Judge Garzon Moves to Prosecute Franco War Crimes

Hi Everyone,

In my introduction to this site I ask “what justice can there be for crimes committed seventy years ago?”  There are nearly as many opinions on this question as there are individuals in Spain, but as a general rule they remain as opinions.  Official responses have traditionally been dampened by the Amensty Law of 1977 and the general ethos established by the Pact of Silence.  Until now. Those of you that have looked past the front page of the U.S. newspapers lately or have checked the foreign press will know what I’m referring to.  No?  Then have a look here  or here and come back when you are done.

Yes, Judge Baltasar Garzon has once again broken with convention and is gnawing at one of the hands that feeds him.  I’ve heard the occasional comment on the apparent hypocrisy of Judge Garzon being willing to prosecute foreigners on questions of crimes against humanity, but not his own countrymen.  At least as regards the Franco administration.  It was clearly not a question of concern for his safety as he gave that up long ago in his war against both ETA and the GAL dirty war, alienating both sides of that violent conflict.  He managed to stay alive and keep his job though that.  So, it looks like those comments may have been misguided and that, as has been suggested to me, he was merely biding his time and establishing appropriate precedent.

Regrettably, I’m painfully ignorant when it comes to Spanish law.  Still, I have to give some credit to Javier Zaragoza, the fiscal jefe who has questioned Garzon’s writ on at least three compelling principles.  The first is that the alleged crimes are protected under the 1977 Amnesty Law.  Second, that the legal code  of the Republic had no provision for crimes against humanity; and third, that the Audiencia Nacional is not competent to judge the crime of rebellion as this fell under the jurisdiction of the military at the time. 

Amnesty International and several other human rights organizations and Historical Memory associations agree with this stance and contend that Crimes Against Humanity laws can and should be applied retroactively.  So think many Spaniards.  While it is unclear what the outcome of this case will be, or even if it will proceed beyond the legal question of whether Garzon’s court is competent to pursue this matter, one thing is certain and that is that outstanding questions about the Civil War and the Franco era are not going away any time soon.

http://www.france24.com/20081016-judge-garzon-probe-franco-era-deaths-spain

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7679457.stm

October 31, 2008 - Posted by JME Productions, LLC | Garzon Watch | Baltasar Garzon, Dictatorship, Franco, Guerra Civil, Memoria Historica, Spain, Spanish Civil War