The Spanish Government has participated today, in Madrid, in the tribute to the Spanish victims of Nazism, on the day of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Mauthausen concentration camp.
The event, organized by the Amical association of Mauthausen in the gardens of New Ministries, was attended by the Secretary of State for Democratic Memory, Fernando Martínez; the Secretary of State for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, José Antonio Santano; the prosecutor of the Human Rights Room, Dolores Delgado; and the vice-president of Amical de Mauthausen, Concha Díez.
Martínez highlighted the obligation to keep alive the memory “for the Spanish victims of Nazism, for their families” and, in particular, so that the youngest and future generations “know the consequences of intolerance and lack of respect”, and see the importance of “the defense of democratic values, human rights and freedom”.
“There is no limit or feature that can explain the horror of Nazism, let alone justify it. It is something that affected all humanity and that marked it forever,” said the Secretary of State for Democratic Memory.
For his part, Santano has emphasized the need to remember the thousands of Spaniards “who fought against Hitler and contributed to the defeat of fascism, and those who ended up being captured and deported, in most cases, to Mauthausen”, and has also made special mention of “those who were forced to hide and flee by the persecution of the rebels and the dictatorship”.
Amical Mauthausen’s vice president concluded that it is “vital to keep alive the memory of all the women and men who suffered that barbarity and contributed with their lives to defend freedoms, rights and democracy.”
During the event, emphasis has been placed on commemorating the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the transition and the advent of democracy, as a crucial element in celebrating the country in which Spain has become; paying tribute to those who sacrificed even their lives for democracy; and showing young people where it came from and what it took to achieve the freedom they now enjoy.
The act has ended with a floral offering in the monolith that is located in the gardens of New Ministries, which reminds the Spaniards deported to Nazi concentration camps.