Madrid News

What's happening in the city that never (well, rarely...) sleeps.

Big Anti-Abortion Rally in Spain
More than a million people are said to have taken part in a march in Madrid to oppose government plans to liberalize Spain's abortion law. Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero wants to introduce abortion on demand - to be available to all women up until the 14th week of pregnancy. Most controversially, the draft law currently before parliament would also permit girls aged 16 and 17 to have an abortion without their parents' knowledge. The march brought together more than 40 religious and civil society groups calling for the government to withdraw the draft bill. They gathered in the heart of Madrid under an enormous blue banner the height of a two-storey building emblazoned with the simple message: "Every life matters." The crowd stretched all the way up the city's main avenue (Paseo Castellana) in show of strength by Spain's traditional Catholic right. October 2009.

Juan García Ripollés Exhibition
A Series of sculptures to be found in Retiro park this spring under the title 'Universo Urbano'.