with joint liability between offenders and their affiliated associations or entities, " and the "withdrawal of public aid and disqualification from receiving it" for associations that promote such attacks.

Another point of the initiative alludes to "publicly condemning all acts of vandalism to cultural heritage that occur, regardless of who the perpetrator is and whatever their claims." And this is the terrain the PP wants to explore with this new PNL: for the government to have to speak out regarding the attacks on works of art that have been taking place in recent years, especially by the Futuro Vegetal group. "Institutional silence is complicit. The PSOE will have to take a stand against cultural terrorism, planned attacks, with political motives and media coverage, against symbols of our shared history ," sources from the PP told this newspaper.

On Génova Street, they consider the recent attack on the Columbus painting to be "a serious warning," not only because of the act itself but also because of "the subsequent political passivity." Two weeks later, Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun has not made any reference to the incident . "The government has been blocking the Law on the Protection of Cultural Heritage against Vandalism, which the Senate has already approved, for over a year. We demand its immediate passage. We cannot be progressive and look the other way while the past is being destroyed," the Popular Party members point out.

The most recent attack, at the Naval Museum, occurred on October 12, National Day, when two activists threw red paint at a painting depicting Christopher Columbus. According to a statement from the climate group, the two activists, who were arrested, were carrying a banner with the slogan " October 12th, Nothing to Celebrate. Ecosocial Justice ."

That same day, another protest took place at the Reina Sofía Museum in Madrid. Approximately twenty members of the Palestinian Marea group staged a sit-in in front of Picasso's Guernica, forcing the theater to be evacuated for about 20 minutes . It eventually reopened, but with the group still seated in front of the painting by the Malaga native, holding their Stop Genocide banners.

In recent years, such actions have been common in museums across Europe. In 2023, at the Prado Museum, two activists glued themselves to the frame of Francisco de Goya's Majas, also in protest. Art galleries in Florence, London, and Berlin were also targets of such attacks . Activists also glued themselves to the frame of Botticelli's Primavera , threw tomato soup at Van Gogh's Sunflowers , and poured mashed potatoes on Claude Monet's Haystacks .