The Spanish Government In Exile
Serge, Victor
The Spanish Government In Exile By Victor Serge MEXICO CITY, Sept. 4.—As I re-reported recently in The New Leader, the Spanish govern-Bient-in-exile, headed by Joee Girat, now cognized by the...
...The idea now is to work with Laborite England, a fourth republic in France, and an Italy which has become again one of the pillars of a social renaissance in Europe...
...It does not carry us 'w enough in the direction of economic planning to...
...But at the beginning of the r,»il war he proved his courage by accepting the responsibility of leadership in the struggle against Franco...
...The bloody doings of the Communist Party have* left such deep and bitter memories among Spanish republicans that a regime which included them could not maintain itself without resort to the worst methods of repression...
...would riot interfere with individual initiative or '•ward, ·0 private enterprise...
...Tn« Communist Vicente Uribe, formerly a cabinet member, carried on negotiations in euch an insolent way that he made agreement impossible...
...He spoke,in much more moderate terms and emphasized the need of unity...
...After the resignation of Negrin, determined efforts were made by the Com munist Party to put over a Negrin-del Vayo combination...
...4.—As I re-reported recently in The New Leader, the Spanish govern-Bient-in-exile, headed by Joee Girat, now cognized by the Mexican Government, „u formed without the participation of Juan NegrSn and Alvarez del Vayo or thru Communist friends...
...If its members get enough hot messages from back home, they will support the Presidents program...
...Don Jose Giral, President of the Council, is a scholar far more than a politician...
...Under these circumstances the refugees carrying on their activities for the establishment of a democratic Bayernment hare now hope of success...
...Fernando de los Rios, of the, Socialist Party, has accepted the nottfolio of foreign affairs...
...justified fears in the minds of the anti-planning '«aties...
...The recognjtion accorded by the Mexican Government is more than a formal gesture of sympathy...
...The President closed his message with a fine appeal: "Congress, I know, will continue to play its patriotic part in the difficult years ahead...
...But its main purport, so far as the average citizen is concerned, is that a whole series of things must be done if we are to prevent our descent into a slough of unemployment and poverty...
...The upshot is that the Finance Committee has voted to give an unfavorable report on the bill...
...THI NISEI...
...The Spanish refugees feel themselves stronger since they have established' regular contact with the underground movement in Spain...
...Unity of the forces participating was achieved on a ???it of opposition to the Communist Party and on a sincerely democratic basis...
...The others will meet similar opposition...
...These are the Nisei whose persecution hat made Hood River, Oregon, and Parlier, California, infamoua throughout America: 72,000 American cititene . . . 17,600 young men...
...This is just the first item of the President's program to come up for consideration...
...Thus the check to Communist ambitions became a definite defeat...
...The passage of the bills favored by the President is by no means assured...
...This way of taking his defeat is much more clever than open opposition...
...He did his best to reduce the rtumber of victims of the persecutions to cleverly organized by the Communiat Party...
...Many anti-Stalinists owe their lives to him...
...Of the proposals made, more than a half deal with measures designed to prevent depressions or diminish their evil results...
...It does not give us, on the contrary, a basis |» · feeling of confidence in its efficacy to accomplish "* (Oppose, It does not go far enough, and can lie y> Partially successful...
...The Basques ire represented by Manuel de I rujo, a Catholic liberal who served aa Minister of Justice in the Negrin government at the time of the defeat...
...The Republican leaders immediately took their stand in opposition...
...In this sense a new regime with a king at the head of it would be nothing mote than a prolongation of what we have had under Franco...
...These varying responses to the situation are proof of the confusion in the Communist ranks...
...I know, for exsmple, that various officiate high up in the present government leave made elaborate arrangements to: escape*' to America after Franco's fall...
...There would be the natural fear of the rulers that the first election would sweep them away...
...The journalistic representative of the Communist Party in Mexico, /·.'«/«<»« Popular, has adopted this policy...
...Mexico has made a fine move in the field of international politics by setting itself against the pan-Spanish doctrine of the Phalange...
...Now the Communists and their fellow-travelers find themselves in an embarrassing position...
...This Cabinet represents as well as possible Spanith liberalism and democratic .Socialise...
...In this sense the tactical blunders of the Communists which led to their exclusion from the government-in-exile may be regarded as fortunate...
...A government under Communist influence would be equally unsuccessful at the present time...
...In its number of August 31 it starts a campaign to discredit the Giral government...
...But a few days later Negrin himself rectified this step...
...The President gives us a new New Deal program...
...Immediately two cries were raised in the Senate Finance Committee where hearings were held...
...But for this country, which ''••Wore haa gone its care-free way from boom to **?*> the adoption of this program would mark a step '«%erd...
...What was not revealed was that employers in some regions prefer to pay less than that much to men when they are working...
...Thevv rejection of the idea of collaboration with the Communists is in line with the trend of events...
...The plan to bring all the Spanish-speaking countries under the sway of the Franco influence has now met effective opposition...
...Aa editorial— How to Get Action in Congress THK message which the President presented to Congress on September ("> brought the nation face to face with its chief domestic foe...
...What The New Leader knows is that the members of Congress want to be re-elected next year...
...The formation of the Giral government under the present conditions has served to weaken the movement toward monarchy in Spain itself...
...Tkfcie items, taken together, make an intelligent "herai program suited to the situation which we fare...
...Federal encourage »ent of scientific research...
...They now have definite information of the increasing weakness of the Franco regime...
...Along these lines the fight will be waged until the congressional election of 1946 and the presidential campaign of 1948...
...The whole list of bills introduced by liberal Congressmen and Senators the President beehl up with the prestige of his Administration...
...The message contained 16,000 words, and it touched on many subjects...
...If they come out openly in opposition, they will be re» garded as saboteurs...
...Things have happened and times have changed...
...It is a signal which will be noted in various Latin-American countries, and it will not be without influence...
...What has already happened to the proposal to raise unemployment compensation to $25 per week for 26 weeks has an ominous look...
...Since Indalerlo Pi ieto was ill and therefore unable to accept a csbinet post, his place has been taken by the old militant Socialist Triion Comet, who is now in France...
...A monarchical regime could not undertake any of the great reforms which are necessary to satisfy the masses and to adapt Spain to life on a continent which is in process of transformation...
...Compensation now being extended under state laws is extremely uneven, ranging down to very few dollars given over a period of very few weeks in some of the southern states...
...The list includes: increased unemployment compensation, *»*ing of the minimum guaranteed by the Fair Labor «taadards Act, the Full Employment Bill, establisb-*«t of a permanent Fair Employment Practices (JoaUBittee, support for agricultural prices, a public •wealof program, provision for a program of public *orki and resources development...
...It was said that state laws made it illegal for the Federal Government to extend funds to raise the levels of compensation and—horror of horrors—it waa argued that to give unemployed workers as much at $25 would upset all the standards of living...
...The change to a king promised them the most painless way of liquidating a regime founded by Hitler and Mussolini...
...The idea of monarchy evidently has an attraction for the clergy, the generals and the capitalists attached to Franco and, also, to the officials of the Phalange...
...He is iiirreunded by men well-known and universally reayected...
...Under these conditions Spain would remain troubled and confused as it was during the period at the end of the reign of Alphonso XIII...
...half of them volunteers— serving in the United States Army, 1,000 Purple Hearts, 11 Distinguished Service Crosses, 44 Silver Stars, 31 Bronze Start, three Legion of Merit Decorations, one War Department Unit Citation for Outstanding Service in Battle: one of the moat brilliant records in American military annalt . . . theae are the Nisei...
...making this aet of proposals the program of his Administration and of the Democratic Party, the President has cleared the decks for the political battles which lie ahead...
...The elections, then, would be deferred or laws would be passed which would prevent the people from expressing their will...
Vol. 28 • September 1945 • No. 37
