Neither investigation nor dignity for the victims: what falls with the Memory Law
The process to overturn this law will begin before the end of the year, and the far right will lead it. Also at stake are the census of victims and the removal of Francoist symbols.
Palm"Law 2/2018 (...) on memory and democratic recognition in the Balearic Islands will be repealed, and reconciliation will always be sought, avoiding historical manipulation and the partisan use of the victims and the tragedy of the civil conflict. Policies will be implemented to facilitate the recovery of deceased persons, without discrimination based on any grounds." "of monuments and historical elements, ensuring their proper maintenance and understanding within their historical context." This is what point 48 of the governance agreement signed by the PP and Vox on June 28th states, an agreement that was enacted in the plenary session of Parliament this Tuesday.
This now-repealed regulation governed both the census of victims of Francoism and the census of Francoist symbols, as well as the removal of these symbols, access to information in cases of enforced disappearances of children, scientific research and dissemination of the democratic memory of the Balearic Islands, reparations and dissemination of the democratic memory of the Balearic Islands, bibliographic resources, the creation of spaces and routes of memory, actions in the educational field, and the sanctions regime for acts contrary to democratic memory and the glorification of Francoism, among many other issues. The articles revolved around three main pillars: the right to the truth, the right to democratic memory, and the right to reparation and recognition for victims of the Civil War and the Francoist dictatorship.
Vox's deputy spokesperson, Sergio Rodríguez, does not believe there is a comparative grievance with the victims of Francoism that needs to be remedied, as he stated on ARA Baleares. The far-right representative believes that this law "has generated discontent." And, when asked about the fact that there has been no controversy since it came into effect, he asserted that the law "is upsetting and hurtful, even though it hasn't provoked any mobilizations, because the heirs of the victims of one side [the Francoist side] do feel hurt."
Concern from organizations, experts, and parties
Thus, organizations, experts, and opposition parties have not hidden their concern about what might happen after the repeal. "The authorities say they won't repeal the Mass Graves Law, but everything is linked. Won't the victims receive any recognition? Won't they receive a certificate accrediting their status?" asks Maria Antònia Oliver, president of Memoria de Mallorca, who believes it is very difficult to separate the Mass Graves Law from the Historical Memory Law. "Repealing the Historical Memory Law means rolling back rights, because truth, justice, and reparations depend on both laws," she continues. Oliver also asks "what will happen to the documentation" and whether it will be given to the families of those repressed by the Franco regime. She also laments that the educational materials that had been developed for schools have been rendered useless.
Oliver rejects Vox's accusations of partisanship regarding the law and emphasizes that "the victims of the other side [the Francoist side] received 40 years of recognition," the entire duration of Franco's dictatorship. "For us, they are all victims. But some have already been searched for, exhumed, and recognized, while the victims of the Francoists have not," he continues.
Socialist Sílvia Cano coordinated the Memory Law in 2018 and highlights the effort made at the time to reach a consensus to prevent its repeal. "It was naive of us," she laments. In fact, Cano recalls that "the preamble was modified" and "a very high percentage of the hundred amendments presented by the PP were accepted." In this way, the PP, which has now allowed Vox to repeal the law, did not vote against it in its entirety, but only against some articles, such as the one establishing the sanctions. "For the first time, a condemnation of the Francoist dictatorship and a rejection of any totalitarianism were introduced," the Socialist continued. She also emphasized that they worked with Amnesty International and took into account the United Nations General Assembly resolutions on the matter to develop a broad definition of victims that encompassed "both sides." Furthermore, Cano believes that the main reason Vox and the PP repealed the Historical Memory Law is the sanctions regime and the section that addresses elements opposed to historical memory. "That's what bothers them the most," she said, emphasizing that, thanks to this law, "the Government could remove Francoist symbols." In contrast, the PP representative who participated in the negotiations, Juan Manuel Lafuente, believes that "only minor amendments were accepted." "We already said then that it's an unbalanced law and that it left out important parts of the Balearic Islands' history," commented Lafuente, who is now the Minister of the Sea for the Balearic Government. Lafuente confirms that the PP is "against any sanctions."
For his part, historian and researcher of the repression, Bartomeu Garí, points out that, despite the repeal of the Law of Historical Memory, there are still pending studies on the years of the Republic that "were commissioned during the previous legislature." "Exhuming the mass graves is very important, but this task will end sooner or later, and behind it lies a series of studies," explains the expert, who also wonders "which door the families will turn to" now that the Directorate General has been dissolved, and "where the pending legal cases will end up." "What will happen to all the documentation and reports that have been generated? As a researcher, I'm concerned, although, for the moment, we have a national law that takes precedence," Garí continues. The historian also recalls that the census of victims was completed and then "left in a drawer at the then Directorate General of Democratic Memory." Another aspect to consider is that the Law of Historical Memory had, in a way, equated the Balearic Islands with countries like Germany, where Nazism and democratic memory are paramount. This is how Sebastià Rubí, Professor of Public and Constitutional Law, explains it. "Democracy is a clear and well-defined concept that refers to fundamental rights, the rule of law, and respect for minorities. These are things that Vox does not respect and acts accordingly. They have eliminated the law because they are not democrats," Rubí states. "At that point, the whitewashing comes to light, and everyone bears their own burden," he adds, regarding the PP's role in this matter.
Unlike other regions, the Balearic Islands had two laws on historical memory: the mass grave law, passed in June 2016, and the democratic memory law, passed in April 2018. This is what allowed the mass grave law, which was unanimously approved—Vox didn't yet have any—to proceed with the exhumation of the victims. Margalida Capellà, a professor of International Public Law at the University of the Balearic Islands (UIB), was the member of parliament who coordinated the law. "I proposed separating mass graves from the rest, and it was decided to draft two separate bills. It doesn't surprise me that the People's Party (PP) is maintaining the mass grave law, because we agreed with them that it would pass and they would cooperate," she explains.