Tribute to the Franco – over 40 years after the dictator's death

"Tribute to Franco – over 40 years after the dictator's death,"

"MADRID. Emilio de Miguel sitting in front of a large oil portraits of the former dictator Francisco Franco in the younger edition. Next are two Spanish flags."

"– We do not accept the assertion that Franco was a murderer and a torturer. On the contrary, he brought into Spain in the modern world."

"De Miguel is calm when he says it, but looks upset over the accusations made against the man who until 1975 was the main face in Europe."

"– There is no evidence that Franco would have imprisoned political opponents, or caused to kill or torture people. That one and another that was arrested had to receive some kind of police may be characterised as torture. It was so it went to at the time."

"He stretches in the chair and raises his voice."

"– The evidence should, in that case pick up them and present them to the international criminal court in the Hague. Would Franco be tried in the day so I am convinced that he would be freed."

"for a long time brought the Society for the Franco conservation languishing in their worn-out premises on the third floor of a residential building built for the military in the centre of Madrid."

"– No-one but a number of researchers cared about us. Now we are suddenly in the spotlight."

"He smiles, surprised, but at the same time a bit satisfied with the thin grey hair combed in a meticulous sidbena."

"The past has caught up"

"for decades, it has been fairly quiet about Francisco Franco won the Spanish civil war in 1936 was Hitler's ally in the second world war and then led a fierce dictatorship until his death in 1975."

"Few have wanted to delve into the past. After his death, the political elite a mutual decision to forget about the abuses during Franco's time in power in exchange for democracy were introduced."

"Now it seems past have caught up with Spain. Suddenly the storms of vengeance on Franco."

"The Spanish socialist government passed a special law to move the dictator's remains on 10 June. It has also begun to implement an old law that all road signs that honors or preserves the memory of the dictatorship is going away."

"Do fascisthälsningen"

"This has been a supporter of Franco to protest. Demonstrations have been held where the participants made the traditional fascisthälsningen with stretched, height of the arm."

"Francosällskapet is an important part of the formation of public opinion."

"– It is both completely wrong and useless to try to erase the memory of Franco, " says Emilio de Miguel. He was a prominent person, and is an important part of Spain's history. Now trying the socialists gain votes to stir his memory."

"Happily, he notes that the effect was the exact opposite."

" We have seen a positive boost to the interest around the Franco. People hear of us and want to support our work to preserve his memory."

"the Storm surrounding the Franco exploited not least by the new right-wing party, Vox. One of their election promises is to repeal the law that enables relatives to the interest of the general victims the right to try to find the remains after their near and dear ones in one of the many mass graves that are still around in Spain."

"Europe's largest stone cross"

"Emilio de Miguel is also happy that the party supports the requirement to not move the dictator's remains."

" Government has no right to move them. The church where he is buried does not want to he moved. The state cannot force the church. In addition, the government must take into account that the family refuses to agree to a move."

"His oblong face may, once again, a förnärmat expression."

"An hour's trip outside of Madrid is located the monument ”The cuelgamuros valley”. We pay the entrance ticket and travel on the winding roads up through the forest until we reach a giant cave with Europe's largest stone cross on top of which is visible at several miles away."

"V have an appointment with Bonifacio Sanchoz, spokesperson for an organization that requires that Spain makes up for with Francoeran once and for all. He shows up his hands."

"– Franco had built this monument with the help of 20 000 political prisoners hand dug out the cave. It took 19 years. He was very clear about why the monument came to the; in order to pay tribute to those who won the civil war."

"When we go into opens up a giant corridor leading to a church with high ceilings. In a grave sunken in the floor is Francisco Franco. Fixed name is difficult to immediately interpret on the gray stone. In the middle of the grave is a rich flower arrangement with red and white carnations."

"Sanchoz sounds sammanbiten when he with a low voice begins to talk again."

"– the Spanish state sees to it that daily there are fresh flowers on the murderer's grave, " says Sanchoz."

"at the same time, the skeletons of 15 000 opponents folded helter-skelter behind stone walls."

"He is pointing towards the walls behind us while a guard carefully watching our movements. It is forbidden to take pictures inside here."

"– For me it is a given that Franco's remains must be moved from here. As it is now, we continue to pay tribute to the leader of a regime that was guilty of genocide."

"He refuses to take off his bredbrättade hat because he doesn't want to show respect for Franco."

"Continues to pay homage to Franco"

"– At the side of Cambodia, Spain is the country in the world has the highest number of mass graves. It is the horrible truth. 2 500 mass graves scattered across the country with a total of 114 000 cases of missing victims. Many of them are still not excavated."

"Thousands of families are still waiting to get clarity on what happened to their near and dear ones. Long time, no one wanted to take in this for fear of opening the wounds of war and dictatorship. But now there is a law that gives people the right to look after their relatives."

"A law which the right-wing parties want to abolish."

"Bonifacio Sanchoz is appalled by the extent to which the Spanish elites continue to pay homage to Franco."

"– on Sunday there was a big memorial service for Franco in here. Among the participants were senior military officers in their uniforms, chiefs of police from the Guardia Civil and other big. It is as if nothing has happened since the dictatorship was abolished. Francoeran never took out or replaced by something completely new. Put the lid over the past. None of those responsible for the genocide be brought to justice."

"He shakes his head with a combination of disappointment and resignation."

"– Think you that this would be in Germany. It is forbidden to make even the nazisthälsningen. Here at Franco's tomb is there many making the fascist salute without any intervention."

"instead, try Sanchoz organization now to get Argentina to interrogate the 19 named members of the military are still alive and bring them before the court because Argentina is applying universal jurisdiction."

"Spain, however, refuses to arrest the 19 because it believes that they are covered by the amnesty, which was issued when democracy was introduced after Franco's death. A law that Bonifacio Sanchoz mean came to protect those who committed the war crimes."

"– Our struggle is not about compensation, but it is a question of moral sanitation."

"He has personal memories of the civil war. An uncle was executed and thrown in a mass grave 25 miles outside of Salamanca. But the family managed to identify his remains in 2006."

"Back in Madrid with Emilio de Miguel, among all the pictures and busts of Franco. It has a library with virtually all the books written about Franco. In a small room hangs a photograph of a very young Emilio greeting an old Franco wearing a uniform."

"We were a group of intellectuals who wanted to pay tribute to Franco for his efforts for Spain," he explains modestly."

"Above is another picture in which a number of people making the fascist salute."

"– the Greeting is not prohibited in Spain, but I don't go around and heilar, explains Emilio a little uneasy."