SPAIN: Police Criticised as Nazis become more Daring

By Tito Drago Reprint | | Print |

Tito Drago

MADRID, Jul 26 1995 (IPS) - Neo-Nazi aggression and vandalism are said to be on the rise in this Spanish capital – encouraged by a passive police response.

Jose Luis Garcia, president of the Ecological Defence Association (AEDENAT), accused the police of spending most of their time investigating peaceful ecological groups like his instead of confronting this scourge.

Police attention was also focussed on “squatters” – groups of homeless people who occupy empty buildings – rather than the far more socially dangerous “skinhead” groups, he claimed.

Neo-Nazis have murdered two people in Spain – young Dominican Lucrecia Perez, in 1992, and the 20 year-old Spaniard Ricardo Rodriguez, on May 21. The accused in the latter case declared: “We are united by the love of our country and Bakalao” – a type of music currently fashionable in local discos.

The skinheads publicise their nationalism in photocopied fanzines with names like “The Black Death,” “Direct Action,” and “Grassroots Independents.”

“Spain, as known until now, is dying,” preaches one fanzine illustrated by the figure of a bald man with a garrote. “Our race, the characteristics which once led us to conquer half the world, are weakening.”

Another fanzine affirms, “we are not politicians, we are soldiers…we are members of squadrons who want to conquer the entire nation.”

This attitude fits with the military-style flaunted by these groups – bomber jackets, black steel toe capped boots and the obligatory shaved head.

The “skinheads” come out at night to drink beer. Filled with Dutch courage they hang around on the look out for trouble on the most minor pretext, violently beating their victims.

Their victims are attacked for having long hair, for wearing ecological or pacifist tee-shirts, or simply because they had bad enough luck to come across one of these groups on the rampage.

Alejandro, a 16 year-old youth, was talking with friends in the street in suburban northern Madrid when about 20 skinheads surrounded them, beating them with sticks and chains.

A report in the magazine “Cambio 16” told of a similar case. Natalio, 17, was stabbed in the back on the Madrid metro for wearing a tee-shirt printed with the slogan “don’t buy furs.”

One of the skinheads’ recent victims, Ezili Nsimba Slijnedegaard, a Dutch tourist of African origin, said his attackers shouted “you’ve stained us with your black blood” after attacking him.

He said that Spain should be aware of the danger of this type of aggression which is “a cancer which can spread dangerously.

Government delegate on the Madrid city council, Pilar Lledo, who is responsible for the security forces, said previously the groups were made up of youngsters between the ages of 17 and 25, but lately they had been seen to include adolescents as young as 13.

A report from the Ministry of the Interior estimates that there are around 2,000 skinheads in Spain, but that there is no coordination between the groups.

However, Garcia and a representative of the “Youth against Intolerance” non governmental organisation (NGO) said that the groups do work together, both within Spain and internationally.

AEDENAT claimed that groups from the United States, Germany and France exchange publications and fanzines.

Mayor of Madrid, Jose Maria Alvarez de Manzano, of the conservative Popular Party (PP), called on the chief of police to look into this problem “which is not trivial, but far more important,” he said.

He also warned the media that their coverage of events did not help; “they feel important and play up more,” he said, quoting specialist reports on the issue.

Meanwhile, people in central Madrid and the NGOs are calling on the police and the civil guard for more effective intervention, with proper investigation into the roots and links between these fascist groups.