King Felipe VI omits to apologize for expulsion of the Jews from Spain

At the Fifth International Holocaust Forum, King Felipe mentioned that “Spain has a rich and complex Jewish past” but did not explicitly mention the expulsion of the Jews of Spain.

By EDUARDO EURNEKIAN, BARUCH TENEMBAUM

FEBRUARY 23, 2020 10:12

Spain's King Felipe VI takes part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the World Holocaust Forum marking 75 years since the liberation of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz, at Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial centre in Jerusalem January 23, 2020. (photo credit: REUTERS) — Spain's King Felipe VI takes part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the World Holocaust Forum marking 75 years since the liberation of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz, at Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial centre in Jerusalem January 23, 2020.

(photo credit: REUTERS)

On March 31, 1992, on the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the issuance of an edict by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella ordering the expulsion of Jews from Spain, King Juan Carlos I paid an historic visit at the Madrid synagogue. Wearing a white yarmulke, the monarch prayed together with the late president Chaim Herzog for peace and brotherhood.

In his speech, Juan Carlos stated, “May hatred and intolerance never again provoke expulsion or exileOn the contrary, let us be capable of building a prosperous Spain in peace among ourselves on the basis of concord and mutual respect.... That is my fervent wish. Peace for all. Shalom.”

A day later, the prestigious Spanish newspaper El Pais published a lucid chronicle of the visit, authored by Ignacio Cembrero. The first paragraph of the article read, “In his visit to the Madrid synagogue, Don Juan Carlos did not apologize for the expulsion of the Jews 500 years ago.”

Cembrero points out that the monarch went on by portraying the gathering as “endearing to the crown as it represents the encounter between the king and the Spanish Jews.” He added, “The king barely mentioned in his speech the forced departure from the peninsula of hundreds of thousands of Jews, which he did not justify, but explained as a consequence of a state reason, which saw religious uniformity as the pillar of its unity.”

Twenty eight years later, the omission by the monarch of that time was reiterated by his son and successor, the reigning king of Spain.

On January 22, in accordance to the rules of protocol seniority, King Felipe VI was in charge of giving the first speech at the Fifth International Holocaust Forum, a major international gathering that took place in Jerusalem with the attendance of heads of state and government from over 40 countries who came to commemorate the 75 anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz extermination camp.

The king’s speech, which was the only one made at the opening dinner at President Reuven Rivlin’s residence, underscored “the commitment of all the participating leaders in this forum to stay alert in order to prevent the recurrence of any future atrocities,” and stressed that “forgetting the Holocaust would be extremely dangerous and an utter disrespect to the memory of the victims.” He ended his speech with the words “Never again.”

King Felipe mentioned that “Spain has a rich and complex Jewish past” but very much like his father in 1992, he did not explicitly mention the expulsion of the Jews of Spain, the expropriations, the torments inflicted upon them and the humiliation of having them expelled from their own land just because they were Jewish. Quite ironically, the infamous Alhambra Decree of expulsion was revoked only 476 years later, in 1968, by the dictator Francisco Franco.

Following his father’s steps, King Felipe VI did not offer any apologies for the wrongs committed by medieval Spain against her Jews, something that Portugal did in 1988 when then-president Mario Soares apologized to Jews “for centuries of persecution suffered by their ancestors during the Grand Inquisition.”

When remembering the Holocaust, we pay tribute to the victims of Nazism, but at the same time, to all the persecuted and humiliated human beings during the course of the 1492 expulsion. While it should be acknowledged, without any ambiguities or euphemisms, the positive steps taken by Spain to facilitate the needed reconciliation, such as the recognition of citizenship to the descendants of the Sephardim, one should not ignore the tragic chapter that led to their expulsion and persecution.

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Recognizing that past and asking for forgiveness are not a mere formality but the foundations of a robust reconciliation and a strong educational message to prevent any future persecutions.

Today’s Spain is a vibrant and exemplary democracy, but by and large the Spanish people do not have a profound knowledge of their dark past. We hope that King Felipe VI and his government will present an apology to the Jewish people in the future.

In our view, such a gesture would have a healing effect for both peoples.

Eduardo Eurnekian and Baruch Tenembaum are the chairman and founder, respectively, of the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation.