The High Court of Justice (TSJ) has dismissed the appeal of Councillor Javier Pérez who wants to stop the move of the Cross of the Fallen (la Cruz de los Caídos), situated in de la plaza de España, directly outside the church de San Martín in Callosa de Segura.
His lawyer argued that the monument did not imply any adoration of the Franco regime but was simply a strict private memory, and that the land on which it has been located for many years is the property of the Church. He also warned of the risk of its destruction if it moved.
The Town Council argued that the Plaza de España is listed as a public space and does not belong to the church. It also denied that the cross would be damaged during any move saying that the intention was that it be transferred to either el Museo del Cáñamo y la Huerta or, if the permission of the diocese could be obtained, to the local cemetery.
The cross would be moved by experts using the appropriate manpower and equipment.
A decision to move the cross was taken last March following a report prepared by a municipal technician who said that the monument represents exaltation of the Civil War and the repression of the Franco dictatorship. The content is exclusively political and lacks any religious significance.”
