Civil War legacy divides Spain
Danny Wood
BBC News, Madrid

Spain is marking 70 years since the start of the Civil War.

The military uprising against the democratically elected government on 18 July 1936 led to three years of war and then four

decades of fascist dictatorship under Gen Francisco Franco.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41902000/jpg/_41902332_barcelona_leftist_203b.jpg
The anniversary of the beginning of the conflict comes as Spain's government prepares to approve a law designed to

rehabilitate the victims of the Franco regime.

Some historians say there is a strange amnesia in Spain when it comes to seriously coming to terms with the Civil War. Seven

decades later, Spaniards are still very divided about the causes of this conflict and how to deal with its consequences.

This three-year struggle is often regarded as a rehearsal for World War II.

Nazi Germany helped the Spanish generals attack their government, while Soviet Russia came to the aid of Spain's

democratically elected administration. Thousands of foreign volunteers fought on both sides. About 250,000 people died

during the conflict.

For Spain's military, backed by conservative political forces and the Roman Catholic Church, the Civil War was a battle

against communism. For the Republican government the conflict was a struggle against fascism.

Historical amnesia

But despite the importance of this Civil War, one survey shows that 50% of Spaniards have not talked about it at home. And

35% say they were never taught what happened in 1936, at school.

This amnesia has been actively encouraged at a political level.

Thirty years ago, Spain's emerging new democracy felt so threatened by the ghosts of the Civil War and the recently

defunct Franco regime that there was a 'Pact of Silence' between the left and the right of politics not to raise the issue or

seek reparations for crimes committed by the dictatorship.

But now attitudes are changing. On the streets of Madrid, many people think its time to seriously debate this important part

of their history, but with concern for the sensitivities on both sides of the political fence.

Meanwhile, Spain's government is about to approve legislation that will recognise the victims of the Franco regime.

Our transition from dictatorship to democracy is an example in Europe and we've got to cherish this and not

re-open wounds that have healed
Gustavo de Aristegui
Popular Party spokesman

But even just before it gets a tick of approval, it is still not clear what exactly is in this law. According to critics, the

government is running scared about the possible right-wing backlash this initiative might cause.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41902000/jpg/_41902370_facsist_soldiers_203b.jpg
The way this legislation - called The Law for the Recovery of the Historical Memory - has been drafted, has also angered

those on both the left and the right of politics. The content has been decided by members of Prime Minister Jose Luis

Rodriguez Zapatero's Socialist government in consultation with academics.

There is a feeling from other left-wing political parties that an important law like this should have been drafted more

collaboratively.

The conservative Popular Party refused to participate at all and is against the legislation. For supporters of the

conservatives, introducing this sort of law is unnecessary meddling with the past.

We have to talk about our past to be a healthy society
Emilio Silva

"Our transition from dictatorship to democracy is an example in Europe and I think that we've got to cherish this and not

re-open wounds that have already been able to be cured, wounds that are healed," said Gustavo de Aristegui, a spokesman

for the Popular Party.

"You know, leave things be, it's not an issue any more, I mean people on the street are not worried about these things any

more."

But the families of many thousands of people, victims of Franco's authoritarian government who still lie in unmarked mass

graves across Spain, would disagree with the Popular Party.

"If we look at the past and we know the past we can be more free," says Emilio Silva, the head of a group that six years ago

started locating and exhuming these bodies for reburial.

"I think it's like a psychoanalysis because we have to talk about our past to be a healthy society and I think it's very

important."

The legislation will provide compensation for those who suffered under the dictatorship and is also expected to makes

changes to General Franco's most imposing legacy: The Valley of the Fallen, the former leader's colossal burial chamber on

the outskirts of the capital.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41902000/jpg/_41902408_franco_monument_203b.jpg
One suggestion is to convert part of the monument into an education centre about fascism. And, for the first time, the local

authorities are expected to have guidelines to help people locate the bodies of family members, still missing, who were

murdered during the Franco regime.

The government says its Law for the Recovery of the Historical Memory is not about rewriting history, or making people

responsible for crimes of the past. But for many Spaniards it represents a new willingness to examine the truth about their

history.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/5192228.stm

Published: 2006/07/18 17:21:22 GMT

© BBC MMVI