Spain: Toward a Change

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stripes arrived from Spain, joining 38 prominent Spanish exiles. Most noted: brilliant Philosopher Salvador de Madariaga. Republican Spain's most famous cabinet minister and diplomat, and now an honorary fellow at Oxford. Many of the Spaniards were bitter rivals and a? divided as ever on a future policy for their country. But in an emotional scene, Madariaga submitted a resolution on behalf of all Spaniards present, and Gil Robles rose to endorse it.

Introducing the document, Madariaga said: "I speak of the two great traditions of Western thought, the Socratic, which demands freedom of the mind, and the Christian, which demands respect for the human being. One hundred and eighteen Spanish delegates have come to tell you that Europe cannot accept in its midst a state where Socrates is poisoned every day and Christ is crucified every day." Applause punctuated his words as he concluded: "One hundred and eighteen come with their hands outstretched to Europe, and Europe should open its arms to receive them. Spain wants to give itself to Europe, but before it can do so, Spaniards must own their own country."

The Cops Move In. In any other Western country, the demands of the resolution proposed by Madariaga and the other Spaniards at Munich would have seemed innocuous enough. But they were dynamite in Spain: the establishment of democratic institutions based on the consent of Spain's citizens, the right of workers to strike, the free organization of political parties, including an opposition. The Spaniards' resolution chose evolution over revolution, spoke out specifically for peaceful change. "The immense majority of the Spanish people hope that this evolution can take place according to the rules of political prudence and as rapidly as circumstances permit, in the desire of all to renounce every form of active or passive violence, before, during or after the process of evolution.''

Franco and his aides were furious.

TREASON AND STUPIDITY ARE ALLIED IN

A DIRTY UNION AGAINST SPAIN, headlined the government daily Arriba. The press blared false accusations that the Munich petitioners had recommended that Spain not enter the Common Market. Franco consulted his Cabinet, rushed through a decree suspending for two years the part of Spain's bill of rights that safeguards the Spaniards' right to make their residence anywhere in the nation. Then the police went out to nab the more important figures as they flew back from the Munich meeting. Gil Robles was among the first arrested at Madrid's Barajas airport. The cops read him the new government decree, offered him the choice of residence in Spain's faraway Canary Islands or exile abroad. He promptly bought a ticket on the next plane and flew to Paris. Don Juan's privy council, a loose association of prominent men with many varying opinions, felt it prudent to issue a statement dissociating itself from the entire Munich affair.

Source of Stability. Once again, Franco had gone into action at the first sign that the myriad opposition groups might start operating in concert. Sighed a Spanish politician as the feeble move toward combined opposition was crushed: "In Spain, there are many little streams of politics. In other countries, they form into rivers. But here there are no rivers." For this reason alone, many Spanish