The exhibition, curated by photographer Eva Máñez, brings together for the first time the stories of twenty women executed in Paterna, becoming a symbol of Francoist repression in the Valencian Community. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Minister Diana Morant and Mayor Juan Antonio Sagredo, in a day dedicated to historical vindication and democratic memory.

The exhibition focuses on the specific repression suffered by women after the Civil War. In addition to executions, imprisonments, or exile, they endured differentiated violence due to their gender. Francoism imposed a patriarchal model that severely punished those who had defended republican values, persecuting them doubly for their ideology and for questioning the traditional female role.

Minister Morant emphasized the importance of making these stories visible, highlighting that many were repressed for defending democratic values. She described the act as an “exercise in democratic obligation” and vindicated Paterna's role in the recovery of historical memory, assuring that the Government of Spain will continue to work in this direction.

For her part, Eva Máñez highlighted the collective value of the project, stating that this exhibition is a milestone in bringing together the '20 roses of Paterna' for the first time in the same place where the crimes occurred. She called for institutional recognition for these women, who were committed to a Republic that defended women's rights.

Mayor Juan Antonio Sagredo thanked the families and associations for their role in recovering memory, highlighting the work done in Paterna in the last decade, with the exhumation of more than 80 mass graves and the recovery of over 1,600 bodies. He regretted that the momentum still largely depends on civil society, even though such acts should be a democratic norm.