Spanish Government admits to stealing thousands of babies

[Mad Man]

For years there had been rumors in Spain: babies stolen from their mothers at birth by the government in collusion with the Catholic Church.

But now the country is exploding in anger and outrage as the scale of the baby thefts is revealed: An estimated 300,000 newborns taken from their bewildered mothers. It is only in the last few months that the Spanish government has been willing to confront the country’s horrifying past.

It began in the 1930's after dictator Francisco Franco won the Spanish civil war. With his government’s approval the children of dissidents were taken from them and given to “better” families.

But as the politically motivated baby thefts receded in the 1940's they were replaced by an equally offensive form of stealing. Babies were regularly taken from their mothers and sold to other families – for thousands of dollars – by the same doctors and nuns who had delivered them.

The practice continued long after Franco died in 1975. The baby trafficking was unproven until earlier this year when two men — childhood friends — learned that their parents had bought them from a nun.

The BBC interviewed Manoli Pagador in a working-class suburb of Madrid. She has three daughters, but she’s never recovered from the loss of her son almost 40 years ago. Doctors told her he had died. She never believed that.

“Doctors, nuns?” she told the BBC. “I couldn’t accuse them of lying. This was Franco’s Spain. A dictatorship. Even now we Spaniards tend not to question authority.”

But finally Spaniards are demanding answers as years of anger and anguish boil to the surface.

Whats your take on these recent revolutions and what kind of repercussions to you think the Spanish government is going to face for this?

 

[Ajidica]

This can't be very good news for the Catholic Church. I don't think any parent wants to leave their kid alone with the Church now.

 

[Icaria909]

There had been rumors for years, but I'm surprised the government has been willing to address this issue in the middle of such a horrible financial crisis. I am truly happy they are confronting their past in such a direct way.

 

[Thorgalaeg]

Whats your take on these recent revolutions and what kind of repercussions to you think the Spanish government is going to face for this?

This is going on in the news since a couple of years ago or so. The current government like all the other democratic governments has nothing to do with this AFAIK (specially having in mind that the governments after Franco death were socialist) and are not going to face any repercussion. This is a practice what started Franco: stealing childs from poor and suspecting lefty working class people to give them to the rich righty elite class. Some medics and nurses (mainly nuns) continued it some years after Franco death (most of them are now death too). Dont think any democratic governement knew anything at all about this. Investigations are going on and maybe they will find some public workers from Franco era involved but all must be death or long ago retired. In any case it would be interesting what catholic church have to say about all this.

 

[civ_king]

What the Hell?!?!? Why were babies being sold? What could possibly compel people to do that

 

[Ajidica]

What the Hell?!?!? Why were babies being sold? What could possibly compel people to do that

God.
fivechar

 

[Thorgalaeg]

And some money too...

BTW babies were not sold by his parents but kidnapped. Then parents were said the babies were born dead.

 

[ParkCungHee]

Franco was an ?
Who knew?

 

[LucyDuke]

God.

God to many people: money.

 

[Tani Coyote]

Just another on the list of the evils of Franco's government.

I'm glad they're willing to confront their past. All governments should be willing to see the errors of past governments and show them to the People. Such is the requirement of a truly democratic, liberal regime.

I just hope the People don't take this out on the government. It wasn't they who were doing this - it was a guy who is long since dead.

Though, the backing of the story is kind of poor. Just one incident? That's not proof, that's an anecdote. We need several stories, and even then, it'll be hard as heck to confirm them.

 

[Cutlass]

How did they keep this secret for so long?

 

[civ_king]

God.
fivechar

Well, Mammon is a god to some

 

[Thorgalaeg]

How did they keep this secret for so long?

Lots of things to clear up here. First thing is who exactly "they" are.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

Franco was an ?
Who knew?

I never knew he was a question mark

 

[Lone Wolf]

What the Hell?!?!? Why were babies being sold? What could possibly compel people to do that

You don't understand all the good the Catholic Church did with this noble measure that liberal apologists in secular media will soon twist to something "evil". By giving these children to rich and God-fearing people they were ensuring the material and spiritual well-being of these children. It is known that the working class - once the most virtuous class on earth - is corrupted by Communist and Socialist propaganda. Saving children's immortal souls from the dangers of totalitarian Atheist propaganda can be only a good thing.

 

[Silurian]

You don't understand all the good the Catholic Church did with this noble measure that liberal apologists in secular media will soon twist to something "evil". By giving these children to rich and God-fearing people they were ensuring the material and spiritual well-being of these children. It is known that the working class - once the most virtuous class on earth - is corrupted by Communist and Socialist propaganda. Saving children's immortal souls from the dangers of totalitarian Atheist propaganda can be only a good thing.

Thats one of the reasons

added The Story in BBC incls video interviews

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15335899

 

[Cutlass]

Lots of things to clear up here. First thing is who exactly "they" are.

The people who did it If the story is true, that's quite a large number of people involved.

 

[carmen510]

I heard about this from European Journal (DW TV) that airs on the local NYC channel a few months ago. Pretty ignominious, but this is Franco's regime we're talking about.

 

[Silurian]

BBC2 programme - 6 days left to watch 1 hour long

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b016d7hz

 

[Lone Wolf]

Thats one of the reasons
added The Story in BBC incls video interviews

In fact, all the ruckus secular media raises about this issue is hypocritical. The secular media, by promoting secularism, atheism, socialism and hedonism, had destroyed the souls of millions of children. After all this, the secular media has no right to claim that it cares about children at all.