The Workers' Front of Catalonia ( ca, Front Obrer de Catalunya, FOC) was a clandestine political movement in

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, formed in 1961, and active during the

Spanish State Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spani ...

caudillo A ''caudillo'' ( , ; osp, cabdillo, from Latin , diminutive of ''caput'' "head") is a type of personalist leader wielding military and political power. There is no precise definition of ''caudillo'', which is often used interchangeably with " ...

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...

. It was the continuation of the Popular Democratic Association of Catalonia (''Associació Democràtica Popular de Catalunya''), one created by university students inspired by

liberation theology Liberation theology is a Christian theological approach emphasizing the liberation of the oppressed. In certain contexts, it engages socio-economic analyses, with "social concern for the poor and political liberation for oppressed peoples". In ...

and the

Cuban revolution The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in cou ...

. The party's abbreviation "FOC" corresponds to ''foc'' meaning "fire" in Catalan.

History

FOC challenged the

Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia The Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia ( ca, Partit Socialista Unificat de Catalunya, PSUC) was a communist political party active in Catalonia between 1936 and 1997. It was the Catalan branch of the Communist Party of Spain and the only party n ...

(PSUC) over control of the growing

Workers' Commissions The Workers' Commissions ( es, Comisiones Obreras, CCOO) since the 1970s has become the largest trade union in Spain. It has more than one million members, and is the most successful union in labor elections, competing with the Unión General de ...

(CC.OO). FOC established a hold over the Metalworkers' union, and thus had a lot of influence over the

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

Workers' Commission for a brief moment. It aligned itself with the Popular Liberation Front (FLP) and the

Euskadiko Sozialisten Batasuna The Euskadiko Sozialisten Batasuna ( en, Basque Socialist Union, ESBA) was a clandestine political movement in the Southern Basque Country, Spain, formed in 1959, and active under Francoist Spain. It was the Basque sister organization of the Spanis ...

(ESB). FOC published ''Revolució'' (1961-1962), ''Presencia Obrera'' (1964-1965) and ''Poder Obrero'' (1969). The party dissolved in 1970.

Pasqual Maragall Pasqual Maragall i Mira (; born 13 January 1941) is a Spanish politician and former List of Presidents of Catalonia, President of Generalitat de Catalunya. He had previously been Mayor of Barcelona, from 1982 to 1997, and helped run the city's s ...

, former head of government of Catalonia, was a leading member of FOC. Other leaders of FOC were

Isidre Molas Isidre Molas i Batllori (born 12 October 1940, in Barcelona) is a Catalan politician and historian, who has served as the fifth President of the Socialists' Party of Catalonia since 19 July 2008. He has been a Senator from Barcelona since 5 Apri ...

, Alfonso Carlos Comín, José Antonio González Casanova and

Miquel Roca Miquel Roca i Junyent (Bordeaux, France, 20 April 1940) is a Spanish lawyer and politician from Democratic Convergence of Catalonia. He is one of the Fathers of the Constitution in Spain. Early life Miquel Roca i Junyent was descendant to two C ...

References

* http://www.marxists.org/catala/enciclopedia/people/f/r.htm *"El Front Obrer de Catalunya
(PDF)
IV Jornades d'Història del Socialisme Fundació Rafael de Campalans 3 i 4 de novembre de 1994. {{DEFAULTSORT:Workers' Front Of Catalonia Defunct communist parties in Catalonia Anti-fascist organizations Anti-Francoism 1961 establishments in Spain Political parties established in 1961 1970 disestablishments in Spain Political parties disestablished in 1970