The National Court has ordered National Heritage to stop the exhumations in the Cuelgamuros Valley, former Valley of the Fallen, thus responding to the extremely precautionary measure requested by the granddaughter of a woman buried there who alleged a violation of the fundamental right to religious freedom.
The Contentious Administrative Court number 11 of Madrid has accepted the measure requested by one of the few women buried in the basilica, represented by the Christian Lawyers association, which alleged that the exhumation work carried out violates the right fundamental to religious freedom, since corpses are removed without authorization from their families.
The court gives Patrimony three days to make allegations, after which an order will be issued on the lifting, maintenance or modification of the adopted measure, which will be appealable in accordance with the general rules, according to the order released by Christian Lawyers.
The magistrate explains that the plaintiffs maintain that the exhumations are being carried out “by fact” and concludes that “article 136 of the Law regulating the Contentious-Administrative Jurisdiction is fully applicable,” since “it is not appreciated that the situation denounced as a de facto action does not occur.”
For this reason, and “in order to gain deeper knowledge of the situation in order to resolve the precautionary measure definitively and in force during the complete processing of the matter”, the author accepts the very precautionary measure “consisting of suspending by Patrimony “Execution of the burials in the Cuelgamuros Valley”.
The lawyer Poland Castellanos has stated that “the mere need to have to perform DNA tests on the corpses (which implies a certain degree of desecration), is incurring a violation of an exercise of religious freedom.” Furthermore, she has taken the opportunity to denounce that “to carry out these tests they have not requested consent from the relatives” and that it is “another attack by the Pedro Sánchez government on the Valley of the Fallen.”
For his part, the president of the Association for the Defense of the Valley, Pablo Linares, has celebrated the judicial decision since “the right to rest in peace with respect for one’s dignity should not be discriminated against or ignored in accordance with article 10 of the Spanish Constitution. “.
This news comes after last September a Madrid court annulled the agreement of the San Lorenzo de El Escorial City Council by which an urban planning license was granted for the works necessary to undertake the exhumations.
Among some of the appellants who demanded this annulment were the Francisco Franco Foundation and the Association for Reconciliation and Historical Truth.
