Polish MEP wants more politicians like Franco

Socialist group leader Martin Schulz has called for all moderate democratic parties to unite to combat a rising tide of ultranationalist political groups after a Polish MEP praised General Franco's dictatorship in Spain and the Slovak Socialist Party formed a governing coalition with extremist parties.

Speaking in Strasbourg on Tuesday (3 July), Schulz said that there should be an "alliance of democrats from the right, left and centre" against "clerical" and "fascist movements".

He was speaking following a debate in the European Parliament on the 70th anniversary of Franco's coup in Spain during which Maciej Marian Giertych, leader of the League of Polish Family (LPR) MEPs, praised Franco. Giertych said that Franco had defended Catholic Spain against Communism.

He accused the Spanish left during the civil war of "behaving like Bolsheviks" murdering thousands of clergy. Franco had thwarted this "attack on Catholic Spain", said Giertych, praising him along with Portuguese dictator Salazar as "statesmen" who had "guaranteed the mainte-nance of traditional values".

The MEP also said the "strength of the socialist and anti-Catholic block" in the Parliament was a "source of much concern", claiming that "Christian Europe" was "losing" against its "socialistic and atheistic rival".

Giertych's son Roman, leader of LPR, is Polish deputy prime minister and minister for education.

Hans-Gert Pöttering, leader of the centre-right EPP-ED group, distanced himself from the Polish MEP's comments, saying that his group was "against all kinds of dictatorship, fascist or Communist". Pöttering added that totalitarian regimes were not able to defend "our ideals of human rights, the rule of law and democracy".

Danuta Hübner, Polish commissioner in charge of regional affairs, said that she hoped that Giertych's comments would be seen as "the statement of one person" rather than representing the views of Poles in general.

Giertych's comments were attacked by a cross-party group of Polish MEPs.

Schulz has also strongly criticised the new Socialist Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico for forming a coalition government with the nationalist SNS party and HZDS, the Eurosceptic party of former premier Vladimir Meciar.

Socialist group leader Martin Schulz has called for all moderate democratic parties to unite to combat a rising tide of ultranationalist political groups after a Polish MEP praised General Franco's dictatorship in Spain and the Slovak Socialist Party formed a governing coalition with extremist parties.

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