Del Olmo Attacks Basque Culture

This note appeared today at Berria:

Judge Del Olmo and Spanish Civil Guard launch another attack on Basque cultural activity

Spanish Civil Guards have arrested eight people linked to the Martin Ugalde Kultur Parkea and are holding them incommunicado

Imanol Murua Uria – DONOSTIA (San Sebastian)

The Spanish National High Court and the Spanish Civil Guard have carried out a fresh assault on Basque cultural activity. In the early hours of yesterday morning the Civil Guard, on the orders of Judge Del Olmo, arrested eight people who are linked to the Martin Ugalde Kultur Parkea and Euskaldunon Egunkaria. The Civil Guards not only searched the homes of the eight detainees, but also the premises of the distributors Zabaltzen and the printing company Gráficas Lizarra in the Martin Ugalde Kultur Parkea. According to the search warrants issued by Judge Del Olmo, yesterday’s operation was a continuation of the one which closed down Euskaldunon Egunkaria; in this instance against the company Buruntzape SL that manages the Martin Ugalde Parkea and a number of other companies that were connected with Egunkaria.

The police operation began at 01.15 hours in the morning with the participation of about two hundred civil guards. Mikel Arrizabalaga, Xabier Legarra and Mikel Sorozabal were detained in Donostia (San Sebastian), Joxe Mari Sors and Mikel Azkune in Errenteria, Joanmari Larrarte in Hernani, Amando Hernandez in Tolosa and Angel Ramon Diez in Aiegi (Navarre). All of them were arrested in their homes.

The eight detainees were believed to have been taken to Madrid, to the Spanish Civil Guard Headquarters, yesterday morning. They are being held incommunicado and will not be making their declarations before the judge until Monday, according to Spanish National High Court sources. The ten people arrested in the operation to close down Egunkaria on February 20 also spent five days in the hands of the Civil Guard before appearing before Judge Del Olmo, and they filed complaints of bad treatment and torture. Because of this, the lawyers are planning to apply for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of the detainees to request that they be taken before the Judge at once.

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