Catalonia mourns passing of the International Brigades Civil War doctor Moisès Broggi
Civil society and politicians joined the family of the doctor, who was 104 years old, at his funeral in Barcelona. Moisès Broggi died on the last day of 2012 at his home in Barcelona. He was renowned for his work as a surgeon and doctor during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) -and afterwards. During the war, he was head surgeon of the International Brigades that fought against Franco, and he developed several important medical innovations. Despite being 104 years old, he kept up a very busy social and political life, running as candidate for the Senate for the left-wing Pro-Independence Party Esquerra Republicana (ERC) and participating in several conferences and events. Catalan President Artur Mas paid tribute to the doctor, saying that Catalans should “follow his example”.
Barcelona (ACN).- Three hundred people joined the family of Moises Broggi on Wednesday in order to pay tribute to the renowned doctor and surgeon of the Spanish Civil War, who died in Barcelona at the age of 104. Moisès Broggi was a well-respected doctor and surgeon who understood medicine to be a service to humanity. He had a leading role in the war as head surgeon of the soldiers that fought in the International Brigades, trying to stop the fascist coup-d’état of General Franco. It was then when he met Ernest Hemingway, who described him in one of his books about the war. Broggi kept up a very busy political and social agenda right up until his final days. In fact, he was the main candidate to be Senator of the pro-independence party Esquerra Republicana in the 2011 Spanish general election. He was actively involved in the campaign in favor of independence.
Mr Broggi’s funeral was attended by many representatives from the political and social society of Catalonia, including the Catalan President Artur Mas, former presidents Jordi Pujol and Pasqual Maragall, the president of the cultural organization ‘Omnium Cultural’, Muriel Casals, and the doctor Joaquim Barraquer. Mas asked the Catalan citizens to “never forget” Broggi, and to “follow his way and his example”. Cultural activist Muriel Casals said that the doctor contributed to do the first steps towards something – the hypothetical independence of Catalonia - that Catalans should now achieve in his honor. Along with the Catalan president, the Catalan government was also represented at the funeral by the Health Minister Boi Ruz and the Culture Minister Ferran Mascarell. The leader of the opposition, Oriol Junqueras, from the ERC, also attended the funeral. In fact, Broggi ran in the last Spanish election as the candidate for the Senate for this party. Mas praised Broggi as a man that offered the world “104 years of goodness and wisdom”. “He was like a special lighthouse and we should really let him guide us”, he said after the funeral. The Catalan president praised the doctor saying Catalans “should never forget his example and the way” he showed the people. “I hope his example will lead our society and humanity”, he added. Former Catalan president Jordi Pujol said that Broggi’s best legacy was his “huge patriotism” and that he always strived to care for and respect others. The mayor of Barcelona, Xavier Trias, informed the press that the city is planning to remember the renowned doctor with a special place or street in the capital. “We have to find a street or a square that could be linked to the way he was. No one can question that he deserves to have a street or a square with his name on it”, he said, praising the work of the doctor and surgeon.