Raking over the embers of the Spanish Civil War
I will admit that my knowledge of Spanish history does not go much beyond outlines, but I do think that the Spanish government is somewhat foolish in 'Breaking the pact of silence' over Franco's regime. The fact that everyone ignored 'the elephant in the living room' when democracy was restored was instrumental in allowing Spanish society to rebuild and recover without too much rancour, and I suspect that that approach was deliberately followed by most of the governments in Eastern and Central Europe after the fall of the Red Empire. I reckon that Zapatero's governement is far more interested in settling historic scores rather than seeking to aid reconciliation. As to the idea of a £14m fund to compensate victims (on both sides), a - it won't go very far, B - presumably it is coming out of general taxation and c - it will just stir things up all the more. Meanwhile, Franco's title of 'the Leader of the Final Crusade and of the Hispanic World, The Leader of the War of Liberation Against Communism and Its Collaborators" is up there with some of the deranged titles used by Marxist dictators and African despots.
As a footnote, the last time I was in Madrid (lovely place, lovely people - well worth visiting) I saw a fair few Falangist fly posters.
As a footnote, the last time I was in Madrid (lovely place, lovely people - well worth visiting) I saw a fair few Falangist fly posters.
Labels: Spain
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on Saturday, July 29, 2006 at 12:29 pm.
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