Legal Report Mandates Removal of Controversial Monument in Lanzarote
A legal report commissioned by the Historical Heritage Department of the Lanzarote Cabildo mandates the removal of the monolith and stone spheres from the Plaza de Las Palmas, which includes the pedestal, plaques, and seating areas. As previously reported in July, this decision follows the removal of the Francoist cross.
Upon establishing that this monument violates the Democratic Memory Law 20/2022, Law 5/2018, and the Historical Memory Law of the Canary Islands, there is a legal obligation to remove the architectural ensemble known as the Cross of the Fallen.
The Cabildo commissioned a technical report from José Manuel Corbacho, an expert in the Democratic Memory Law. The report explains that “these types of symbols, which exalt dictatorship and occupy public space, represent a form of indoctrination. They celebrate those who fought with the rebels, mixed with religious elements to portray the coup and the war as a ‘crusade’ for liberation, backed by the ecclesiastical hierarchy almost from the onset of the military rebellion.”
“Thus, these ensembles were essentially a politically propagandistic symbol of the new regime, born from the coup and victory in the conflict, rather than being strictly religious,” the expert continues.
It will now be the responsibility of the Arrecife City Council to remove this monolith. Furthermore, it must be deposited in public facilities, out of public view, and reported to the relevant department for Democratic Memory.
If the Arrecife City Council fails to comply with this obligation, the report indicates that legal actions may ensue, as stipulated by the Democratic Memory Law.
The removal of the Francoist cross last July sparked a significant controversy within the PP, Vox, and a religious association, who opposed this decision and called for the monument to be reinstated.
