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Article on the act of homage to Mr. Juan Aznar García, survivor of the Mauthausen concentration camp (13/07/2018)

Last Thursday, July 5, the Plenary Hall of the City of Caravaca de la Cruz witnessed a momentous moment for our municipality, the tribute to D. Juan Aznar García, who together with his countrymen Diego Palazón, Juan Seguero Gómez and Felix Nadal Guerrero, now deceased, suffered Nazi barbarism as punishment for their commitment to freedom.

As agreed in the plenary of May 30, 2016, this act of recognition was carried out so that their struggle and sacrifice remain in our memory and that of future generations.

The presence of Spaniards in the Nazi concentration camps is one of the most ignored chapters in our recent history.

During the 40 years of Franco's dictatorship, the Regime repeatedly concealed this fact, since most of the 9,000 men, women and children who ended up in the camps were republicans who had gone into exile in France after the end of the Civil War.

The arrival of democracy and the so-called Spirit of the Transition did not serve to get them out of oblivion.

Quite the opposite, the reconciliation between the two Spains was made at the expense of the memory of those who had fought against Franco, first, and against Hitler later.

In this year 2018 marks a historic double anniversary: ​​78 years of the arrival of the first Spaniards to Mauthausen and 73 years of liberation from the concentration camps.

Paying attention to the saying that "it's better late than never" in Caravaca, we end the injustice of its oblivion and pay tribute to our neighbors who fought against fascist and Francoist fascism.

This is an individual recognition, but it is also a tribute to all those who defended freedom, that we do not forget, ON BEHALF OF ALL, against the tyranny of totalitarian regimes and who put their lives at the disposal of democratic ideals in front of those who preferred the without reason of the dictatorship.

It is also a memory for those who suffered in the camps of concentration and forced labor, under the regime of slavery, of the Franco regime.

The historical memory does not seek to revive old hatreds, the historical memory seeks to close a horrible chapter of our history that will not end while all the victims are not recognized and resting in peace.

And of course, the executioners appointed and condemned.

It is a pending debt with democracy and Spanish and European society.

It is surprising and worrying that today there are still people who find it hard to admit this.

Perhaps there are those who think that these acts only serve to honor and remember terrible but past events: nothing is further from reality.

Acts like this should also serve us to take into account that humanity has not learned from its mistakes and that today horror is still present.

Concentration camps are held throughout the world: Guantánamo, Chechnya (against homosexuals), Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, North Korea, Laogai (China), and a long and sad etcetera.

But, in addition, to this painful list must be added that of the refugee camps scattered all over the world.

Today information is fast and global, and we can not make the excuse of ignorance of this reality.

For this reason, our society, the western and developed, urgently needs to be endowed with values ​​that it has lost and that could be summarized in three: solidarity, equality and justice, or what is the same, HUMANITY.

But aside from this reality, the tribute gave us a day to be happy for having achieved, at least in Caravaca, the recognition in life that Mr. Juan Aznar García deserved.

It was celebrated therefore happily, with gratitude, affection and satisfaction.

And to commemorate this moment, the Caravaque artist Arturo López Abellán presented us with a commemorative sculpture that will help us preserve our memory.

Chance made it possible that on that day D. Juan would turn 100 years old.

Therefore, this is going to be a date that will not forget, as well as the love that all his family gave him, getting to gather much of the same environment to him.

As I said in the course of a conversation, the greatest achievement of a person in life is to have a family, love and loved by her and also keep it together.

And in that sense Juan Aznar is a winner.

Congratulations D. Juan.

Source: Ayuntamiento de Caravaca de la Cruz

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