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Spain looks back at dark chapter of adoptions

Hatuey

Hatuey

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Spain looks back at dark chapter of adoptions

The ordeal of Radas and others is now putting Spain under pressure to take a closer look at a dark chapter of its past. Historians say government archives show that the right-wing regime of Gen. Francisco Franco waged a campaign to take away children of their enemies, Republican prisoners, and sometimes stripped women of newborn babies. The goal was to educate the children to shy from leftist thought, embrace Roman Catholicism and support the regime.

As part of an unprecedented ruling last year that accused Franco's forces of crimes against humanity, Spain's best-known judge, Baltasar Garzon, called for an investigation into the cases of people known as "the lost children of the Franco regime." He complained that "in 60 years they have not been the subject of any investigation whatsoever."

The judge ultimately bowed out of the case in a dispute over jurisdiction. But now he is pressing provincial courts to move ahead with a probe. So far the provincial courts have not responded, but under Spanish law they are obliged to do so, said Fernando Magan, chief counsel for the Association for the Recovery of Historic Memory.
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Very interesting article.

In 2007, Spain's Socialist government won parliamentary approval of a law that condemned the Franco regime and paid symbolic tribute to its victims. It was highly divisive, however, with conservatives complaining it reopened old wounds and went against the conciliatory spirit of Spain's transition to democracy after the dictator's death. This included an amnesty for wartime atrocities on both sides.
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Why should those who supported and committed war crimes be given ANY type of amnesty?
 
Hatuey posted(Why should those who supported and committed war crimes be given ANY type of amnesty?)

Good question, the answer as always is that they should not.
In most instances these folk are extremely wealthy and Money talks.
 
Its already in the moves in Spain.. Those people who "fled" to places such as South America are now entitled to Spanish citizenship.

How can that benefit Spain? I don't know, but its happening.. Most likely because of pressure from certain groups that they can be Spanish now that Spain is a rich country. I read some article about this stuff, and those people have 5 or 10 years or something like that to claim Spanish citizenship.

That might be another case of what you are talking about, definetely related, most likely part of the same thing.
 
Where is PeteEU?
 
Hatuey said:
Why should those who supported and committed war crimes be given ANY type of amnesty?
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If the fascists would be willing to relinquish power and allow a democracy to be set up, only if they are granted amnesty for crimes done under the previous regime, it seems a sensical thing to do if they still hold power. Somewhat like how Pinochet stepped down (well, actually fled with all the country's gold) without the need for a civil war.

Not that it is the best solution, or a just solution, but a bloodless solution nonetheless. And I'm sure no Spaniard wanted to risk another war to determine the fate of the country.

Viva POUM! But not really, unfortunately.
 
P/N said:
Who cares? :mrgreen:
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People who would like to know how a Spaniard (or, at least someone in Spain) feels about a Spanish issue.
 
Maybe PeteEU explain to why the spanish tortured little children during the Spanish Inquisition.
 
Hatuey said:
Why should those who supported and committed war crimes be given ANY type of amnesty?
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Well aside from the fact they'd be very old it presumably not felt it is worth opening up old wounds, both sides committed astrocities and it migt be felt it would achieve little. Also this was in the 30s and just how they'd be tried and under what laws is up for debate.
 
American said:
Where is PeteEU?
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Sleeping OMFGS! Not everyone can stay up to 2 am every night! As for your second comment.. do you really want to go there? Start a thread and we can exchange national insults if you want.

But for the OP in question. Since I aint Spanish but only live here, my perspective is a bit "from a far" so to say. I think personally there are many issues at hand. Yes there are some who want justice or/revenge for the atrocities of the civil war. Some want the Franco supporters to pay for their support. Others want to use the civil war to promote a new civil war (non violent) that will lead to the breaking up of Spain. While others want to remember but forgive for the good of the country so to say.

Pulling open old wounds like this is not uncommon to be honest. They still find mass graves and there are still pushes by local and national government organisations on top of the charities to exhume and identify as many as possible. There is also a push by some to remove Franco's tomb (which is frankly huge), and other symbols of Franco. About a year ago there was a computer game where it was possible to play either side in a strategic game to win the civil war.. that too gained a bit of controversy. Now we have this case. Many of the parents involved are in their 80s+ if alive at all.. what would you do to them? Throw them in jail?

As for the general amnesty. It is part of the process to heal the wounds of the civil war and the Franco dictatorship and move on. Most of the people involved in the setting up of the dictatorship and the civil war are in their 80s and above, and in poor health, that is those that are alive. They come from a generation where life expectancy is considerably lower than the average Spaniard today. Other than satisfy certain anti Franco elements that refuse to let the past stay in the past (mostly the left trying to taint the right wing parties with the Franco stain), what good is to throw an 80 year old woman or man in jail for being a supporter of Franco? As for those who participated in mass murder, well that is another story, but I understand that the law was put in place. After all, in a democracy like Spain with a very strong independent legal system, if you were to go after Franco's people for such crimes, then you also would have to go after the other side for the same crimes.

So sure talk about the horrors of the civil war and the life under Franco, but gunning for revenge ... bad idea especially 30 to 70 years after the fact.
 
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