Spain: Can church and state be separated? | VPRO World Stories

Are church and state in Spain separated or are they going hand in hand? Easter is celebrated with Passion in Andalusia. Great, but it also raises questions. What think people of the idea that church and state are connected? Or do people in Andalusia not even think that this is a problem?

A year ago, Stef and his family still lived in Nicaragua, in a quiet area of the pleasant village of Masaya. But his street turned into a war zone when the country went into a deep crisis and President Daniel Ortega cracked down the protests. Stef searched for a place to stay and ended up with his wife and children in Andalusia. To find his way and get to know this part of Spain better, in this six-part series he writes letters to the inhabitants. Stef discovers Andalusia on the basis of those letters, but parallel to this story you follow his personal situation, which of course is strongly influenced by the crisis in Nicaragua.

With letters about the Easter week, Stef finally seems to have grasped the Andalusian favorite subject. The semana santa is celebrated in full glory. Because the elections are imminent, Stef cannot suppress the temptation to also ask whether church and state in Spain are not too closely connected. But the Andalusians prefer not to answer those letters.

Original title: Semana Santa – brieven aan andalusië (5/6)
2019

Director & Presentation: Stef Biemans
Research & Production: Barbara Smit
Edit: Pelle Asselbergs & Stef Biemans
Camera: Niels van Koevorden, Joost van Herwijnen
Sound: Tim van Peppen, Simone Galavazi, Jillis
Commissioning Editors: Joyce Daamen
Production: vpro Nicole Frints
Audio post-processing: Tim van Peppen
Production: vpro Nicole Frints
Color correction: Gerhard van der Beek
Production: vpro Nicole Frints
Subtitling: Daniel Naamani
Communication vpro: Bert Bentsink
Online Editors: Elmar Veerman &
Thanks to: Roel van Broekhoven

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