Guardia Civil honour patron with parade

The leading political, military and ecclesiastical authorities attended the celebration of the Virgen del Pilar, patron of the Guardia Civil, at the barracks in Calle Manuel Azaña. Events were presided by Catalina Cirer, the government representative, accompanied by Col Cristobal Santandreu. Bishop Teodoro Ubeda officiated a brief religious ceremony after which various officers received awards for their work. In her speech, Catalina Cirer said that the Guardia Civil had changed in keeping with the times, but it retained “its universal values.” Col Santandreu gave a brief report of his first year at the head of the service in the Balearics and made a brief mention of the conflict in Afghanistan. Francesc Antich became the first Balearic leader to attend the celebrations.