The Yala Nafarroa for Palestine platform will launch the chupinazo (fireworks) at the Sanfermines festival.

This year's San Fermín festival will be more vindictive than ever . Yala Nafarroa por Palestina, a platform made up of more than 225 associations and no political party, will be in charge of launching the chupinazo (fireworks). The three people who will represent it are Lidón Soriano, Dyna Kharrat, and Eduardo Ibero, chosen for having been the most visible faces in recent months and for their knowledge of Spanish, Basque, and Arabic. The three will appear on the city hall balcony a few moments before noon, and two of them will take turns delivering the formal address set out in the decree regulating this event: "Pamploneses, Pamplona residents, Long live San Fermín! Iruindarrak, Gora San Fermín!" They are not permitted to deliver any other message. The launcher was not chosen by Pamplona City Council; once again, the vote was popular. What's more, this time, a record turnout was broken, with Yala Nafarroa being elected with more than half of the votes cast (10,594, or 52.85%). The platform's spokesperson, Lidón Soriano (Castellón, 57), admits that they had expected support, but not as much: "When they told us we had received as many votes as the five candidates combined last year, well, it was incredible. This, once again, conveys the longing and desire of these citizens to stop this brutality, to stop Israel."

Behind Yala Nafarroa lies significant citizen support. It is made up of 225 associations and more than 1,700 individual members. These are significant figures, Soriano points out, considering Navarre's small population, which is close to 679,000. It is made up of all kinds of groups , "organizations or groups of dancers , artists, teachers, firefighters, healthcare workers, lawyers..." Other groups are also part of it, such as the community's NGO Coordinator, which is itself made up of several other entities.

“It's a platform that brings together and represents the diversity of a society, and that's one of the great achievements we've achieved as Yala,” Soriano says. He clarifies, however, that “there are no political parties in Yala. Yala has an ideology that calls for a ceasefire, the entry of humanitarian aid, reparations for all affected people, the severing of relations with Israel... And both groups and individuals have embraced that ideology. What we wanted was to create a platform where many people would feel not only challenged but included, where they would see a path they could feel comfortable in.” By choosing to have three people launch the chupinazo, they hope to convey “in some way our concept of internationalism, that different peoples are fighting for the same cause and facing the same enemy.”

The platform is aware that this choice hasn't pleased everyone, and that there are those who argue that politics shouldn't interfere at this time. Soriano has a clear answer: "Social issues are political." She insists that the chupinazo (fireworks) is the best showcase "for Palestine because we are nothing more than vehicles for the message of internationalist solidarity with this people. The one who will be on that balcony is Palestine." That message of solidarity "is above all of us, any cause, and all celebrations." Her election, she affirms, has also been a way of reclaiming "the right to life and joy of all peoples and, particularly, of the Palestinian people," who "are vital and joyful to an unimaginable degree, and Israel is taking it upon itself, with the complicity of all Western governments, to rob them of that joy. And this is one of the points that was important for us to reclaim."

Pitcher's Choice

The selection of the chupinazo launcher begins in mid-May , when the associations or groups that make up the Sanfermines General Committee submit their proposals, which they must justify with merits such as their contributions to the city in the social, academic, scientific, and cultural fields. Yala Nafarroa's candidacy was presented by the Pamplona Federation of Supporters' Clubs and the Dominican Sports and Cultural Center of Navarre for its "commitment to democratic values, human rights, and coexistence in the city of Pamplona, ​​contributing to the dissemination of the principles of peace and justice."

It is important to emphasize that neither political parties nor municipal representatives on the Board may propose candidates. A technical committee, composed of various municipal department directors, subsequently reviews the proposals received to ensure they meet the minimum requirements. The approved list returns to the San Fermin General Board, where the associations and groups represented select five candidates. These candidates are then submitted to a public vote.

In this edition, in addition to Yala, four other candidates were included: AFAN (Association of Families with Alzheimer's and Other Dementias of Navarre); the Pamplona Bagpipers Cultural Association - Iruñeko Gaiteroak; jotero Alberto Gurrea Saenz; and historian Juan José Martinena Ruiz. Anyone over 16 years of age who is registered in the Navarrese capital is eligible to participate in the voting process.