Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Spanish Village Gears Up for Dictator Franco's Remains

Associated Press

   EL PARDO, SPAIN - For visitors wondering why a tranquil cemetery
   outside Madrid suddenly needs around-the-clock police security, the
   answer is simple: an empty burial space awaits the remains of Gen.
   Francisco Franco, who is being reunited with his wife 44 years after he
   died.

   Weather permitting, the Spanish dictator's preserved body will be flown
   Thursday by helicopter to the Franco family's private chapel in the
   Mingorrubio cemetery. It's a discrete site compared to the Valley of
   the Fallen, a vainglorious mausoleum and basilica that Franco built and
   where he was buried in 1975. The complex, which is topped by a
   152-meter (500-foot) granite cross that can be seen for miles, still
   remains a National Heritage site.

   If fog or heavy winds impede the takeoff, a hearse will ride in
   motorcade along the 57-kilometer (35-mile) route between the old and
   new burial places, accompanied by live video. A private Mass will be
   held in the crypt, attended by only 22 of the dictator's relatives and
   a handful of officials.

   Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's interim center-left government
   has meticulously planned Franco's exhumation and reburial to be
   "simple, respectful and discreet but ensuring that the world sees how
   the dictator is no longer in a state tomb," said a top Sánchez aide
   who wasn't authorized to be identified by name in media reports.

.