Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, a history of repression

During its 86-year history, Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya has suffered fierce repression by the Spanish State. A quarter of the 70,000 members of Esquerra during the 30s were imprisoned, shot or killed in the war. Esquerra also had to continue its struggle in exile, suffering the imprisonment of two governments and the execution of its president in 1940.

Thursday, November 2, 2017. Madrid. Approximately 6pm. The vice-president and part of the Catalan Government are sent to prison without bail after having testified at the National Court. The crime: having fulfilled the democratic mandates received in the elections of 27 September and the referendum of 1 October and having proclaimed the Republic of Catalonia. Among the prisoners are the president of Esquerra Republicana, Oriol Junqueras, and three other Esquerra ministers : Carles Mundó, Raül Romeva and Dolors Bassa. In Brussels, ministers Toni Comín and Meritxell Serret, with the rest of the Government, led by President Carles Puigdemont, remain in exile.

Sadly, the Spanish State’s repression of the legitimate Government of Catalonia and Esquerra Republicana is nothing new. In fact, Esquerra is a party that has been punished and persecuted since its foundation 86 years ago. Imprisonment, repression, persecution, exile, outlawing and executions. The history of Esquerra is full of episodes of extreme repression by a state that has fought over time to maintain its privileges.

The history of Esquerra is full of episodes of extreme repression by a state that has long struggled with the same force to maintain its privileges

One of the first episodes of repression suffered by Esquerra was during the events of 6 October 1934, when the president of the Catalan Government, Lluís Companys, declared the Catalan State within the Federal Republic of Spain. In response, the Spanish government suspended the Catalan autonomy, condemned the Catalan government to 30 years' imprisonment and sent the government ministers to the Cartagena and Puerto de Santa Maria penitentiary centres. It was the beginning of a period of repression across Catalonia. In total, there were more than 7,000 political prisoners in Catalonia. In addition to the government, commander Enric Pérez Farràs, chief of the Mossos d'Esquadra, and Captain Frederic Escofet, (both remained loyal to the Catalan Government) were sentenced to death, but the Spanish president Niceto Alcalá-Zamora pardoned them, commuting the sentence to 30 years of imprisonment.

The instability of an authoritative Spanish government that was embroiled in various cases of corruption led to an electoral advance in February 1936. Esquerra Republicana led the Front Popular de Catalunya candidature that achieved an absolute majority with a program based on two strengths: amnesty for political prisoners and the restoration of the Autonomous Government of Catalonia. On 1 March, the Government went back triumphantly to Barcelona and Lluís Companys pronounced the famous phrase "We will fight again, we will suffer again, we will win again."

The second great wave of repression by the Spanish State began with the defeat of the republican side in the Civil War and the start of the Franco dictatorship. Some figures: it is estimated that a quarter of the 70,000 members of Esquerra at that time were imprisoned, shot or killed during that bloody war. And about half of those 70,000 people decided to go into exile. More than 700 members of Esquerra were executed, including some 60 mayors—Josep Abril of Mataró; Antoni Arimon and Joan Brunat of Parets del Vallès; Josep Maria Badia of Berga; Celestí Boada of Santa Coloma de Gramenet; Francesc Campà and Bernabé Llorens of Sant Feliu de Guíxols; Ricard Farré of l'Espluga de Francolí; Josep Fortuny of Mollet del Vallès; Dídac Garrell of Palamós; Lluís Mon of Santa Coloma de Farners; Domènec Puigredon of Cervera; Josep Rodríguez of Tortosa; Vicent Soro of Gandesa; Frederic Xifré of Badalona ... - and the member of the Catalan Paliament Josep Fàbrega. At the beginning of the war, the president of Barcelona Football Club at that time, Josep Sunyol, who was also a member of Esquerra Republicana, was assassinated.

The most symbolic episode of this repression was the execution of the President of Catalonia, Lluís Companys, on October 15, 1940. In August, Companys, who had been detained by the German military police in France where he was exiled, was handed over to the Franco regime. He was executed by a firing squad at Montjuïc castle after a highly questionable summary trial that lasted only two hours. He remains the only president of a democratically elected government –to date– to have been executed by fascists.

The most symbolic episode of this repression was the execution of the President of Catalonia, Lluís Companys, on October 15, 1940. He remains the only president of a democratically elected government –to date– to have been executed by fascists.

After the war, Esquerra Republicana quickly resumed its political activity inside the country, organising underground within the anti-Francoist struggle. However, repression continued. In the spring of 1946, a total of seventeen members of the party were detained throughout Catalonia, in a repressive operation that culminated with the fall of the party leadership in January 1947. It was not until 1952, following Heribert Barrera’s return from exile, that Esquerra reappeared as a fundamental part of the anti-Francoist platforms.

Esquerra was also organised in exile. And despite the dictatorship and persecution that it suffered, it never ceased to be the leading party of the Catalan progressive left in exile. The party was present among the Catalan diaspora in a dozen countries (France, UK, Belgium, Mexico, Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, Argentina...) and maintained, through presidents Lluís Companys, Josep Irla and Josep Tarradellas, the legitimatcy of the Catalan administration, the Generalitat, in exile, the only institution of the Republican period to be recovered during the Spanish Transition towards democracy.

We know that, before us, many other people resisted in order to get us where we are now. For them, the victory we crave now was impossible. Their victory was to resist and to give us the opportunity to win. We are the result of many defeats, but we are the seed of all victories

Oriol Junqueras President of Esquerra Republicana

The significance of Esquerra Republicana before, during and after the Franco regime is demonstrated by the fact that it was the last party to be legalised. For this reason the party took part in the constituent elections of 1977 under the aegis of the coalition «Esquerra de Catalunya».

Esquerra Republicana, like Catalonia, suffered defeats, repression and imprisonment, but in spite of everything, it has always risen from its ashes and continued working to defend its ideals and the country. Now, Esquerra Republicana once again represents the ascendancy and position of leadership it held in the 1930s.As the party's president Oriol Junqueras said during the National Congress of 2011, it is the resistance of our predecessors has made our work possible: "We know that, before us, many other people resisted in order to get us where we are now. For them, the victory we crave now was impossible. Their victory was to resist and to give us the opportunity to win. We are the result of many defeats, but we are the seed of all victories," Junqueras declared.