BIC's January Newsletter

We got this information this morning via email:

Dear sympathisers of BIC,

Here you will find the new Monthly digital BIC-Newsletter. Please take a look also in our Shop on our website, you will find some English material for sale and some documents in English as well, for example the Anoeta- proposal of the left-wing Basque independence party Batasuna.

We will give information evenings explaining this proposal with a new DVD by Batasuna and we will also talk about the current situation in the Basque Country and the new campaign of the Basque political prisoners. We will be the 17 of February in Nijmegen, the 18 in Amsterdam and the 28 in Utrecht. Please check our Monthprogram for the addresses. The infos will be in English.

Cheers
BIC

Monthly digital BIC-Newsletter nr. 1, period 1 until 31 January 2005

1) Basque political prisoners

2) Initiatives from Euskal Herria to come to a political solution of the conflict

3) Repression in the Basque Country

4) ETA

1) On the last day of the year 8000 people in 60 villages throughout the whole Basque Country hit the streets to ask attention for the more then 700 Basque political prisoners. 50 people demonstrated outside the largest prison in Madrid, Soto del Real. According to the prisonhelporganisation Etxerat 2004 showed a worsening situation, with 712 political prisoners more then ever in the history of Euskal Herria, spread around over 88 different prisons in 6 countries. Many critics were also for the Basque political parties who are not doing anything to ‘end the suffering of the prisoners and their relatives’, meaning the isolation and the dispersion policies.

The Basque prisoners collective EPPK gives out a statement at the 4th of January where they announce to take action and that the Basque prisoners in Mexico, Belgium, some in France and Spain, 37 people, started the first ‘estaffette’ and until 13 January won’t leave their cells. The prisoners all sent a letter to their prisondirector to tell their motives. They demand recognition of their basic rights as prisoners, but also the status of political prisoner and want to be involved in the process to come to a political resolution of the conflict in the Basque Country.

Prominent artists, writers and politicians from France demand at 7 January the release of the singer Peio Serbielle from Zuberoa, who was arrested in the French-Spanish police operation at 3 October last year in Béarn. Serbielle is now 700 kilometres from his village in prison and declared that he gave shelter to people, apparently ETA-members, out of humanitarian reasons and was taken before a judge at 9 November. There was said he didn’t pose any ‘danger’ and that his trial wouldn’t take place before the end of 2006.

At 8 January 32.000 people demonstrate in Bilbao for the transfer of Basque political prisoners to the Basque Country. The parties Batasuna and Aralar and the unions ELA and LAB supported the call from the pro-amnestia-movement. At the head of the demonstration were 100 ex-political prisoners and after them the relatives and friends of the 712 Basque political prisoners walked with photo’s of them.

The Basque political prisoner Iñaki de Juana Chaos, who was to be released at 9 February because he finished his 18-year sentence, hears at 10 January that he will not be released. Judge Fernando Grande-Marlaska De Juana wrote 2 opinion articles in the leftwing Basque newspaper GARA, for which he now is accused of being ‘ETA-member’ and ‘making terrorist threats’. De Juana was convicted for ‘helping’ in an attack in 1986 in Madrid were 12 members of the Guardia Civil were killed.

A similar case is that of the Basque political prisoner Edorta Sainz-Lobato, who should have been released on 13 January after 17 years, but on orders of judge Javier Gomez-Bermudez had to stay behind bars until the ‘measures of shortening the sentence’ are fully investigated. It is no coincidence; the Spanish juridical system and the Spanish Minister of Internal Affairs Jose Antonio Alonso look for measures to prevent Basque political prisoners to be released after serving their sentence. The Spanish Minister of Justice Juan Fernando Lopez-Aguilar said ‘they are not to be released before they shown remorse’. At this moment there are 100 Basque political prisoners who can be released according to the Spanish law, after serving ¾ of their sentence. Also the shortening measures won by working in the prison or good behaviour work not for them. Another example is Filipe Bidart, who was due for release in February 2003. At this moment there is a campaign for his release, among other through the French-Basque website www.filipeaska.com

2) The in May 2003 banned local election platforms of the left independent movement say in a statement at 13 January that 80 chosen councillors have failed to take their seat or left in at a certain moment. They announce that the coming week more councillors will give up their seat and that the 472 council seats where the left platforms are entitled to according to shadow-elections in May 2003, will be requested by them.

At 15 January 1000 people, among them 40 majors, attend the establishment of Euskal Herriko Laborantza Ganbara (the Agricultural Chamber of the Basque Country) in the French Basque province Behe Naffaroa. After years of campaigning and the refusal of the French Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Basque farmers in France made their own representation.

3) At the end of December the Spanish Parliament took a law into effect that the Spanish army, eminent present in the Basque Country, can be deployed against ETA. The army asked for such a law for a long time, but after the attacks on 11 March by Islamic extremists in Madrid it is there. The Basque Country suffers already for years from military manoeuvres, such as parachutists landing in villages and asking people for their identity-papers, or full-scale practice bombardments in Naffaroa. In 1981 the army helped to close the border between Spain and France, the river Bidasoa, that runs also as a border between the Basque Country.

The Public Prosecutor Enrique Molina of the Audiencia Nacional in Madrid demands at 4 Janaury alltogether 654 years imprisonment for the 42 accused youngsters in the case against the left independent Basque youth organisations Jarrai-Haika-SEGI. According to Molina the youngsters, who all had public functions in their organisations, are all ‘member’ or ‘co-operatives of ETA’ and he concludes that because the organisations have the same goals and even are a ‘financial unity’. From 10 of the 42 the where-abouts are unknown. Against Asier Tapia Molina demands 111 year and 10 months in prison because of the press conference he gave at 6 March 2001 after the arrest of 15 Haika members at the orders of judge Garzón. Tapia called to react on this arrests and Molina now holds him responsible for ’22 acts of terrorist street violence’, that followed on the arrests, and demands on top of that 24 million euro for the damage. The trial has to take place quickly now, because in March 2005 the terms of 4 years ‘research arrest’ is over and the first youngsters should be released. In the village Lekeitio, where 3 of the accused used to live, 125 people went onto the streets to protest against the charges.

Several days later 7 of the accused responded on a press-conference, where they were literally backed by 80 people representing all kinds of social organisations, on the charges of Molina: “This is apparently the price we have to pay for our work against job insecurity, for our struggle for better education and linguistic rights, for the alternative life-style in the social centres and for our fight for equal rights for the sexes”, they said.

The Spanish Ministry of Internal Affairs published at 5 January their figures about ‘anti-terror’-operations in 2004. The Spanish security forces arrested 74 suspected ETA-terrorists and another 57 were arrested in France, and 4 in Belgium. Probably they added Luis and Rakel to Jon and Diego, but the first were dismissed from prosecution and not extradited. Also 3 members of GRAPO were arrested, 1 member of the Italian Red Brigades and 1 IRA-member. And 131 arrests of Islamic extremists. Concerning ETA the police claims to have dissolved 2 ‘terrorist cells’, 3 networks working on recruitment and infrastructure and various ‘leaders’ were apprehended. 2004 was the first year since 1999 without dead victims by attacks of ETA.

Against the spokesman of the Basque anti-repression organisation Askatasuna, Jean François Lefort, who was arrested at 7 December, the European Arrest Warrant comes into effect at 14 January. Lefort however is a French citizen and the Spanish Justice didn’t come with any evidence until now.

The Public Prosecutor Juan Moral orders at 17 January to judge Garzón to prosecute 36 members of Batasuna because of ‘belonging to ETA’. Also the Herriko Tabernas, de leftwing people’s pubs, remain closed and the accounts frozen (also Batasuna’s). In 2002 Batasuna was accused of damage after streetriots, and the goal from Moral of both measures is the covering of the debt of 24 million euro. Garzón produces at 25 January a document of 267 pages in which he explores the same thesis as in the case ‘18/98’, in which he accuses all kinds of sectors of the left independent movement of ‘ETA-membership’. The 36 are all in one way or another, according to Garzón, connected to ETA and they committed their ‘crimes’ by the use of the Herriko Tabernas. Some of the accused Batasuna-members are also member of the Basque parliament and thus cannot be prosecuted and that’s why the judge asked the Basque High Court to prosecute them.

The International human rights organisation Human Rights Watch publishes at 27 January a 65 pages document about Spains measures against terrorism. Heavy criticism is given by HRW on the since November 2003 possible lengthen of the notorious ‘incommunicado-detention’ to 13 days. Also the safeguards against abuse, maltreatment and torture are by far not sufficient and the Spanish authorities fail to conduct proper investigations into torture complaints. And the rights of terror-suspects are violated and the terms of 4 years in ‘research- imprisonment’ is totally out of proportions, also because the inmates are subdued to isolation in most of the cases. The recommendations of HRW are not really a surprise and are in fact a repetition of every year’s recommendations of Amnesty International and the United Nation. They demand direct access to a lawyer when arrested, the possibility of a private conversation with that lawyer, presence of juridical help during all steps in the trial, the reduction of the admission of secret prove, the trial has to be held within 2 years and last but not least the guarantee for the conditions during imprisonment at the police.

At 28 January the French police arrests Araitz Zubimendi, Ibon Arbulu and Unai Berostegieta in Baiona and Ziburu, on orders of judge Garzón. Details about the accusation are not known yet, but it is to be expected that the European Arrest Warrant is put into effect on them. Garzón filed an international arrest warrant at 16 April 2004 against Zubimendi, a former member of the left-wing party Sozialista Abertzaleak, for her role in SEGI, in which case she didn’t show up. The arrest warrant for Arbulu, former councillor in Bilbao, dates from 30 April 2003, when the Guardia Civil wanted to arrest him at home in the police operation against Udalbiltza, the self organisation of councillors in Euskal Herria. The arrest warrant for Berostegieta dates from 24 April 2003, accused of ‘member of ETA’s recruiting organisation’.

4) Halfway January ETA sends a statement to the Basque daily Berria, were they emphasise to agree with the ‘Anoeta’-statement of the left-wing independence party Batasuna of 14 November last year. ETA thinks a ‘broad carried, specific process of dialogue’ has to be put in motion to solve the political conflict. ETA is ‘fully prepared’ to participate in such a process.

At 18 January a car bomb of ETA explodes in the area Neguri in Getxo, the damage is quiet heavy and one officer of the Basque regional police Ertzaintza is wounded. The Basque left-wing newspaper GARA received a warning call half an hour before the explosion and the caller also said were the owner of the car could be found, tied to a tree. It was the 6th ETA-bomb in that area since 1999, where directors, politicians and known journalists live.

The rumours of talks between representatives from Spanish government circles and ETA are strong, for sure after Batasuna sent a letter to the Spanish Prime Minister Zapatero urging him to negotiate.

At 30 January an ETA-bomb explodes near a hotel in Dénia, 2 people get wounded. ETA warned before the explosion.

This overview is written by the Baskenland Informatie Centrum from The Netherlands. You can contact us at baskinfo@xs4all.nl and you can check our site at www.baskinfo.org

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