The first quarter of the year 2026 has been marked by the war in Iran and its economic derivatives. The Government has focused its activity on alleviating its effects, articulating an anti-crisis plan. However, its partners, in the exclusive assessment they have carried out in Demócrata, demand that progress be made in other pending laws, among which they rescue an old and entrenched issue: the reform of the Gag Law. At what point is it and why does it not prosper?
The Organic Law Proposal for the protection of freedoms and citizen security, better known as the reform of the Gag Law, was already a commitment of the progressive Government of the last legislature, but it fell through due to discrepancies with Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) and EH Bildu.
In May 2024, the Sumar deputy, Enrique Santiago, once again registered as a bill the latest version of the opinion to repeal the Gag Law, leaving aside the points of friction that caused the rejection of the partners.
Already in October of the same year, 2024, PSOE and Sumar signed an agreement with the abertzale left to register a new bill, this time with concrete proposals on the four hot issues: the prohibition of the use of rubber bullets, of hot returns, and the review of disrespect for authority and disobedience.
The proposal, which is also signed by the PNV, is now in reporting phase. At the end of June 2025, PSOE, Sumar, EH Bildu, the jeltzales and ERC met to try to bring closer positions that should already be close due to the agreement closed the previous year; but the meeting was of little use. Podemos and Junts declined to attend the meeting.
In an interview with Demócrata, Barbero attributed the blockade to the “lack of courage” of the PSOE. “It still needs a little push,” he said, and entrusted himself to the “incentive” of the investiture bloc “to move forward.”
In addition, Barbero insisted on the important of landing the issues related to democratic regeneration, especially when they not only integrate the coalition pact, but are commitments acquired with partners.
The points of friction
Rubber bullets
Rubber bullets were, along with hot returns, the point to which the PSOE most resisted. The agreement establishes that rubber bullets will be replaced by less harmful materials and that do not cause irreparable injuries, although which ones have not been specified.
Hot returns
For its part, regarding "hot returns," the Government will have six months to address the modification of the Immigration Law with the aim of incorporating an additional Provision to regulate a special regime in Ceuta and Melilla that guarantees the rights of migrant persons, ensuring that asylum applications are processed according to the law and respecting Human Rights.
In this regard, the initiative states that the certification and identification of potentially asylum-seeking individuals will be mandatory, and the consequent evaluation must be carried out in the places enabled for this purpose at border crossings prior to the process of possible expulsion.
In the last legislature, the socialists proposed to delink the issue of the Gag Law reform, committing to include it in a future reform of the Immigration Law. It did not take effect then and, now, the agreement confirms that they will go hand in hand.
Disrespects to authority
If the new law is approved, the insults or slanders whose recipient is a member of the State Security Forces and Corps, would become only a minor offense; as long as these behaviors were not constitutive of a criminal offense.
By infraction will be understood “the relevant expressions”, which in no case may interfere with freedom of expression. This point, according to EH Bildu deputy Jon Iñarritu has explained, would aim to end the criterion, in his opinion, discretionary by which an agent could consider as a lack of respect for authority “a look, a t-shirt or the tone of voice”.
Another of the novelties would be the cancellation of the offense in case the sanctioned party agreed to retract or apologize for their expressions.
Disobedience
The infraction of disobedience, with the reform, would go from serious to minor offense. It would be understood as such when, after a legal order, the person involved offered physical resistance or refused to identify themselves or provided false or inaccurate data.
Would incur the infraction whenever it is in a manifest, clear, and objectifiable way”, and provided that “it is not constitutive of a criminal offense”.
The matter does not show signs of being unblocked soon, especially with the open war between the Basque parties, EH Bildu and PNV, which hinder an understanding by entrenching themselves in their positions, with the electoral struggle in the background.