What the Show Trials Show
CATALONIA
“The
1977 “Amnesty Law” gave an official amnesty to Franco’s political
prisoners. But it also granted Franco’s assassins and extensive torture
network impunity for crimes related to the regime. In 2012, the Office
of the UN High Commissioner for Human rights made a formal request to
Spain to repeal this law, because it prevents the prosecution and
recognition of crimes against humanity. Civil servants who played a key
role in the Franco dictatorship, judges, and police officers
— including those who had tortured countless civilians — quietly
remained in place under the terms of the post-Franco amnesty. This
continuity of personnel, coupled to the institutional amnesia relating
to Franco’s mass graves, ensured that the institutional culture of
fascism went unchallenged inside the state.”
