Federación Española de Deportados e Internados Politicos (Paris) Archives
Period 1945-1973
Total size 0.75 m.
Consultation Not restricted
History
Founded in Toulouse shortly after the Second World War; aimed at the relief of Spanish political prisoners, former political prisoners in German concentration camps and refugees from Spain; started a campaign in 1947 for the relief of a group of republican Spaniards, consisting of aviators in training and sailors, who were left in the Soviet Union in 1939 and imprisoned in 1941; sent to concentration camps in 1942, where they found themselves in Karaganda in Kazakhstan, forced to do agricultural labour under hard conditions; the campaign by the FEDIP led to a mitigation of their confinement, but they were not released until 1954-1956; moving spirit of the campaign was José Ester Borrás (1913-1980), who was secretary general of the FEDIP from 1947 until his death; more than once Ester intervened succesfully in favour of persecuted opponents of the Franco regime in Spain and of refugees in France, who were threatened by expulsion.
Content
FEDIP: minutes and other documents of meetings and congresses 1945, 1961, 1965, 1967, 1970-1973; statutes and rules 1945, 1970; lists of sections n.d.; financial notes 1960-1961; correspondence and other documents concerning the campaign for the release of the Spanish prisoners in Karaganda 1947-1956; correspondence with F. Herzfelder, Felix Martorell, Carlos Martinez Parera and others concerning indemnity payments to former Spanish prisoners in German concentration camps 1958-1974; other documents on indemnity payments, including documents concerning the German Bundesentschädigungsgesetz ( BEG) 1954-1974 and n.d.; reports and notes by Hans Marsalek and others concerning former Spanish prisoners in Mauthausen 1949, 1953, 1957-1971, 1978 and n.d.; lists of names 1946, 1968 and n.d.; documents concerning the Fédération Nationale des Déportés et Internés Résistants et Patriotes (FNDIRP) 1968-1970 and n.d.; documents concerning the Fédération Internationale Libre des Déportés et Internés de la Résistance (FILDIR) 1964-1965, 1970 and n.d.; other documents and clippings concerning deported Spaniards in German concentration camps 1939-1940, 1946-1972 and n.d.
Processing information
List made by Tiny de Boer in 2001
INTRODUCTION
The Federación Española de
Deportados e Internados Políticos (FEDIP) was founded in August 1945 in
Toulouse and was transferred to Paris early 1947. FEDIP aimed at the relief of
Spanish political prisoners, former political prisoners in concentration camps
and refugees from Spain.
FEDIP started a campaign in 1947 for the relief
of a group of republican Spaniards, consisting of fighter pilots in training
and of the crew of vessels, such as the Cabo San Agustín, which transported
arms and was located in the harbour of Odessa in April 1939. Although the crew
members said they had planned to depart for Mexico, they remained in the Soviet
Union until June 1941, when they were arrested and sent to forced labour camps
in Siberia. Several died of the hardships there. From 1942 onward they were in
Karaganda (Kazakhstan), where they worked the land. Food and sanitation were
poor, the work hard, the climate rough and contact with the outside world
non-existent. Many suffered from tuberculosis.
Prisoners from other
countries who were released after 1946 publicized the fates of these people,
including some Jewish women from Austria who had become involved with the
Spaniards and even borne their children in the camp.
When FEDIP learned
of their existence, the staff verified their details with relatives and labour
organizations and determined that they were anti-fascists and members of the
UGT and the CNT. The subsequent campaign brought about some minor improvements
in their situation and permission for them to send mail via the Red Cross, but
was unsuccessful in obtaining their release. In March 1956 the military
tribunal of the Council of the Supreme Soviet finally ordered that they be set
free.
José Ester Borras (1913-1980), general secretary of FEDIP, was the
driving force behind the campaign. A former soldier in the Spanish Civil War,
he had joined the French resistance. More than once Ester also intervened
succesfully in favour of persecuted opponents of the Franco regime in Spain and
of refugees in France, who were threatened by expulsion. For more documents
concerning FEDIP see also the papers of José Ester Borras, available at the
IISH.
The archives were received by the IISH in 1998 and consist mainly
of documents concerning FEDIP's campaign for the relief of the interned
Spaniards in Karaganda. The archives contain correspondence with the Red Cross,
the United Nations (UN), political and labour organizations in France, the
French government, the Spanish government in exile and wellknown personalities
in France and elsewhere, files on the imprisoned Spaniards in the Soviet Union,
including family correspondence and other letters and birth certificates of
children born during imprisonment, documentation on Karaganda, the USSR and
other documentation.
Periodicals were transferred to the library and
photographs were transferred to the audiovisual section of the IISH.
INVENTORY
CAMPAIGN FOR THE INTERNED SPANIARDS IN KARAGANDA
Correspondence
- 1-10
- Correspondence concerning the interned Spaniards in Karaganda, mainly with persons who had also been interned. 1941, 1945, 1947-1954 and n.d. 10 covers.
- 11
- Letters from the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. Partly with transcriptions. 1941, 1947-1949 and n.d. 1 cover.
- 12
- Carbon copies of letters to the Spanish government in exile, including the transcriptions of a letter from Alvaro de Albornoz to FEDIP in French and Spanish. 1947-1948. 1 cover.
- 13
- Carbon copies of letters to the United Nations, Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Embassy of the USSR in France, President Truman and Marshal Stalin, including transcriptions of letters from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in France. 1947-1948. 1 cover.
- 14
- Carbon copies of letters to Spanish political parties and organizations, in exile in France, including a transcription of a letter from J. Irla, president of the Generalitat de Catalunya. 1947-1949. 1 cover.
- 15
- Carbon copies of letters to the International Red Cross and relief committees, including a transcription of a letter from the Workers Defense League in New York. 1947-1949. 1 cover.
Files
Campaign
- 86
- Documents concerning the situation of the group of Spaniards in the internment camp in Karaganda. 3 typed versions. January 1948. 1 cover.
- 87
- Resolutions of the third plenary meeting regarding the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. 19 January 1948. 1 cover.
- 88
- Documents concerning the work plan in behalf of the release of the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. 1948. 1 cover.
- 89
- Documents concerning the press conference regarding the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. April 1948. 1 cover.
- 90
- Manifesto concerning the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. June 1948. Printed. In duplicate. 2 pieces.
- 92
- Documents concerning the meeting regarding the interned Spaniards, held in the Salle de la Mutualité in Paris. 11 July 1948. 1 cover.
- 93
- Texts of speeches by Rodolfo Llopis, Federica Montseny, Paul Rivet, Rafael Sanchez Guerra, [Juan?] Sauret and Wilebaldo Solano, held at the meeting on 11 July 1948 in the Salle de la Mutualité, organized by FEDIP in Paris for the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. Carbon copies. 1948. 1 cover.
Finances
Lists
- 99
- Lists of names of relatives in Spain of the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. 1948 and n.d. 1 cover.
Other documents
- 104
- Typescripts of reports and articles concerning the Spaniards in Karaganda. With notes. 1947-1948, 1950 and n.d. 1 cover.
- 105
- Notebook of the ‘secretaria general' with notes on French and Spanish supporters, list of embassies and consulates in Paris, notes on visits and meetings with the government, emigration services and other (governmental) organizations, notes on sent documents and financial notes, partly concerning the interned Spaniards in Karaganda. 1947, 1954-1955 and n.d. 1 quire.
DOCUMENTS CONCERNING THE RELIEF OF OTHER SPANIARDS IN THE USSR
Correspondence
- 108
- Correspondence concerning missing Spanish children in the USSR, including a list of names. 1939, 1948-1949. 1 cover.
Files
Other documents
- 120
- Testimony by FEDIP, PSOE, PCE, UGT and CNT concerning the request of releasing prisoners of war Pedro Monegal Marginet and Honrado Garcia from Yugoslavian captivity. Carbon copy. 1946. 1 cover.
DOCUMENTATION
Karaganda
- 123
- Printed articles on the interned Spaniards in Karaganda, published in various periodicals. Partly in transcription. 1944, 1947-1949 and n.d. 1 folder.
- 124
- Clippings of articles concerning the interned Spaniards in Karaganda, mainly by J.E. Borras, published in Solidaridad Obrera-AIT. Organe hebdomadaire du M.L. Espagnol-CNT en France. 1947-1949. 1 folder.
- 127
- Debates of the French Parliament on Karaganda, published in the Journal Official de la République Française. 5 March 1948. 1 copy.
USSR
- 130
- Clippings of articles, titled: ‘Niños españoles en el "Paraíso Soviético"'(Spanish children in the Soviet paradise) by Senio, part 3-5, published in El Socialista. 1948. 1 cover.