03-25-2018, 10:52 PM
*** 26-Mar-18 World View -- Spain's arrests of Catalonia secessionist leaders revive memories of Franco's brutal atrocities
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Violent clashes with police in Spain's Catalonia follow arrest of Puigdemont in Germany
****
![[Image: g180325b.jpg]](http://Media.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g180325b.jpg)
Catalonia protesters clash with police in Barcelona on Sunday (AP)
At least 50 people were injured on Sunday when tens of thousands of
supporters of Carles Puigdemont, the former leader of Spain's
Catalonia region, clashed with Spanish policy in Barcelona,
Catalonia's capital city, after Puigdemont was arrested in Germany,
based on a European arrest warrant issued by a Spanish court.
The story of Puigdemont's arrest is a kind of spy thriller.
Puigdemont led a failed attempt at Catalonian independence in
September of last year, after which a Spanish court issued a warrant
for his arrest on charges of treason and sedition. He fled to
Belgium, where authorities refused an extradition request, on
condition that Puigdemont not leave Belgium. Spain retracted the
arrest warrant earlier this year, leaving Puigdemont free to travel
again.
He traveled to Finland to give some lectures, but on Friday Spain's
government issued new arrest warrants for Puigdemont and for other
leaders who had supported the attempt at secession.
The new arrest warrant caught Puigdemont by surprise. When Puigdemont
got word of the new arrest warrant on Friday, he immediately tried to
flee Finland by car, hoping to reach the safety of Belgium undetected.
He crossed the border into Sweden, and traveled south into Denmark.
From there he crossed the border into Germany, and was recognized and
arrested in Germany when he stopped at a filling station.
If Germany extradites Puigdemont back to Spain, and he is convicted of
the crimes he's charged with, then the punishment will be 25-30 years
in prison. However, Puigdemont's lawyers will try to convince
Germany's courts that they can't extradite because the arrest is
political. This is similar to the reasoning that Belgium's court used
when it refused to extradite him. Under EU rules, a court in one EU
member state can only extradite a person sought by another member
state if they are confident the suspect will face equivalent fair
legal procedures and trial. The battles in Germany's courts are
expected to continue for weeks. For the time being, Puigdemont is in
a German jail.
Puigdemont's arrest has infuriated the half of Catalonia's public that
support him. The other half of Catalonia's public is against
independence, and many of them believe that Puigdemont should be
charged and jailed. Irish Times and BBC and AP and CNN
****
**** Spain's arrests of Catalonia secessionist leaders revive memories of Franco's brutal atrocities
****
As I described last year in "23-Sep-17 World View -- The 1930s Spanish Civil War fault lines explode again over Catalonia independence referendum"
,
memories of Generalísimo Francisco Franco's fascist nationalism and
his brutal atrocities targeting Catalonians in the extremely bloody
Spanish Civil War (1936-39) are now being revived.
Puigdemont's arrest by the Germans is being compared on social media
to the arrest by the German Gestapo of Lluís Companys, the president
of Catalonia during the Spanish Civil War.
After Franco's victory in the Battle of the Ebro on July 25, 1938, at
the climax of the Spanish Civil War, Franco began an offensive against
Catalonia, forcing the government of Catalonia to exile itself in
France. They were safe in France until France capitulated to the
Nazis in June 1940. Companys was arrested by the German Gestapo in
Brittany on August 13th 1940 and handed over to the Francoist
authorities on August 29th. Companys was held in solitary
confinement, tortured and eventually executed by firing squad on
October 14, 1940.
There are few people alive today who have personal memories of the
Spanish Civil War and of the capture and execution of Companys.
However, Francisco Franco did not die until 1975, and there are many
people alive today, including Puigdemont himself, who have personal
memories of Franco and of his severe repression of the Catalan region.
That's why many Catalonians today are comparing the German arrest of
Puigdemont to the 1940 Gestapo arrest of another Catalan leader, Lluís
Companys. If the German courts decide to extradite Puigdemont and
turn him over to Spain's government, then the circle of history will
be complete. AFP and TeleSur TV and Barcelonas.com
Related Articles
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Spain, Catalonia, Barcelona,
Carles Puigdemont, Finland, Germany, Belgium,
Spanish Civil War, Generalísimo Francisco Franco,
Lluis Companys, Battle of the Ebro, Gestapo
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Violent clashes with police in Spain's Catalonia follow arrest of Puigdemont in Germany
- Spain's arrests of Catalonia secessionist leaders revive memories of Franco's brutal atrocities
****
**** Violent clashes with police in Spain's Catalonia follow arrest of Puigdemont in Germany
****
Catalonia protesters clash with police in Barcelona on Sunday (AP)
At least 50 people were injured on Sunday when tens of thousands of
supporters of Carles Puigdemont, the former leader of Spain's
Catalonia region, clashed with Spanish policy in Barcelona,
Catalonia's capital city, after Puigdemont was arrested in Germany,
based on a European arrest warrant issued by a Spanish court.
The story of Puigdemont's arrest is a kind of spy thriller.
Puigdemont led a failed attempt at Catalonian independence in
September of last year, after which a Spanish court issued a warrant
for his arrest on charges of treason and sedition. He fled to
Belgium, where authorities refused an extradition request, on
condition that Puigdemont not leave Belgium. Spain retracted the
arrest warrant earlier this year, leaving Puigdemont free to travel
again.
He traveled to Finland to give some lectures, but on Friday Spain's
government issued new arrest warrants for Puigdemont and for other
leaders who had supported the attempt at secession.
The new arrest warrant caught Puigdemont by surprise. When Puigdemont
got word of the new arrest warrant on Friday, he immediately tried to
flee Finland by car, hoping to reach the safety of Belgium undetected.
He crossed the border into Sweden, and traveled south into Denmark.
From there he crossed the border into Germany, and was recognized and
arrested in Germany when he stopped at a filling station.
If Germany extradites Puigdemont back to Spain, and he is convicted of
the crimes he's charged with, then the punishment will be 25-30 years
in prison. However, Puigdemont's lawyers will try to convince
Germany's courts that they can't extradite because the arrest is
political. This is similar to the reasoning that Belgium's court used
when it refused to extradite him. Under EU rules, a court in one EU
member state can only extradite a person sought by another member
state if they are confident the suspect will face equivalent fair
legal procedures and trial. The battles in Germany's courts are
expected to continue for weeks. For the time being, Puigdemont is in
a German jail.
Puigdemont's arrest has infuriated the half of Catalonia's public that
support him. The other half of Catalonia's public is against
independence, and many of them believe that Puigdemont should be
charged and jailed. Irish Times and BBC and AP and CNN
****
**** Spain's arrests of Catalonia secessionist leaders revive memories of Franco's brutal atrocities
****
As I described last year in "23-Sep-17 World View -- The 1930s Spanish Civil War fault lines explode again over Catalonia independence referendum"
,
memories of Generalísimo Francisco Franco's fascist nationalism and
his brutal atrocities targeting Catalonians in the extremely bloody
Spanish Civil War (1936-39) are now being revived.
Puigdemont's arrest by the Germans is being compared on social media
to the arrest by the German Gestapo of Lluís Companys, the president
of Catalonia during the Spanish Civil War.
After Franco's victory in the Battle of the Ebro on July 25, 1938, at
the climax of the Spanish Civil War, Franco began an offensive against
Catalonia, forcing the government of Catalonia to exile itself in
France. They were safe in France until France capitulated to the
Nazis in June 1940. Companys was arrested by the German Gestapo in
Brittany on August 13th 1940 and handed over to the Francoist
authorities on August 29th. Companys was held in solitary
confinement, tortured and eventually executed by firing squad on
October 14, 1940.
There are few people alive today who have personal memories of the
Spanish Civil War and of the capture and execution of Companys.
However, Francisco Franco did not die until 1975, and there are many
people alive today, including Puigdemont himself, who have personal
memories of Franco and of his severe repression of the Catalan region.
That's why many Catalonians today are comparing the German arrest of
Puigdemont to the 1940 Gestapo arrest of another Catalan leader, Lluís
Companys. If the German courts decide to extradite Puigdemont and
turn him over to Spain's government, then the circle of history will
be complete. AFP and TeleSur TV and Barcelonas.com
Related Articles
- Catalonia's leader says the region has 'won the right to statehood' from Spain (02-Oct-2017)
- The 1930s Spanish Civil War fault lines explode again over Catalonia independence referendum (23-Sep-2017)
- Catalonia referendum poised to go ahead despite Spain's harsh repressive measures (01-Oct-2017)
- Catalonia will vote for independence from Spain on Thursday (25-Sep-2012)
- Scotland's independence referendum is encouraging Catalonia's separatists (11-Sep-2014)
- Catalonia parliament votes to secede from Spain (10-Nov-2015)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Spain, Catalonia, Barcelona,
Carles Puigdemont, Finland, Germany, Belgium,
Spanish Civil War, Generalísimo Francisco Franco,
Lluis Companys, Battle of the Ebro, Gestapo
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
