José Bono Martínez

Infobox_President | name =José Bono
nationality =Spanish


order =President of the Spanish Congress of Deputies
term_start =March 31, 2008
term_end =
president = José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
predecessor =Manuel Marín
successor =
death date =
death place =
party = Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
spouse = Ana Rodríguez Mosquera
birth_date = Birth date and age|1949|10|21|mf=y
birth_place = Salobre,Albacete
religion = Catholic|

José Bono Martínez (December 14, 1950) is a Spanish politician, born in Salobre, Albacete. A member of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), he is the President of the Congress of Deputies. Before was the Minister of Defence of Spain from April 18, 2004, in the Government chaired by José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. He left his ministerial post on April 7, 2006, and was replaced by former Minister of Interior, José Antonio Alonso. Bono had previously served as President of the Autonomous Community of Castilla-La Mancha from June 6, 1983 to April 17, 2004. During his period as a member of the Government, José Bono was involved in certain controversial events, some of them regarding his role as Minister of Defence (e.g. the controversy created by the public declarations of Lt. General José Mena Aguado about the 1978 Spanish Constitution, defending the possibility of an intervention of the armed forces to maintain the territorial integrity of Spain), and others regarding his membership of the Socialist Workers' Party, the most significant of them being the detention of two members of the Popular Party (PP) who were participating with him in a popular demonstration, after they had allegedly attempted to assault him. He was elected President of the Congress of Deputies on April 1, 2008.

ee also

* History of Spain
* Politics of Spain
* Prime Minister of Spain

External links

* [http://www.jose-bono.com Official website (in Spanish)]