The Supreme Court endorses the removal of the Cross of the Fallen from Callosa

The Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the Supreme Court has established in a ruling that a Cross that contains a nominal list of deaths from only one of the sides of the Spanish Civil War “represents exaltation of the military uprising, the Civil War and the repression of the Dictatorship. With this argument, the ruling supports the removal of a Cross located in a public square in Callosa del Segura (Alicante), in front of the Church, in application of the Historical Memory Law.

The high court's ruling dismisses the appeal by the Citizen Platform in defense of the Cross against the agreement of the town's City Council, of January 26, 2017, which rejected a proposal from the municipal spokesperson of the PP to preserve the monument.

For the high court, which coincides with what was resolved in previous instances by a Court of Elche and by the Valencian Superior Court of Justice, in this case “we are faced with a religious symbol – cross – that contains elements that prevent it from recognizing a neutral value as a mere artistic or artistic-religious symbol. On the contrary, its presence in a public space allows us to appreciate an act of exaltation in that it contributes to highlighting the merit of that civil conflict with the inclusion of the list of deaths from only one side, which, implicitly, also entails the disapproval of the side. contrary in social perception.

The ruling indicates that the case studied differs from those resolved in Galicia and Navarra referring to a Cross and a Monolith, respectively, since in these all the elements of exaltation of the Civil War and the dictatorship had been eliminated, so they do not The contradiction that the appellants defend exists.

Nor does it share with the appellant Platform that the matter is similar to the one resolved by the Supreme Court's own ruling in 2014, contrary to what the appellant Platform postulates, since in that case, relating to the Cruz de la Muela de Orihuela, what was At issue was whether the persistence of such a religious symbol compromised the nondenominational nature of the State and its neutrality, which was denied by the high court.

The TS highlights that, as the Supreme Court rulings on the exhumation of the remains of Francisco Franco have stated, with actions such as that relating to the Callosa de Segura Cross “the aim is nothing more than to remove from the foreground whatever it means, represents or symbolizes.” the civil confrontation. “This purpose is not incompatible with religious freedom nor does it imply denying or ignoring anyone's beliefs.”

The Supreme Court points out as essential the fact, included in the proven facts, that at the base of the Cross or plinth a list of deceased people had been maintained that prevents it from being considered neutral, despite the removal of a plaque referring to José Antonio Primo de Rivera and Falangist heroes.

Currently, the cross is displayed inside the Hemp Museum by decision of the mayor, Manuel Martínez Sirvent (PP). The Calosino councilor promised during the campaign to the neighborhood platform in defense of the cross that he would return this symbol to the place it occupied next to the Town Hall and in front of the San Martín church.