Hi hollyisa!!!
Thank you for asking us that interesting question!!
First of all I must tell you that the sources are almost written in
spanish. If you need you can use the following tool to tranlate the
pages:
"Google Translate Tools": see in the translate section the box
"Translate a web page":
://www.google.com/language_tools?q=g&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8
The present seat of the Government of the Community of Madrid (seat of
the Presidencia de la Comunidad de Madrid) was in the past, first the
Real Casa de Correos (Royal Post Office), later the Ministerio de la
Gobernación (Ministry of the Interior) and during the dictatorship of
Franco it was the seat of the Dirección General de Seguridad (DSG -
General Bureau of Security).
Sources:
"DescubreMadrid.com":
http://www.descubremadrid.com/pdi_popup.asp?Id_PDI=15
"MADRID, LA CAPITAL DE ESPAÑA - Puerta del Sol":
http://www.nova.es/~target/mad_e304.htm
At this point I think that you are guessing what is the answer to your
question. The answer is yes, this place is well knowed by the
spaniards as a detention and torture center during the Franco´s
dictatorship.
The sources that I have found refers to history of political parties
and/or biographies of some personalities.
From an interview to Pilar Claudin - an antifranquism fighter -
conceded to the mexican newspaper La Jornada I have translated the
following:
"There was a moment in which I was in the General Direction of
Security, where they had tortured me during a month, and from there
they carried me to the jail."
All the article is an interesting piece.
From "Pilar Claudin, una vida contra la injusticia",
La Jornada virtual, 04/22/2002:
http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2002/abr02/020422/048n1con.php?origen=index.html
Another important case related to torture in the DGS at Puerta del Sol
is the Julian Grimau trial: Detained, tortured, processed and executed
by the pro-Franco state. Julián Grimau was brutally struck in the
Dirección General de la Seguridad, thrown through a window, simulating
a flight or a suicide attempt, hounded by the false accusations of
crimes. On April 18, 1963 begins the judgment without proof of no
kind, neither direct testimonies, in which the public prosecutor,
complying orders of his superiors, imposes the maximum grief to him:
The death penalty.
The Spain´s Izquierda Unida party elevated a Petition of public
rehabilitation for Julian Grimau on April 15 of 2002, this peticion
was rejected, but not for considering this person guilty, it was
rejected for political causes.
See the petition here:
"BOLETÍN OFICIAL DE LAS CORTES GENERALES 04/15/2002" (page 7):
http://www.senado.es/legis7/publicaciones/pdf/congreso/bocg/D0336.PDF
"Debate Julian Grimau":
http://www.pce.es/foroporlamemoria/julian_grimau/debate_julian_grimau.pdf
"SOBRE LA REHABILITACIÓN PÚBLICA Y DEMOCRÁTICA DE LA FIGURA DE JULIÁN
GRIMAU. PRESENTADA POR EL GRUPO PARLAMENTARIO FEDERAL DE IZQUIERDA
UNIDA":
http://www.pce.es/foroporlamemoria/julian_grimau/debate_julian_grimau.htm
Several sites about the history of the PSOE (Partido Socialista Obrero
Español - Spanish Labour Socialist Party)and/or the UGT (Union General
de los Trabajadores - Labour General Union -) tell us the following
about the death of Tomas Centeno a leader of both UGT and PSOE:
In 1953 Tomás Centeno, General Secretary of UGT and leader of the
PSOE, dies due to the tortures in the basements of the Dirección
General de Seguridad of Madrid.
Sources about this:
"LA UNIÓN GENERAL DE TRABAJADORES - Breve Historia":
http://www.ugt.es/ugtpordentro/historia.htm
"HISTORIA DEL PSOE".
http://www.psoelapalma.com/historia%20psoe.htm
Additional sources:
"Cuelgamuros: presos políticos para un mausoleo" by the historian
Nicolás Sánchez-Albornoz. In this article he did a little mention
about the center of torture at Puerta del Sol:
"In Puerta del Sol, the deal that they given us did not reach the
frantic violence applied in the adjacent room during the
interrogations that the police did to the laborers captured in the
raid of the CNT of Madrid on March of 1946."
Translated from "Cuelgamuros: presos políticos para un mausoleo":
http://www.memoria.com.mx/171/sanchez.htm
The following sources did not mention the DGS at Puerta del Sol but
give valuable info about the Franco´s regime.
"Spain and Peace" By Howard Fast:
http://www.trussel.com/hf/spain.htm
"Spain - History":
http://www.angelfire.com/mac/egmatthews/worldinfo/europe/spain.html
Search strategy:
ministerio de gobernacion madrid "puerta del sol"
madrid "Dirección General de Seguridad" historia tortura
"Puerta del sol" tortura españa guerra civil
I hope this helps, if you find the answer unsatisfactory for any
reason please let me know and I will provide you all the necesary
clarifications.
Best regards.
livioflores-ga |
