Manuel Fraga Iribarne: Spain's very own Pinochet?

Despite all appearances that would lead one to believe this photo is of a wax figure, the image is a still taken from a recent television interview on Antena 3, depicting one of the oldest ticking fascists from the Franco regime, Manuel Fraga Iribarne.

Yesterday Fraga publicly announced his retirement from political life as president of the Partido Popular in Galicia, a position he held for sixteen years after the democratic transition following the death of Franco in 1975. Interestingly enough Fraga played a significant hand in crafting the bridge from dictatorship to democracy in Spain, largely to assure that he and other Francoist sympathizers would become introduced to democratic participation. In other words, Fraga is largely responsible for ensured a continuity, rather than rupture, between the dictatorship and the new democratic State in Spain-- particuarly, so he and other fascists alike could continue to have a hand in the formation of the constitutional monarchy, a move that ensured him a political career.

And what a career it has been for him. Under the Franco regime Fraga was appointed Minister of Propaganda and Tourism (clearly, the two are related, at least in the fascist imaginary, where selling a neatly packaged image of Spain for tourist consumption stands in line with the marketing image it would need to promote and enforce for the Spanish people). He then served as Spain's ambassador to the United Kingdom, and then after Franco's death became the vice president and Interior Minister. He later formed the political party Alianza Popular, which would later become the Partido Popular, the party of former president and Bush aficionado José María Aznar.

But now, Fraga says, it's time to retire. Retirement comes for Fraga with the perks and benefits of an honorary seat in the Galician Senate, until he chooses to no longer serve in government. I ask: why is no one talking about this--lastly, the media, but first, lawmakers and the judiciary branch? How can the granting of an honorary seat in the Senate be justified by the Constitution of the Xunta, the Galician parliament? Is it not illegal to grant honorary seats in a democracy?

What proves even more frustrating is the article in the on-line version of yesterday's national newspaper El País, which comments on Fraga's retirement to the Senate without mentioning the process by which this is regarded constitutional. For a left-leaning newspaper to not suggest to its readers the means by which a former fascist may find himself a permanent seat in government without an election, I believe, is nothing short of an embarrassment.

And so I'll end this rant with an SAT-style analogy:
Fraga is to Spain as Pinochet is to _______.
(Choose the best fit answer from the options below):
a) Canada
b) Cambodia
c) Chile
d) All of the above

The answer is C. If you need a memory trick to help you get that answer next time, just remember this-- C is for Constitutional Monarchy, which is good enough for him: