Tenerife Group Launches Urgent Campaign to Preserve Civil War and Dictatorship Archives

Time is running out to preserve the oral and written history of the Civil War and the subsequent dictatorship in the Canary Islands. The Association for the Recovery of Historical Memory of Tenerife has launched a new campaign to collect personal archives, aiming to build a comprehensive record of the island’s history of repression and exile. This project is particularly urgent as the 90th anniversary of the 1936 coup d'état approaches.

The initiative is driven by a demographic reality: according to the Canary Islands Institute of Statistics, nearly 7,300 people in their nineties still live in Tenerife. These individuals are the last direct witnesses to the Second Republic and the start of the repressive era. Mercedes Pérez Schwartz, president of the association, stressed that family records—such as private letters and photographs—are invaluable pieces of history. Under the slogan "Let's recover their stories," the group plans to add these personal items to a public database and feature them on a commemorative mural to honor the victims.

In addition to collecting archives, the association is meeting with the Government of the Canary Islands, the Cabildo of Tenerife, and local councils. They are calling on these public institutions to take responsibility for preserving this history, as required by current democratic memory laws. While these efforts began in late 2025, the association is still working to secure formal support from several key government bodies.

The ultimate goal is to ensure that the stories of those who were persecuted are not lost when the last generation of witnesses passes away. The association is encouraging descendants to share any relevant documents, letters, or images through their digital channels to help complete the archipelago’s historical map. Finalizing these institutional partnerships and organizing the collected archives remain the group's top priorities for the end of the year.