Born in Orihuela, Miguel Hernández was one of the greatest Spanish poets of the twentieth century. In 1939, however, at the end of the Spanish Civil War, he was imprisoned for his anti-fascist sympathies. He was accused of writing poems harmful to the Francoist cause for which he was condemned to death. That sentence was then commuted to 30 years, leading to confinement in multiple jails where he eventually succumbed to typhus and tuberculosis. He finally died in Alicante jail on 28 March 1942.
Four weeks ago, we reported in the Leader that a group of supporters, headed by Lucía Izquierdo and Joan Pàmies, are asking the Spanish Government to annul the proceedings in which Hernández was convicted, and to issue a declaration of recognition, a complete pardon and personal reparation in favour of his family. The appeal is currently being considered by the Spanish Government.
Now the PSOE is urging all of the other parties in Orihuela to support the appeal and the subsequent cancellation of the legal proceedings against Miguel Hernández
The socialists have sent a text proposal to all party leaders in the hope that all political groups with a presence in the City Council will publicly declare themselves in favour of the pardon following which the council can then issue an institutional declaration.
PSOE leader, Carolina Gracia, a former mayor of Orihuela says that “if Orihuela defends the figure of Miguel Hernández, and proudly displays his work and life in our streets and across the world, it cannot but join, without delay, in a petition that overturns the unjust sentences he received, his good name and that of the city where he was born and lived.”
The proposal for an institutional declaration submitted by the socialists praises the figure of the poet from Orihuela for being “a firm defender of the Second Republic and the freedoms that it represented.” However, it notes that “his bravery and commitment made him the object of Franco’s persecution, which, through two judicial proceedings, unjustly condemned him to the death penalty, later commuted to 30 years in prison.” Miguel Hernández, they recall, died in the Alicante prison on March 28, 1942, “as a result of an intentional lack of medical assistance, a situation that his family and numerous scholars classify as ‘murder by omission’.”
She said that “the proposed declaration indicates that supporting the family’s request is not only a duty of reparation to them, but also it will ensure that Miguel Hernández is cleared of the false accusations that persecuted him until his death.”
While Cambiemos’ spokesperson, Leticia Pertegal, has already guaranteed a resounding yes to the text, Ciudadanos has announced that, pending careful study, their intention is to vote in favour.
The declaration, however, puts the PP in a difficult position, even though the mayor is a great promoter of the poet’s work, but the political content of the text could raise some suspicion within his party. The Popular Party voted against the Law of Democratic Memory in Congress. It will also be difficult for Vox, which controls the Department of Culture, to support the vote.
The Socialists say that it is time for the people of Orihuela to “rise to the occasion and stop making excuses; it is time to support and defend the memory and dignity of the poet to whom Orihuela owes and will always owe its appreciation through his values and his work.”
