11. The spirit of the 12 of February

The new minister, José García Hernández, was, as Arias, it is collaborative of the general Alonso Vega. The ancient Work minister, the falangista Licino of the Source, originating from the government of Teamster, it was preserved in their/its/your/his put, what was not auguring nothing good for the flexibility that were needed in the occupational field. Concretely, Arias preserved to eight White Teamster ministers and introduced or reintrodujo to certain number of bureaucrats falangistas of the hard line. Practically, the only one grant to the modernidad, and that in their/its/your/his day seemed small, it was the conservation of Antonio Barrier of Irimo, ex president, time back from the National Telephonic Company of Spain, in the cargo of Estate minister.

The government of Arias could not be more retrograde. With all, surprise par of practically all the political class, their/its/your/his first statement on the policy to follow was relatively liberal. Their/its/your/his celebrated speech of the 12 of February of 1974 threw the bases for a controlled opening, upon speaking of a political participation wider for all the Spanish, though within the limits of the order stricter.

A limited plan anticipated the election, front to the governmental appointment, of the mayors and high local officials. The number of elect deputies in the Courts would be boosted of a 17 to a 35 for 100. The vertical unions would be endowed of a great be able of conciliation. It was promised the creation of political associations, but not of political parties. Was not much and, furthermore, in the following two all years that was going to be reduced to the nothing by the búnker. With all, it was tried to the most liberal statement never effected by a Franc minister. At the beginning, the statement had their/its/your/his translation in the attitude less restrictive toward the press and the publishers, adopted by Pious Cabanillas, Information minister. This, it united to an increase in the tolerance with the most moderate sectors of the opposition, gave cause for certain optimism.

It will be as were, the government of Arias oscillated among the liberalization promises and the most violent repression. With the Franc health already in crisis were perceived a certain panic sensation. Arias was realized of the fact that the liberalization was something that had to be made, but, faced to the worker and student discomfort and before the increase in the terrorist problem, adopted measured even more hard. In part this was instinctive, but in this case this expression era of the success of the búnker in manipulating the reactions you reflect of the almost complete Exempt.

While the Commander continued with life, the old guard of the búnker continued being very powerful and capable of be mobilized against the reforms, appealing to the values of the civil war. This made untenable the Arias posture. Their/its/your/his task was that of to attempt to adjust the political forms of the regime to the new socioeconomic situation. In full energetic crisis this were converted into an impossible challenge. In addition to the problems derived from the urgency from covering their/its own energetic needs, Spain was suffering the serious consequences of the crisis of the oil. The consequent recession at European level was going to cost to him/her/you expensive soon in what toward one of their/its principal sources of foreign currencies: the tourism and the remittances of the migratory workers. The perspective in an increase in the unemployment and of a bajón of the standard of living was anticipating a parallel increase in the worker militancy, therefore a limited political reform seemed be a sensible grant, in order to avoid problems more serious to all the structure of power in Spain. Unfortunately for Arias, the fact of needing to placate constantly to the búnker, compelled to him/her/you to adopt measures that had an opposite effect and that destroyed their/its/your/his credibility.

Two weeks after of the speech of the 12 of February, Arias was seen obligated to prove that the new spirit expressed in their/its/your/his statement not would prevent to him/her/you to defend the fundamental values of the franquismo.

After the Teamster death was produced a short truce with the church. Arias had spoken of a new understanding and had been shipped a delegation to the Vatican, in an attempt of improving the relationships. However, 24 of February the bishop of Bilbao, monsignor Añoveros Ataún, published a pastoral in the one which were made a llamamaiento so that is recognized the cultural and linguistic identity of the Basque people. To say this little after of the White Teamster assassination by it members of ETA, was more than what the extreme straight could tolerate. Añoveros it was accused of launching subversive assaults against the national unit. Arias was folded to the pressures and condemned to Añoveros and to their/its/your/his general vicar, monsignor Ubieta López, to house arrest. Little after, the esperanzas of a reconciliation with the Church were swept by a heavy attempt of expelling to Añoveros of Spain. The bishop refused to abandon the country, alleging that only would make it under direct orders of the Pope. A forced expulsion would be considered a violation of the Concordat and would bring with himself the excommunication of all catholic that put the hands above to the bishop. The matter attracted much expectancy and was converted in question extremely delicate for the Spanish Government. Arias was seen forced, finally, to proceed to a humiliate you withdrawal, and after have achieved only to accelerate the withdrawal of the Church of the orbit of the forces of the regime.

The blow given to the credibility of the call spirit of the 12 of February finished of be completed little after with a new test of the fact that Exempt and the búnker was not found disposed, absolutely, to make grant some that could be interpreted as weakness. 1 of March, Exempt refused to commute the death penalty to the fact that had been condemned the Catalan anarchist Salvador Puig Antich. It was executed to mean cudgel on the following day, before the international clamor. This did not made more than exasperate the fence mentality of the búnker. The rout of Fanfani in the referendum on the divorce in italia, the fall of the regime of the Greek colonels and, little after, in April of 1974, the Portuguese revolution, all this contributed to toughen ulteriorly the immobility of the búnker. The process was intensified due to the numerous figures of the regime, of mind more opened, that were considering had arrived already the moment of be opened to the left.

The Spanish left received with happiness the events from Portugal and it is not surprising that the búnker is disheveled. The target of their/its assaults could not be other that the one which was: the easing of the censorship with Pious Cabanillas was the only one field in which the spirit of the 12 of February was operating of truth. Thus since, 28 of April, José Antonio Girón published a wrathful lunge against Cabanillas and against the other member of the government relatively liberal, Barrier of Irimo. The Gironazo, published in Up, it was accompanied of virulent accusations of the Government on the part of Blas Piñar. The offensive verbal was accompanied also by a series of tangible victories. 13 of June the chief of the Greater State, the liberal general Díez Happiness, it was dismissed as punishment after a visit to Rumania. 15 of June, when Arias was announcing their/its/your/his plan for the political associations, simultaneously was declared that these would not have to alter the paper of the movement neither the spirit of the regime.