Spanish Parliamentarians Tweet Secret Mario Draghi meeting · Global Voices
Elena Arrontes

On Tuesday, Spain's Parliament began its formal discussion about the economic and political crises that are ravaging the country. The three most subsequently important debates were regarding the future Transparency Law, the proposal of the Popular Legislative Initiative as a means to affront the number of mortgage-based evictions, and the intervention of European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi in the discourse on the ECB's role in the Euro zone crisis [es] and in particular its role in Spain. Draghi accept Spain's request for a meeting but requested a closed session with Congress, without stenographers or recordings.
The sector of Spanish society that remains fully abreast with the political and social happenings within the country have been quick to respond to the unjust and misrepresentative decisions that have been made in recent days. Tuesday's private session intensified these citizens’ efforts as they turned in droves to social media to make their voices heard. But this time, they had extra leverage to bolster their cause: the actions of two members of Izquierda Unida [United Left] who disobeyed Draghi's conditions for a closed session (it was prohibited for representatives to send informative updates beyond the room). They disagreed, believing the president of the ECB should be held accountable to the public given the scope of authority of the position.
As such, Joan Coscubiela and Alberto Garzón, the two representatives in question, defied orders and live Tweeted Draghi's address under the hashtag #OpenDraghi. They also recorded the parliamentary session (five videos in total) and posted them to YouTube. The videos, which weren't posted in real-time, now have more than 155,000 views.
Joan Coscubiela and Álberto Garzón, the two parliament representatives behind the #OpenDraghi initiative.
The violation of the closed session order could result in sanctions [es] against the two member of Parliament. Garzón and Coscubiela's party set up a website so users could easily track the parliamentary developments. The site's motto is, “They closed the Congress. We will open it!” Congressional President Jesús Posada called Representative Garzón to order when he addressed Draghi on his management of the European financial crisis. Garzón called the ECB an anti-democratic organization, accusing it of “extorting money from various countries” and of “taking no actions as the crisis has developed,” claiming the situation should now “go before the courts.” He went one step further by saying Draghi was to blame for the cuts to social services and was to be held responsible the recovery of the financial system, demanding explanations for the actions Draghi has taken on both.
The Spanish blogging community has also weighed in heavily in publicizing Draghi's address. ProfesorGeoHistoria wrote the following in his blog:
Comparecencia de Draghi (BCE) en el Congreso gracias a la grabación de los diputados de izquierda (ICV).  Poner inhibidores en el Congreso es reconocer que allí pasan cosas que es mejor que el ciudadano no conozca. Es una vergüenza”.
“Draghi's address to Congress thanks to left-wing representatives. To have a closed session is to admit that things are transpiring that it would be better the general public didn't know. It's shameful.”
The United Left's web page, the party who posted the session on YouTube, indicates they are unable to continue streaming.
Here is a sample of tweets that circulated under the hashtag #OpenDraghi, which became one of the day's trending topics.
‏@AmandaMeyerh: Hoy será recordado como el día en que un banquero tumbo a la soberanía popular #OpenDraghi, ánimo a diputad@s q resisten!!!@iunida
‏@AmandaMeyerh: Today will be remembered as the day the head of the banks got owned by the public #OpenDraghi, way to go you two!
@hugomabarca: Gracias a @jcoscu y @agarzon por contar la comparecencia de Draghi que el democratiquísimo Congreso pretende mantener secreta #OpenDraghi.
@hugomabarca: Thanks to @jcoscu and @agarzon for covering the Draghi meeting our “democratic” Congress wanted to keep secret #OpenDraghi.
‏@JuanMJG: ¿Hacemos un #Crowfounding para pagar posible multa a @agarzony al crack de @Jcoscu ? #OpenDraghi #NoTodxsSonIguales
‏@JuanMJG:Are we pulling together for a #crowfounding [crowdfunding] to cover the possible fines our true representatives @agarzon and @Jcoscu are facing?
‏@agarzon: Invitamos a todo el mundo a usar #OpenDraghi como denuncia de la opacidad del Congreso y la troika. Un insulto a ciudadanos y periodistas.
‏@agarzon:We invite everyone to use #OpenDraghi to reject Congressional secrecy and Perestroika-like “reforms” which are a slap in the face to citizens and journalists.