The Mayor of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, José Manuel Bermúdez from the Canary Coalition, has announced plans for a legal challenge against an order from the directorate of Democratic Memory, part of the Ministry of Territorial Policy. This order demands the removal of a monument dedicated to dictator Francisco Franco in the city, as Bermúdez believes there are legal arguments to retain it due to its potential artistic value. It’s worth noting that these alleged artistic values have been disputed by various expert committees and both public universities in the Canary Islands, with only one study acknowledging them while overlooking the monument’s Francoist connotations.
In August, the Canary Islands government concluded that the monument cannot be classified as a Cultural Asset of Interest (BIC) following negative assessments from technical bodies and the Culture Heritage Council of the Canary Islands. Courts have also sided against Bermúdez, rejecting appeals regarding the BIC status of the monument.
Despite this, the mayor insists on the monument’s artistic merits and argues that the Democratic Memory legislation allows for the protection of such elements when artistic values warrant it, effectively disregarding multiple reports that deny its artistic significance. “What I am asking for is the law to be applied as it is written,” Bermúdez stated, asserting that specific articles of the law should be considered when assessing the monument’s future.
He clarified that his stance doesn’t oppose current legislation but demands that all its provisions, including those related to heritage protection, be taken into account. The council is still preparing the legal challenge, which has yet to be filed, although Bermúdez has not disclosed how much taxpayer money has been spent on efforts to preserve the tribute to a dictator in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
