Victims association gives blessing to March 11 demonstrations

The main association representing the victims of the March 11, 2004 train bombings in Madrid will be at this Sunday’s street protest against labor reform, the UGT and CCOO unions have announced.

Asociación 11-M Afectados por el Terrorismo, which represents over 1,000 victims of the Islamist attacks, has agreed to participate in the march on the same day that Spain will observe the eighth anniversary of the bombings, which left 191 people dead and thousands injured.

Its president, Pilar Manjón, said that 11-M victims did not have exclusive rights over the date, contradicting other victims groups which have demanded that the unions schedule their march on another day out of respect. The disagreements underscore the growing rift between the various victims associations.

“On March 11 we will protest in all cities, including Madrid, in spite of [PP Mayor] Ana Botella and [PP regional leader] Esperanza Aguirre,” said CCOO leader Javier López, who said they approached Manjón’s association to agree on the date for the second major protest against the policies of the conservative government.

Pilar Manjón told EL PAÍS that the association has not yet decided who will represent them at the labor reform protest, but that she would be attending the victims’ memorial event in Alcalá de Henares, as she does every year.

Meanwhile, the attorney general, Eduardo Torres-Dulce, has ordered an investigation into the recent finding of one of the train cars that exploded on March 11 in an abandoned shed. The wrecked cars were all believed to have been scrapped shortly after the attacks. The discovery has fueled conspiracy theories in conservative circles, who see the hidden hand of the police, Civil Guard, foreign espionage services and the national intelligence agency behind the attacks, which took place three days before general elections, which were won by the Socialist Party.