The Prosecutor's Office appeals the inadmissibility of a complaint in Barcelona for torture of a trade unionist during the Franco regime

He defends that before making a final judicial decision, an investigation must be carried out to find out the truth.

The Barcelona Prosecutor's Office has directly appealed to the Provincial Court the decision of the Court of Instruction Number 18 of the city of Barcelona to reject the complaint filed by the trade unionist Carles Vallejo for the torture he allegedly suffered in 1970 and 1971 during his detention in the Superior Police Prefecture of Vía Laietana, as reported by the Public Ministry.

The Barcelona Prosecutor's Office has acted in coordination with the new Democratic Memory and Human Rights unit, headed by the former State Attorney General Dolores Delgado, who issued a report in favor of appealing the inadmissibility.

This report, signed by Delgado herself, argues that the new Democratic Memory Law (LMD) establishes the State's obligation to investigate to satisfy the victims' right to know.

In a statement, the Public Ministry has explained that this inadmissibility "is premature, since, after the entry into force of the LMD, there is no room for outright rejection of the complaint, but rather it is necessary to carry out an investigation of the facts and its context in order to be able to take a decision on the continuation of the procedure".

The Prosecutor's Office "also recalls that the jurisprudential doctrine alleged in the appealed order corresponds to a legal framework prior to the LMD", a framework that was based on prescription, atypicality and amnesty. However, he maintains that now it is about applying "the right to integrative justice" with a Human Rights approach."

"In accordance with the provisions of the LMD, the right to justice must operate with greater rigor when it comes to investigations of serious violations of Human Rights that may constitute crimes against Humanity or committed in a context of crimes against Humanity" , the report highlights.

Delgado alleges, based on jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the Supreme Court ('Scilingo case'), as well as individual opinions of magistrates of the Constitutional Court (TC), that "the duty to investigate is here closely linked with the right to justice, as well as with the right to the truth".

It also cites the doctrine of the State Attorney General's Office regarding the abduction of newborn minors, "in which the criterion of completing the investigation prior to deciding on other issues such as prescription is advocated."

FIRST COMPLAINT WITH THE NEW LAW

It should be remembered that this was the first complaint filed after the entry into force of the Democratic Memory Law, which created the position of courtroom prosecutor specialized in this matter and in Human Rights, a position held by Delgado.

The State Coordinator of Support for the Argentine Complaint (CEAQUA), one of the memorial entities that supports Vallejo in this judicial battle, also highlights that as a result of this case the Prosecutor's Office positioned itself for the first time in favor of the admission for processing of a complaint for the crimes of Franco's regime.

The document, presented almost a year ago with the support of Irídia and Òmnium within the framework of the 'Via Laietana 43, fem justícia, fem memòria' campaign, was directed against six agents of the Social Political Brigade for their alleged attacks on Vallejo, "in a context of widespread and systematic torture and mistreatment against a part of the population," according to CEAQUA.

The campaign emphasizes that this complaint "has a strong symbolic component for the memorial struggle in the city of Barcelona, ​​since the torture occurred in the Prefecture of Vía Laietana 43, which is one of the most emblematic symbols of the topography of the terror of the city, defined by the affected person himself as 'the black hole of Franco's repression'".

For Vallejo, these events constituted a crime against humanity within the framework of International Human Rights Law, but the head of said court inadmissible the complaint, considering, on the other hand, that it cannot be framed in this category, also pointing out that the alleged crime would be covered by the Amnesty Law of 1977 and, in any case, prescribed.

"A STEP BACK FOR JUSTICE"

'Via Laietana 43' understands that this judicial decision "represents a step backwards for Justice in the Spanish State", contrasting it with "the latest positive precedents, among which is the admission for processing and the beginning of the investigations of the complaint of Julio Pacheco for similar events in Madrid".

The memorial entities that make up the campaign denounce that "the refusal to investigate the crimes of Franco's regime represents a violation of the right to truth, justice and reparation", as well as "the continuity and permissibility of the model of impunity based on silence and the oblivion still valid in the Spanish State".

In this sense, they indicate that "Carles' complaint joins a list of more than 100 inadmissible complaints", although they advance that "they will continue to insist that the right to justice and reparation of the victims of crimes of the Franco regime must be upheld." carried out in the courts and that they must interpret the laws in accordance with International Human Rights Law".