It investigates the crimes of the Franco regime, promotes the recognition of the victims and transforms the Valley of the Fallen into a civil cemetery. These are some of the main measures of the democratic memory law that comes into force this week in Spain.
The norm promises a comprehensive reparation for the victims, including the restitution of the assets expropriated by the Franco regime and the return of the economic sanctions imposed at the time. In addition, October 31 is established for the recognition of the victims.
Insufficient measures for associations that defend historical memory, as explained by the head of one of them, Emílio Silva.
“All those killed in the Civil War will be honored, which is a way of putting them on an equal footing: those who died in a coup and those who died defending democracy. When someone wants to commit themselves to the truth, it is necessary to count who the victims were, but it is also necessary to count who the executioners were, a census of victims will be carried out, but a census of executioners will not be carried out, nor will the victims. Basically, the law tells the truth but it won’t tell us the truth, it talks about justice but it doesn’t judge anyone and it talks about reparation but it doesn’t compensate anyone”.
In addition, Silva criticizes that the State continues to subsidize exhumations only at the request of the families, instead of creating its own body that is in charge of exhuming, identifying and delivering the remains of the victims to the families, as was anticipated in a first draft. .
“What we ask the Government and the law is that all those who request the search for a disappeared person be attended by the State and that a subsidy not be made that forces family groups to compete with each other to see who gets out.” these resources.”
The law declares Franco’s regime illegal and annuls the sentences of all its courts, outlaws the Francisco Franco Foundation and other organizations that extol the name of the dictator, defend Franco’s regime and praise the coup d’état.
The rule also imposes the extinction of the Francoist symbols of Spanish cities, whether they are street names or monuments, and establishes the investigation of human rights violations until 1983.
“It also depends on political will because there is a law since 2007 so that there are no more Francoist monuments in Spain. And in Spain there are still more than 5,000 Francoist streets and in the city of Madrid there is still an Arch of Victory.” that celebrates the Victory, of Franco, Hitler and Mussolini”.
After the exhumation of Franco do Vale dos Caídos, now it’s time to remove the body of Falangist politician Primo de Rivera from the basilica, which will become a civil cemetery and a center for dissemination and memory.
The law will be published this Wednesday in the Official State Gazette and will come into force the following day.
Source: TSF
