.. ................................................................... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. i??r?if ?:f f?/I?f f t :/I!JtSi\};;}{::;:;:(;1/::::::i:<t:i::/>i:I::) ·E.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·??t{,i/(. i . 'i'!f·i .w .·.·. ~·, ·~.. ~· :J.~·. ·; .· . ··-·.· . · . .. ·. ·.·.·.· .................................... ·~· ·· ·····;;.~ .. :I' ·.«·~ ..... :·.· . ·- . - . ' . .· ...· .... 1 1:I Ii:: i: i: !:i:: i:::: i:: !::: l! !i! :: I> l: l: i: i:: '.!f jl~:~} :irt:1l11ijlii r:11!~1iJf'. ll: (( !i::'.}~!:'.::: ::: ::: : : : : : : : :; :;:: ::; ::;: : .................................................................................... ·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·-:-:-:-:-:•:•:•:•:•: LETTERA 36 OLIVETTI, MACHINE A ECRIRE PORTATIVE ENTIEREMENT ELECTRIQUE \ \ = --·C ~L~- - 5 LETTERA 36 OLIVETTI, MACHINE A ECRIRE PORTATIVE ENTIEREMENT ELECTRIQUE ', \ i .. , " Franco llnd friends: 197 1 Nixon .. ... 1972 Scheel .. ... Sc human .. .. Home SPAIN IN THI COMMON MARKIT? In December 1972 Generalissimo Franco is 80. For the opposition in Spain today does not stand Everyone is waiting for what the official press for a popular front, still less for radical or violent prefers to call « the biological event ». change. Memories of the civil war are still very much alive and it is realised that a popular uprising Behind the scenes, the opposition is marking time, is impossible in the face of a modern army. having already agreed on a programme for the The establishment, well aware that the last of the . post-Franco period : re-establishment of political « great » fascists will soon be leaving the scene, parties, the right to form trade unions, freedom for is distancing itself from him more and more, seek­ the mass media, regionalisation, and amnesty for ing to establish an alibi which will enable it to go prisoners of the Franco regime. on ruling after he has gone. The banks, which have always backed playing at opposition. Franco's successor, Prince Juan Carlos, the regime, are cultivating new men, So today Franco's only ally, and the holds court at Zarzuela with those who not compromised by their past. The only believer in the future of Franqu­ will be his men when he takes over. big « modern » firms are doing the ism, seems to be Admiral Carrero They are not his friends - they are same. Even the former collaborators of Blanco, backed by part of the army there because that is where the power the regime, now out of power, are and by the Falange. is most likely to lie. I LJ The European alibi most of all with western Europe, is al­ with the western militaro-econowic ready well advanced. This· applies to complex. The first step came with the The « opposition » - from the mon­ everything from trade to military prefential trade agreement with the archist A reilza; a former Ambassador bases. EEC which came into effect on Oct­ to Paris and Washington, to Catholics ober I, 1970 - the Dutch having like Ruiz Jimenez, Tierno Ga/van's According to the figures available the abandoned their opposition in order .,. ' Socialists, and even the Communists biggest single sources of investment to win a similar deal for Israel. of Santiago Carillo, - have one thing are the EEC countries (Germany is in common : they· are « for Europe ». the biggest single investor), Switzer­ But the new arrangements with th~ ,­ In the present situation in Spain, this land and the United States. It is of EFTA countries not joining the en­ is an elegant way of being against the course impossible to ascertain the real larged EEC threaten to leave Spain regime . For. institutionalised integrat­ origin of the capital. Most of the fig­ as the only western European country ion with the rest of the continent must ures quoted are misleading, because not to have an industrial free trade necessarily mean the end of Fascism, they take account only of the invest­ area with the Community. ment projects that involve acquisition at least in the forms it takes today ... The European Commission has sought of over 50 % of the capital in a given to remedy this situation, without Tactically, the opposition can exploit firm. This takes no account of the breaching the past refusal of associat­ the fact that the European Community possibility of controlling a company by continues to reserve membership for ion or membership, by proposing an holding well under half tbe capital overall settlement embracing all the those European countries which have and leaving the rest in the hands of Mediterranean area countries (though similar political structures to its own allies or nominees. members. But the reality is rather diff­ with Spain probably benefitting most). erent. In trade terms the enlarged European If this comes off - anp negotiations Community is far and away the count­ on it are due to start early in 1973 - Spain is already effectively a member ry's biggest supplier - and custom­ then Spanish industrialists and foreign of the capitalist club that is western er : around 40 % of Spanish imports firms located there will be bound to Europe today. It is enough to look at come from EEC, and nearly half her feel the squeeze of tougher industrial the pattern of her foreign trade, the exports are to the nine countries. competition without any say in what flow of investment, the movement of is happening. In that case they can be migrant workers, the ever-growing Nearly one million Spanish men and expected to pressure Franco ( or is flood of tourists from the rest of women are migrant workers in other . successor) to move towards democra­ Europe, the strategic and military co­ western European countries - making C:Y, as a means of getting Spain acc­ operation with other governments .. nearly two million people in all. The epted as a member of the club. money they send home - an estimat­ European capitalism is the objective ed 500 million dollars a year in foreign The message for socialists and dem­ ally of Franco's regime and its strong­ currency - plus income from the ocrats in western Europe is that the est support. The continued opposition tourist trade is enough to balance out barriers still up against having Fran­ of certain countries to Spanish memb­ the 3,000 million dollar deficit on the co' s Spain inside the Community are ership of the European Community is Spanish balance of trade. vitally important. If there is to be an no more than gesture, salving the overall Mediterranean pact, hard to Though not formally a member of consciences of politicians like Brandt, refuse since Greece, and now Portu­ NATO, Spain is in reality an integral Nenni, Saragat or Mansholt. For none gal, get industrial free trade, then part of the American military alliance of them opposed the conclusion of a Spain should be told to meet certain covering western Europe. Under an preferential trading agreement between conditions in order to benefit from it. agreement with the USA dating from the Community and Spain. (In this connection, a speech made on August 1970, and a defensive pact November 6 in Madrid by Fernandez The big losers in all this are the renewed in June 1972, there are four workers. Capitalists from the rest of Miranda, secretary-general of the Pa­ major bases in Spain used by US milit­ lange, is significant : Spain, he said, Europe invest in Spain, which is not ary forces. The naval and air base at would not accept any conditions : « to only a tax heaven, but one where work­ Rota, 11 km. from Cadiz (guarding re-introduce political parties would be ers are badly paid, have no ngnc co the entrance to the Mediterranean) has a fundamentally anti-democratic chan­ strike and no real right of collective 75 underground fuel storage tanks and ge ... »). negotiation on wages or working cond­ moorings for giant air-craft carriers, itions. Because of this exploitation of and is the only base apart from Holy But it is when Franco goes that the their comrades in Spain, workers in Loch in Scotland that housed Polaris left will have to be most vigilant. the rest of" Europe fa ce having their submarines equipped with nuclear war­ There is sure to be a wave of pressure factories shut down for lack of invest­ heads. Twenty kilometres outside Ma­ from conservative and industrial circ­ ment capital or because of low-cost drid is the Torrejon de Ardoz air les inside the Community to take competition from plants in Spain. base. The others are at Saragoza and whatever slight liberalisation occurs Worse still, faced with a strike in a Moron de la Frontiera near Sevilla. then (or even the mere fact of his democratic country, the multinationals US military investment in Spain so far death) as an excuse for taking Spain can safely switch production to Spain. totals 400 million dollars. in. A capitalist bastion Into Europe The left should take its cue from the recent statement of the Spanish Comm­ The process of integrating Spain with All that remains for the regime is to unists (see below) that they want to the rest of the capitalist world, ~md institutionalise this state of integration work with those forces whose goal 20 is a democratic and socialist Comm­ where arbitrary imprisonment and a long time now controlled both the unity to replace the Community of the torture are the order of the day. Only financial establishment and the gov­ trusts. if the democratic forces inside Spain ernment. are prepared to agree, should the veto This would mean debating with the Out of eighteen ministers, 14 belong on Spain in the Market be lifted. directly or indirectly to Opus De~ : \ forces that want a democratic Spain Until then, the Spanish capitalists and - the socialists, communists and they include the minister for f?r~1gn the Spanish right should continue to affairs ( Lopez Bravo), the mm1ster their allies - what line to take on be told that the goodies of full mem­ "' _jpanish membership. Spain is not Secretary to the Presidency ( Lopez bership will be withheld from them Roda) and the ministers of education · going to change overnight from a until Spain in again a democracy.