MEPs make statements on "70 years after General Franco's coup d'état in Spain"

 

President BORRELL said: "It is easy to have a selective memory, I am a member of this generation and I have a particular relationship with this time in history.  The aim of this institutional statement is to look to the future and learn the lessons of the past". 

 

The 1931 government in Spain, he said, had been a yardstick for democracy in Europe, but the coup d'état gave rise to a long and cruel war.  It represented the confrontation between two different world philosophies.  The Spanish Civil War was the first war of the Second World War.  It was a test-bed for the future.  Europeans died on both sides.  "In the post-war phase, Spain was left outside the mainstream of democracy, Spain was isolated". 

 

The events of that time were still fresh in the mind for many people.  It was necessary to learn from the past and not repeat the mistakes of the past.  President Borrell paid homage to the victims who fought for democracy so Spain could return to Europe where she belonged.

 

Jaime MAYOR OREJA (ES), for the EPP-ED group, stressed the importance of the transition to democracy.  It was now thirty years since this transition.  Democracy was achieved with the support of the Spanish King and the total support of the Spanish people.  This democracy was entrenched in the Spanish Constitution of 1978.  Spain managed to avoid the tragedy of falling into the trap of "two Spains".  The EU, he said, in many ways, was borne out of what happened in Spain.  It was important not to repeat the mistakes of the past.  A second Spanish Constitution was not needed, neither was self-determination for peoples that have never existed in Spain.

 

Martin SCHULZ (DE), for the PES group, said that the Franco regime stood for the hatred of people, violence and the destruction of institutions.  "It was a case of either agreeing with Franco or death", he said.  "The Spanish Civil War was not just Spanish, it was the start of a much bigger war". There had been three Spanish Presidents of the European Parliament since direct elections to the European Parliament in 1979.  He concluded: "Freedom has won, and Franco has lost and this is the best thing that could happen for Europe".

 

For the ALDE group, Bronisław GEREMEK (PL) chose to evoke not just Spain in 1936, which he acknowledged had been "split off from Europe for half a century" but also the 1956 uprisings in Poznan, Poland, and in Hungary, saying these too were part of the fight for freedom in Europe.  He preferred not "to tot up the examples of injustice".  The Spanish experience had been "one facet of the experience of Europe". And while paying tribute to the courage of the people of Spain, he wished to emphasise the need for reconciliation, dialogue and peace.

 

Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT (Greens/EFA, DE), speaking for his group, argued that there were four lessons to be drawn from the events of 1936 in Spain.  Firstly, the courage of the Spanish people. Secondly, the barbarity of fascism: Guernica, he said, was a symbol of an "international fascist project". Thirdly, the cowardice of Europeans: here he singled out the French and British governments of the time for what he described as "appeasement".  And fourthly, the terrible intolerance of totalitarianism: there had been the International Brigades, who wanted to save the Spanish people, but there had also been "communists who murdered Trotskyists who killed anarchists, and vice-versa". He concluded: "liberation is not about having a single idea of the truth". Underlining this point by referring to Bosnia, he said the lesson today was that we must recognise the value of diversity.

 

On behalf of the GUE/NGL group, Francis WURTZ (FR) said the putschists of 1936 had proved unable to destroy the Popular Front, despite the support of fascist Italy and Germany.  He spoke of the "lynching of democrats and republicans by the neighbouring so-called democracies" and the "indifference" of western leaders to the atrocities committed by Franco.  But on the brighter side, the Spanish civil war had triggered "an unprecedented wave of solidarity" throughout Europe, such as the 40,000 volunteers of the International Brigades, many of whom later took part in the liberation of Europe at the end of World War II  All of us have a duty to pay tribute to them, he said in conclusion.

 

Brian CROWLEY (IE), for the UEN group, argued that a reading of history would show there could be a commemoration every single day for an atrocity committed in Europe.  The common thread running through these events was "intolerance and a lack of respect for others".  But rather than point the finger, he said, it was best to look at positive examples.  "We in Europe have found a way today whereby people with different ideologies, from different countries... can come together and find common ground and common cause", he said.  And in this connection, he called on the European Parliament to support Spanish Prime Minister Zapatero in his efforts to deal with the problems of the Basque region, saying he was trying "to bring previously irreconcilable peoples together to find a way forward". 

 

For the Independence and Democracy group, Jens-Peter BONDE (DK) spoke of a Danish poet who had left his wife and family to "keep the fascists out of Spain" and said "let us praise those who defended Spain, those who were volunteers, those who showed both courage and foolhardiness".  

 

On behalf of the non-aligned Members, Maciej Marian GIERTYCH (NI, PL) took a different line from other speakers, saying "we have civil liberties, tolerance and freedom in eastern Europe today", which he said was "a consequence of communism not having been installed on our continent". Thanks to Franco the communist attack on catholic Spain, in which "7,000 members of the clergy were murdered and churches were desecrated", had been thwarted. He complained that christian Europe today was losing ground to socialists and atheists.

 

This last speech provoked a heated response from the leaders of the PES and EPP-ED groups.  Martin Schulz (PES, DE) said "What we have just heard is the spirit of General Franco. It was a fascist speech, which has no place in the European Parliament!".  Hans-Gert Poettering (EPP-ED, DE) told the House "As a catholic I wish to say that we are committed to human dignity, human rights, the rule of law, democracy and freedom.  We regard dictators and supporters of any totalitarian regime - whether fascism, national socialism or communism - as unsuited to defend our ideals. We defend our ideals with our own convictions."