Preparing for a Visitor
rrHE American Ambassador, who often seems 1 to think that the most important part of his duties is to be Public Relations Officer to General Franco, has lately been having some contact with the opposition—involuntary contact, of course, and not in person. A week.or two ago he received a letter from some of Franco's political prisoners. for transmission to President Eisenhower. This was written paragraph by paragraph by different hands, presumably having been smuggled from cell to cell; it pointed out that the writers of the letter, and the many other political prisoners, had committed no crime other than that of fighting for the freedoms in which Mr. Eisenhower and the US believed. 'These men have been tried by special tribunals without even the minimum of legal rights, Mr. President!'
Last week the Ambassador received another letter for President Eisenhower, this time frOm the leaders of the Spanish opposition—including Gil Robles, Christian Democrats, Enrique Tierno Galvin, Union Espanola, Juan Antonio de Zulueta, Social Christian Democrats, and Dionisio Ridruejo, Accion Democratica. Their letter ex- pressed regret that 'a representative of one of the best democratic governments of history should visit Spain at a time when freedom does not exist on its soil,' and went on to hope that while in Spain the President would not limit himself to proclaiming friendship between his Government and Franco's dictatorship but would fearlessly express both by his actions and by his words his belief in freedom and democracy. The letter ended by reminding Mr. Eisenhower 'of an ancient Spanish tradition by which the host is under the obligation to grant his guest one wish. In your talks with General Franco we beg you to ask him to free those who are now in the gaols of our country for the sole crime of having proclaimed by their actions, sometimes only by their thought, their. will to restore democracy in Spain.'
Not all the recent developments here concern the American Embassy and the visit of President Eisenhower. The judges have for some time con- sidered themselves to be badly underpaid and have made various protests about their position. As a result an outline law was recently published whereby the judges Would get a percentage of the fines they imposed. Even by the Franco regime's normal standards this idea shows a contempt for decent legal practice, since it invites judges to impose sentences not in accordance with the offence but in accordance with their own economic needs at the time: and not surprisingly it has produced a considerable reaction. On Novernber 14 there was an angry meeting of the Madrid College of Lawyers. The speakers were unanimous in condemning the measure, but the Dean of the College, Senor Escovedo, who is a government appointee and is not elected, tried to defend the Government. Even in an 'organic democracy,' he said, there must he occasional anomalies. His view was unacceptable to the meeting, and Escovedo was told to make representations to the Govern- ment that the draft law should be withdrawn. This he refused to do, with the result that there were insistent demands for his resignation. This, too, he refused, but finally he agreed to resign if a majority voted against him, provided that every voter put his name on his ballot paper.
The lawyers agreed, and voting began. But possibly because some of them thought that an open vote against Escovedo would lead to un- welcome attention from the secret police, pande- monium soon broke out and one of the ballot boxes was seized and taken out of the room. This brought the meeting to a close. Escovedo did not resign, though he must have known that the entire College was opposed to him. If he allowed him- self to have any doubts on this point, they must have been removed by the College's next meet- ing a fortnight later. At it all the members of the Bar Council were defeated for re-election, a move 'obviously directed against Escovcdo, the one non- elected official.
The second legal development lately has been the odd manoeuvres over the trial of the diplomat Julio Ceron. A few weeks ago Ceron, on the usual trumped-up charge of plotting military rebellion. was sentenced to four years' imprisonment after the public prosecutor had demanded ten ycar:. But the Military Governor of Madrid refused to confirm this sentence, saying that it was not big, enough; so the public prosecutor has now obedi- ently asked for twenty years. Presumably the 'court' will, equally obediently, now give him eight years. The trial is expected to take place this week.
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