- The Municipal Council recovers the figure of a relevant emeritus in the history of our country, who acted with the consciousness of the state and the reformist conviction, and whose figure highlights the importance of democratic memory,» says the mayor of Emeritse, Antonio Rodríguez Osuna.
- «Democracy and freedoms must be cared for and defended every day, and when the spread of anti-democratic desires sometimes disguised as freedom, reviving the memory of Calatrava is also an exercise in democratic pedagogy,» said Gómez de Celis.
The institutional event today in the city of Mérida, with the visit of the first vice president of the Congress of Deputies, Alfonso Rodríguez Gómez de Celéis, to honor the prestigious politician and lawyer José María Calatrava. An event that had the presence of the president of the Assembly, Blanca Martín, who was the president of the Senate, Emeritas Juan Ignacio Barrero, the mayor of Mérida, Antonio Vélez, and several councillors from the government team.
Antonio Rodríguez Osuna took on the role of host at this meeting, which focused on the transfer of the artwork, the portrait of Calatrava, attributed by the Congress of Deputies to the City of Mérida.
This artwork is part of the portraits of the Presidents of the Government of Spain that are housed in the Congress. The Municipal Council of Mérida has been managing the mission since last year and thanks the collaboration of Deputy Juan Antonio González and the Congress board for facilitating the steps to loan the original image for display in the plenary hall.
As explained by Rodríguez Osuna, the artist is Antonio Gisbert, known for painting significant historical events in each country. In Spain, he represented liberal ideals. He was the director of the Prado Museum between 1868 and 1873. Among his most notable works are The Executions of Torijos on the beaches of Málaga or The Comuneros Padilla, Bravo, and Maldonado at the Gallows. The image will be in the municipal plenary hall from August of this year.
The Municipal Council aims to recover the figure of such a relevant emeritus in the history of our country, «who acted with the consciousness of the state and the reformist conviction,» says the mayor of Emeritas, Antonio Rodríguez Osuna.
«We are talking about democratic memory, the democracy that people like José María Calatrava or his brother, Emeritas Ramón María Calatrava Peinado, who defended the rights, as those we now enjoy, have established to this day, we must acknowledge their efforts,» says the mayor.
To achieve this, the Municipal Council is launching a series of activities, in addition to showcasing his painting, presiding over the local council. Among them, a series of conferences on his figure and time, by recognized researchers and historians, placing a plaque at his birthplace, school visits, or commissioning a bust of his persona. In summary, a wide range of events to honor and recover the memory of a pivotal figure in one of the most interesting and challenging periods of our history. Highlights Rodríguez Osuna.
Democracy and Freedoms
The first vice president of the Congress of Deputies, Alfonso Rodríguez Gómez de Celis, emphasized that the emeritus politician defended the values that «are the basis of the current coexistence, which is more necessary to defend democracy in the current times where the spread of anti-democratic desires sometimes disguised as freedom,
Gómez de Ceais has influenced those who were among the Parents of the Constitution of 1812, La Pepa, and President of the Supreme, opted for freedom, respect for the rule of law, dialogue between different ideas, and the values that «raise the voice, as also today is prevailing against those who question the rules of the democratic game, because there is no greater commitment to democracy than the defense of parliamentarism and the principles of our governance.
«Democracy and freedoms must be cared for and defended every day, and when the spread of anti-democratic desires sometimes disguised as freedom, reviving the memory of Calatrava is also an exercise in democratic pedagogy,» said Gómez de Celis.
And, he emphasized, as the president of the Supreme Court, he defended the independence of the judicial system, a «current and necessary spirit of protection against those who confuse institutions with partisan batteries.»
Regarding this, the president of the Assembly, Blanca Martín, said that it is important to maintain and protect the democratic memory of this country, «for this reason, I propose to give a foundation around the figure of José María de Calatrava Because it is one of the most unknown periods of the politics of this country, the liberal triennium, and there is much democracy framework in which we live at this moment.»
«It is an honor to return to the city of Mérida because during my years as president of Extremadura we have had a total complicity and institutional relationship between the City Council of the Autonomous Capital and the Extremadura Assembly,» said Martín, who also wants to value that in this recognition of José María de Calatrava, «we want Cádiz. Substitutes who had representation and were the fathers of ‘La Pepa,’ so we already regret and affirm what we want to say in the construction and democracy of Spain,» said the president.
Biography
José María Calatrava (1781-1847). He was born in Mérida into a family related to the local administration of his birthplace, his father being a notary in Mérida, and his younger brother, Ramón María, a minister. He embarked on an ascending administrative political career that led him to lead the highest state magistrates.
The great orator (268 interventions in the courts) and eminent Juriscons and Politician, graduated from the University of Seville at the age of nineteen.
During the War of Independence (1808-1814), he joined the resistance against the French, serving as the vocal accuser of the Supreme Council of the Province of Extremadura (1808), prosecutor of the Public Safety Tribunal of the same, and captain of one of the volunteer companies.
In the Cortes of Cádiz, in 1810, he represented the extreme, aligning himself with the liberal group and in favor of deep institutional reforms to abolish absolutism. Therefore, like most liberal deputies, he was persecuted after the return of Ferdinand VII in 1814 and sentenced to prison, until he was amnestied upon the arrival of the liberals, being appointed magistrate of the Supreme Court and from 1822 to 1823, the Minister of Grace and Justice. After this period, when absolutism was reestablished, he lived in exile for ten years in various European cities.
The convinced reformer was a staunch advocate of national sovereignty, the division of powers, freedom of the press, and the abolition of the Inquisition. He also participated in the drafting of two constitutions, that of 1812 and that of 1836.
With the revolution of 1835, he was appointed Minister of State and President of the Council of Ministers. In 1840, he was promoted to the presidency of the Supreme Court, holding it until 1843.
He wrote several works, including the first Modern Spanish Penal Code (1822), the activity of a discount commission in which his most active member would be Calatrava, who always argued that the state should seek the happiness of the greatest number of citizens, the purpose of laws should be to «facilitate subsistence, promote equality.»
Antonio Rodríguez Osuna, Blanca Martín, and Alfonso Rodríguez Gómez de Celeis:
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