The Way of Sant James

• The Way of St. James Master and Strategic Plan envisages intense promotion of the nine pilgrimage routes that run through Galicia
• ‘A “Way of ways” could be the motto that inspires us during this new and exciting period,’ he states
• Whereas thirty years ago, a little under 3,000 pilgrims reached the city, the 300,000 who arrived so far this year demonstrate that the Camino is more alive than ever
• Words of recognition for the architects of the Santiago de Compostela Declaration, which established the Camino as a European Cultural Route, making special mention of Marcelino Oreja Aguirre
• The Spanish witnessed ‘with excitement and gratitude’ the eloquent support of the heads of the European Commission, European Council and European Parliament for our rule of law during the Prince of Asturias Award ceremony
• As a European, Spaniard and Galician, he conveys the Xunta’s support for the constitutional measures adopted ‘to re-establish the autonomy of any region, community or land which may find itself in the situation with which we are currently dealing in one part of Spain’
• Spain is proof that the peoples and nations that make up the European Union do not walk alone through a globalized world, nor must they face internal and external challenges alone

Santiago de Compostela, 23 October 2017

Xunta President Alberto Núñez Feijóo noted today that in 2021, Compostela will again be the capital of the world. ‘We are ready for it,’ he said. Feijóo also remarked that the Way of St. James Master and Strategic Plan – rolled out in 2015 with a budget of 56 million euros – envisages, among other goals, intense promotion of the nine pilgrimage routes that run through Galicia. This means the entire region will be even more involved in this shared undertaking.

In 2016, improvement work was focused on the Primitive Route and the Northern Route, after these two ways were added to the World Heritage List. This year has been devoted to the English Route and Fisterra–Muxía Route. And next year, the Portuguese Route will be the focal point. ‘A “Way of ways” could be the motto that inspires us during this new and exciting period,’ he stated. Feijóo also gave thanks for initiatives such as that driven by the Spanish Federation of Friends of the Camino de Santiago Associations, which has produced the map of pilgrimage routes to Santiago currently signposted in Europe, totalling 80,000 kilometres.

Whereas thirty years ago, a little under 3,000 pilgrims reached the city, the Xunta leader stated that the 300,000 who have arrived so far this year, representing 177 nationalities, demonstrate that the Camino is more alive than ever.

At this commemoration ceremony, Feijóo had words of recognition for the architects of the Santiago de Compostela Declaration, making special mention of Marcelino Oreja Aguirre, a key player in Spain’s transition to Democracy and a pro-European who advocated for an idea that still remains relevant today: a Europe which is understood as a ‘group of people and a vast community of peoples’. Nor did he overlook the pioneering role played by José Manuel López-Chaves Menéndez and the Pazos Association, who in the early 1980s had already begun presenting initiatives supporting European recognition of the Camino.

Constitutional Spain and democratic Europe, the solutions

During his speech, the president of the Xunta made mention of the fact that this anniversary coincides with the reappearance of ‘old ghosts’. ‘The same separatist nationalism and the same populism that sowed such discord in Europe are making another appearance,’ he pointed out, stressing that these ideologies strive to reinstate old boundaries and create new ones which put democracy at the mercy of demagogy. ‘Instead of paths, bridges and open windows, they propose fences, walls and closed doors.’

In response to this, he recalled how the Spanish witnessed ‘with excitement and gratitude’ the eloquent support of the heads of the European Commission, European Council and European Parliament for our rule of law during the Prince of Asturias Award ceremony, emphasizing that respect for the law is an inherent aspect of the European spirit.

 Feijóo stressed that anti-democratic rebellion against the constitution of any state by any local or autonomous community authority is also a revolt against the fundamental values of Europe. As a European, Spaniard and Galician, he conveyed the Xunta’s support for the constitutional measures adopted ‘to re-establish the autonomy of any region, community or land which may find itself in the situation with which we are currently dealing in one part of Spain’.

The Xunta president described Spain as proof that the peoples and nations that make up the European Union do not walk alone through a globalized world, nor must they face internal and external challenges alone. ‘For some time now, European policy and the policy of European states have not been foreign policy,’ he insisted.

‘Constitutional Spain and democratic Europe are the solutions,’ he concluded during the commemoration ceremony for the 30th Anniversary of the Declaration of the Way of St. James as a European Cultural Route, underscoring that these principles expressed by Jean Claude Juncker, Donald Tusk and Antonio Tajani are present at this 30th anniversary.

In his speech, the president of the Xunta also took time to recall recent events in Galicia, Asturias and Portugal, which have been ‘struck in a vile, homicidal and destructive way’. ‘Mourning for the victims and indignation at the destruction caused by the fire must remain present in our minds,’ he said, also highlighting the individual and collective heroism that has always characterized the Galician people in difficult times.