Spanish victims of thalidomide meet Pope Francis

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/24/spanish-victims-of-thalidomide-meet-pope-francis

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As they push forward in their struggle to obtain the kind of compensation given to other victims across Europe, Spanish victims of thalidomide have a powerful new ally: Pope Francis.

“We’re really happy,” said Alejandro Romero, one of the 100 or so Spanish victims who travelled to the Vatican on Wednesday to meet the pope. “He promised he would try to help. He’s the most important diplomat in the world, so maybe he can ring people that won’t speak to us on the phone.”

An estimated 3,000 Spaniards are believed to have suffered severe birth defects after their mothers took thalidomide, prescribed by Spanish doctors five decades ago to combat morning sickness during pregnancy. Unlike victims in many other countries in Europe, only two dozen victims in Spain have ever received any kind of compensation.

Many of them were unable to meet the stringent criteria set out by the drug’s manufacturer, Grünenthal, which asks for the bottle of medication taken by their mother decades ago and, at times, the doctor’s prescription, in order to offer compensation. And unlike other governments in Europe, successive Spanish governments have refused to create a fund for victims.

The issue is further complicated by the fact that the use of thalidomide in Spain took place during the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco. It was not until 2007 that the government confirmed that the drug had been sold in the country.

Campaigners point to official documents and doctors’ prescriptions to argue that the drug was sold under a variety of names until the mid-1970s – some 15 years after doctors in Germany began linking the drug to severe birth defects.

It was this story that victims shared with the pope in their brief meeting on Wednesday. “The pope was really surprised about the lack of protections for victims in Spain,” said Romero. “He promised that he would try to intervene and speak with the Spanish government.”

The victims presented him with gifts; a football kit sporting the logo of the group that represents Spanish victims of thalidomide and a copy of the book Dark Remedy, which explores the history of thalidomide.

As he prepared to embark on a plane back to Spain, Romero hoped the pope’s support would mark a turning point in the decades-long struggle of Spanish thalidomide victims for recognition and compensation – one that has taken so long, campaigners note, that a third of the victims have already died. “After nearly 50 years of near-silence on our case, I think we’re closer to achieving change.”