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Article: Mixed feelings as Spain marks 30th anniversaries of Franco's death and Juan Carlos' rise
- Article from:
- AP Worldstream
- Article date:
- November 18, 2005
- Author:
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CIARAN GILES, Associated Press Writer
AP Worldstream
11-18-2005
Dateline: MADRID, Spain
Thirty years ago, Spain was on the brink of emerging from one of Europe's longest and most stifling dictatorships, anxious to shrug off a backward and isolated past but unsure of what lay ahead.
A generation later, Spain is a lively democracy with a vibrant economy, and Spaniards have mixed feelings about how to mark two key anniversaries: the death 30 years ago Sunday of dictator Gen. Francisco Franco, and the proclamation two days later of Juan Carlos de Borbon as king.
"Franco and his dictatorship was the blackest stain in Spanish history," said Madrid architect Ricardo Alonso, who was 22 when the ...