Farewell to Franco BUT Not Before We Beatify the Catholic Priests

In a move to address the pain and suffering of the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939, a new law goes into effect in Spain on Oct. 30 banning all references, statues, street names, and plaques pertaining to Franco or the dictatorship. Interestingly enough, the Catholic Church is all set to beatify almost 500 clerics who died fighting on Franco´s side.

Hmmmmm . . .

It is difficult to follow the Spanish Civil War without a score card, seeing eye dog, and bottle of aguardiente but in a nutshell, it goes like this: in 1936, there´s a democratically elected REPUBLIC government (you remember those, right??!). However, Franco and the military rose up against this republic as ROYALISTS, which the Catholic Church and clergy supported. During which war many civilians and freedom-fighting Republican guerillas died.

SEE the film Pan´s Labyrinth for additonal footage.

NOW all references to Franco will be dismantled, including that kiss-ass pigeon on the right (on the RIGHT, get it!?). Oh except for the nearly 500 priests who will be formally beatified, just a stone´s throw away from sainthood.

For typical intelligent British news coverage, read below.

Spain to remove all symbols of Franco

By Fiona Govan in Madrid

Last Updated: 3:08am BST 12/10/2007

Spain is to ban all public references to the Franco regime under a controversial Bill that seeks to make amends to the victims of the Spanish Civil War and ensuing 36-year dictatorship.

All statues, street names and symbols associated with the dictator and his supporters will be removed as part of the Law of Historic Memory, which was presented to the Madrid parliament this week.

Even plaques and stained glass windows showing the Falange symbol of the yoke and arrows or the eagle associated with Franco's rule will have to be replaced.

At one time statues glorifying the Generalissimo adorned almost every town square but most have been taken down in recent years.

The decision to remove reminders of Spain's dark past will now be enshrined in law forcing all remaining elements associated with Gen Franco to be stripped from public view.

Opponents of the measure accuse the Socialist government of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, which has made the Bill a priority ahead of a general election next March, of "opening old wounds" and "denying Spain its history".

The legislation has set the government on a collision course with the Roman Catholic Church, which commemorates those who gave their lives fighting on Franco's side during the 1936-1939 war.