The hearing that was to be the first testimony of victims of torture under Franco before Spanish courts is suspended in the same court.
This was a highly significant and exceptional event, not only for the plaintiff, but also for the more than one hundred people who have filed complaints in the last 6 years.
The Court of Instruction number 50 of Madrid has decided suspend the declarations The hearings scheduled for today stemmed from the torture suffered by Julio Pacheco Yepes in August 1975 at the General Directorate of Security. This lawsuit was filed against various members of the Political-Social Brigade who participated in the events, including former police commissioner José Manuel Villarejo. It is important to remember that the acts denounced in the lawsuit constitute crimes against humanity, as they occurred within the context of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population.
This decision was communicated to the plaintiff in the Court itself without prior notification of the suspension finally agreed upon. The plaintiff and the witness summoned to testify were notified while they were already inside the courthouse..
The verbal explanation provided by the Court is that the presiding judge, who accepted the complaint and noted the statements of both parties, is no longer assigned to the case, and it will now be handled by a substitute judge, Mr. Fernando Muñoz Leal, who was appointed just 10 days ago. The substitute judge himself has told the plaintiff that he must re-examine the cause, That is, you must decide whether to continue processing it or proceed to file it.
»"The procedure itself is malicious and painful. It demonstrates how the judicial system has no regard for reparations for victims, and this case is a clear example of that."
Gabriela López
Sir[a] Centre Coordinator
In light of what has happened since CeAqua, Amnesty International, SIRA Centre e Iridia They make the following considerations:
1. The suspension of the hearings scheduled for today, without offering even a minimally rigorous legal explanation, constitutes a lack of respect, an attack on dignity, and a humiliation of the plaintiff by the Court. As stated Gabriela López from the SIRA Center"The procedure itself is malicious and painful. It demonstrates how the judicial system has no consideration for the reparation of victims, and this case is a clear example of that."«
2. The acceptance of this complaint and the summons for the depositions were agreed upon by a final ruling. Therefore, the suspension ordered is unusual and improper, as it contradicts the previous ruling of the former judge. The complainant's lawyer, Jacinto Lara, has deemed the judge's explanations "inappropriate, both from a legal perspective and from the perspective of consideration for the complainant, who was forced to go to court with false expectations only to ultimately not be allowed to give a statement.".
3. The legal team of CeAqua will proceed to file the corresponding resource against the agreed suspension, once it is formally notified to the complainant.
4. The organizations denounce that state authorities are trying to prevent this criminal case from moving forward, as has happened with the more than one hundred lawsuits filed in the last six years for crimes committed during the Franco regime. As the plaintiff's lawyer stated before the court:«This is absolutely intolerable; it sounds terrible to us because it's music we already know. This has happened on more than one occasion and is a direct application of the impunity policies maintained by the Spanish State regarding the lack of investigation and prosecution of fascist crimes..»
Both CeAqua and the memorial and human rights organizations present today outside the Plaza Castilla courthouse expressed their disappointment and outrage at this situation. They all stated that "these setbacks are painful, but the dignity, courage, and strength of the people and their families who suffered serious human rights violations during the Franco regime will ensure that we continue working and pressing the issue in the courts. This decades-long persistence is driven by the will to reverse, once and for all, the policies of impunity and silence that prevail in the Spanish State.".
Jacinto Lara concluded by saying: "We'll see how it's resolved by the assigned substitute judge, but make no mistake, we're continuing, because nobody here gives up."«