The Spanish prosecutor’s office asked the courtand to investigate the torture by Francoist police of a trade unionist in a Barcelona police station, for the first time referring to the new Law on Historical Memory, which opens the door to the investigation of crimes of the dictatorship (1939-1975), which the Amnesty Law did not allow to be brought to justice.

In its report submitted to the player from this Spanish city, the ministry supports the admission of the complaint filed by union member Carlos Vallejo against six Franco police officers.

Spanish prosecutors speak out for the first time for investigating crimes against humanity and torture during the Franco regime since the Law on Historical Memory was adopted in October 2022, which allows this type of crime to be investigated criminally.

In its letter, the Spanish Ministry of Justice recalls that the new law “imposes on the State, in the field of justice, duty to investigate violations of international law, human rights and international humanitarian law that occurred during the civil war (1936-1939) and the Franco dictatorship.”

For this reason, we believe that this it is necessary to examine the facts and “their context”before deciding to proceed with the procedure, while insisting that it is his duty not only to guarantee the right to justice, but also to “truth and reparation for the victims.”

The article of the Law on Historical Memory, referred to by the Spanish prosecutor’s office, establishes that the state “will guarantee the right to investigate human rights violations and international humanitarian law, which took place during war and dictatorship, and during the period from the death of the dictator until the entry into force of the Spanish Constitution.”

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The law also requires appoint a court prosecutor to investigate human rights violations that occurred “in connection with coup d’état, war and dictatorship,” a position held since June 13 by former Justice Minister Dolores Delgado.

Last June, the prosecutor of the court of the Catalan capital, to which Vallejo’s complaint was filed, opposed the acceptance of the complaint. with the argument that crimes would prescribe and that the Amnesty Law prevents their investigation.

However, the decision was revised by Delgado, who, according to the Barcelona prosecutor’s office, The bet now is to open an investigation.

This will not be the first investigation into human rights violations during the Franco regime: the investigative court in Madrid accepted the complaint for consideration. a man who was tortured at the General Directorate of Security in 1975.in cases where the victim’s statement has already been accepted.

The prosecutor’s office has not yet made a decision on this case, although the victim’s statement A prosecutor from the Democratic Memory District was present.

(EFE)