A group of Spanish lawyers has launched petitions and lawsuits to prevent the removal of crosses by local officials, after claims that Christian symbols are linked with the country’s former dictatorship.
“Many towns are being pressured to get rid of public crosses, which local people have spent weeks and months defending,” said Maria Riesco, spokeswoman for the Association of Christian Lawyers. “We are checking the documentation and investigating each case, as well as maintaining a dialogue with regional governments in hopes of having them restored.”
Riesco, a Catholic, spoke as the Valladolid-based association announced legal proceedings against the mayor of Aguilar de la Frontera, near Cordoba, for ordering the demolition of a cross outside the town’s Carmelite convent.
In a Feb. 12 interview with Catholic News Service, she said the 20-foot concrete cross had been taken down illegally amid Catholic protests, in violation of religious freedom.
The press office of the Spanish bishops’ conference told February 12 the Association of Christian Lawyers was acting independently of the church. It said the conference would not comment on the removal of public crosses.
Meanwhile, Polonia Castellanos, lawyers association president, said action was also under-way to protect crosses in Spain’s western Extramadura region, after at least 34 municipalities were ordered to remove them from streets and parks.