The Government saves the Democratic Memory Law in Congress thanks to an agreement with EH Bildu

An agreement reached this Tuesday between EH Bildu and the government parties will allow the definitive approval of the new Democratic Memory Law, which is undergoing parliamentary proceedings in the coming weeks. This pact will make it possible for Congress to give the green light to the law both in committee and in plenary without the need for the support of ERC, which continues to be reluctant to support the new rule. The Government would thus have the votes of PSOE, United We Can, EH Bildu, PNV, PDeCAT and More Country which, given a probable abstention by Citizens, would be enough to carry it forward.

The Law of Memory extinguishes the Valley of the Fallen Foundation and a subsequent decree will expel the friars

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EH Bildu's spokesperson in Congress, Mertxe Aizpurua, explained some of the agreements reached with the Government. The most relevant is that the new norm will declare "explicitly the illegality of the Francoist courts and the nullity of all their convictions", a demand of the pro-independence groups. In addition, it contemplates the application of the law beyond 1978 and, specifically, until 1983, with the aim of prosecuting violations of human rights that already occurred in democracy by the police forces.

EH Bildu and the Government have also agreed to set up an independent Commission with the aim of contributing to the clarification of human rights violations during the dictatorship. Aizpurua has assured that his group has obtained "the commitment of the Government to adapt the Fort of San Cristóbal", located in Navarra, "as a place of Memory", as well as the "adhesion of the Palace of the Summit" of San Sebastián to the city council of the city. This is what was the residence of the civil governor of Gipuzkoa and the place where Lasa and Zabala were tortured.

The PNV spokesman, Aitor Esteban, has also assured that the Government has accepted his amendments to the memory law, so the text will also have the support of his group, in addition to others such as the PDeCAT and Más País. Among the corrections provided by the Basque nationalists is access to the archives of the Civil War and the dictatorship.

At a meeting in July

The new memory law is currently being debated in a paper in Congress, although the Government trusts that this rule will be definitively approved in an extraordinary plenary session of the Lower House next July.

The Executive trusts that the text will see the green light with the support of the partners of the government coalition and based on the amendment agreed in November by United We Can and the PSOE. Regarding the reticence of the ERC, which claims the nullity of the Amnesty Law, the Government has recognized that, despite the "discrepancies", the Executive forces are open to accepting amendments from the Republican group to "reinforce" the declaration of illegality of the Franco regime.

The commission will meet, predictably, on July 4, with the idea of ​​approving the opinion before sending it to the Plenary.