• Marchers include children, grandchildren of Franco-era victims
• Families still seek remains of executed relatives buried in unmarked graves
More than 1,000 people angered by Spain’s continued amnesty for extra-juducial killings under the decades-long iron rule of dictator Francisco Franco, marched through the streets of Madrid on Sunday Nov. 22nd calling for an end to impunity for crimes committed under the Franco regime.
Many of the marchers included children and grandchildren of individuals killed or disappeared during Franco’s regime, who held placards bearing the names or photos of relatives who were victims of the dictatorship.
As part of the process of constructing a fledgling democracy following Franco’s 1975 death, Spain’s new political parties agreed an amnesty for war crimes and human rights abuses committed by Franco’s nationalist forces during the country’s bloody 1936-39 Civil War and the 36 years of dictatorship that followed.
Many descendants of the victims are still searching for their remains, which in many cases were buried in mass and unmarked graves following summary executions by military and police loyal to the nationalist regime.
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