On Wednesday, March 18, Spain's tally of coronavirus cases
rose from a previous tally of 11,178 cases to 13,716. The number of fatalities
rose from 491 on Tuesday to 558 on Wednesday, as reported by Fernando Simon,
the head of the country's health emergency center. Spain Prime Minister Pedro
Sanchez spoke to a near-empty parliament that contained only 28 lawmakers and
five ministers in a chamber that normally houses a 350-strong assembly. The
number of attendees was drastically reduced to avoid the possibility of
propagating the virus in parliament.
"We have never lived through anything like this. And
our society, which had grown used to changes that expand our possibilities of
knowledge, health and life, now finds itself in a war to defend all we have
taken for granted," Sanchez said.
"It is clear that annual GDP will fall, as the
European Commission has already pointed out. 2020 will not have 12 months, but
10 or even 9," the Prime Minister told parliament.
"If we manage to maintain employment levels and the
production structure as long as the crisis lasts without major and irreparable
damage, at the end of the crisis there would be a quick recovery, including a
possible rebound effect that would accelerate activity."
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