Freedom to the Six!

If you wish to show your solidarity to the six Basque political prisoners in Mexico, here is a couple of options:

First you can sign the Petition on Line here.

Second, you can use the banner at the bottom, hang it at your own site and link it to this page.

We appreciate your efforts and your support.

Freedom 6 Mexico

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Mexico Violates Own Constitution

Taking advantage of a days ladden with political and social pivotal events, the head of the Secretaria de Relaciones Exteriores (Mexico's Foreign Ministry) Luis Ernesto Derbez decided to go ahead with the extradition process against the six Basque political prisoners behind bars at the Reclusorio Norte of Mexico City.

With this decision Luis Ernesto Derbez allows Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon and Spanish Ambassador to Mexico Cristina Barrios to stomp on the Mexican Consitution that stablishes that no individual should be returned to a country were the person could face State harassment or discrimination for his or hers race, religion or political beliefs.

The Mexican Minister also stabs in the back the entire Mexican society that praises itself of being recognized around the world for its old heritage of providing safe haven for those who around the world suffer persecution, harassment, torture and even death due to their activism.

Shame on you Mr. Derbez!

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Told You!

Yesterday I informed you that Angel Acebes, former Interior Minister for Franc... I mean for the PP ruled Spain was to testify in front of the commission looking into the aftermath of the bombings in Madrid on March 11.

Well, believe it or not, after months of their political debacle due to their lies and manipulation in which one Basque citizen was murdered as direct result of their clumsy attempt to saddle the Basque society with the responsibility of the attacks, Angel Acebes went back to accusing ETA of being behind the attacks. In 10 hours of testifying he was unable to produce any evidence to support his accusations.

If this behavior does not tell the world that there is something definitely wrong with the likes of Acebes, Aznar, Palacio, Garzon and Rajoy, then the world just simply wants to look the other way while sadistic idiots like those above mentioned continue to rape one of Europe's oldest nations.

You can read the report in multiple sources, but I leave you with a report by a French judge denying a link between ETA and the Islamists.

Here it is:

NO LINK BETWEEN BASQUE AND ISLAMIC MILITANTS: FRENCH JUDGE

MADRID, July 27 (AFP) - No evidence has emerged to suggest any collaboration or connection between the Basque separatist movement ETA and extremist Islamic organisations, French anti-terrorist judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere told Spanish radio on Tuesday.

"We have uncovered no document showing a link, not even of a logistical nature, between ETA and Islamic organisations," Bruguiere, an expert on the Al-Qaeda terror network, told broadcaster Cadena Ser. Bruguiere has previously interviewed Jamal Zougam, considered to have played a leading role in the bombings of four commuter trains in Madrid on March 11, which killed 191 people in Spain's worst ever terrorist outrage.

Bruguiere questioned Zougam, now in Spanish custody, as part of an investigation begun in 1998 and focusing on young French radicals recruited to train at Al-Qaeda-affiliated camps in Afghanistan who are believed to have spent some time in Spain.

"That is to say this network existed, but I don't know that one could have anticipated or imagined an attack (such as March 11)," the judge said.

"We are facing a very different threat from that of ETA," he warned. "We are up against terrorism of the third millennium whose structure is global, ideological and loose," Bruguiere went on.

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Free Inaki Uria

Press Release from the Asociación Diáspora Vasca inviting you to show solidarity and sign a petition to demand the release of Inaki Uria -he is a member of the proscribed Basque newspaper EuskaldunonEgunkaria-who today is a prisoner of the Spanish State.

Solidarity With Basque Journalist Inaki Uria, Jailed Due to the Process Against the Newspaper "Egunkaria"

The Spanish State, that maintains the southern part of Euskal Herria (Basque Country) under occupation,attacks systematically and seeks to destroy the columns on which the land of our ancestors is built.Within this frame, on february 20th of 2003 the Government of then Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar (infamous around the world for his cuestionable actions after the attacks of M-11 in Madrid) ordered the closing of the news paper Euskaldunon Egunkaria, the only one in the world published entirely inEuskera, the Basque language. It was not the first time something like this would happen: the newspaperEgin, the radio station Egin Irratia and the magazine Ardi Beltza, media outlets of nationalist tendencies, had been targets of similar attacks by the neo-Fascist Spanish State.

Within the frame of the political, judicial and law enforcement operation against Egunkaria, many of the people in charge of the publication were detained and held incommunicado, enduring torture from the hands ofthe Guardia Civil. What Martxelo Otamendi told the public after his release on bail was heart wrenching.He was fisically and emotionally abused, with absolut impunity. That is the way the Spanish State and its alleged democracy behave with those who defend, with their work, the right of the Basque women and men to access balanced information of unmatched quality inEuskera. Today, one of the assesors of that newspaper, Inaki Uria, remains in jail. He is one of the many political prisoners that are behind bars in a state that has been denounced on the international arena for mistreating and harassing the Basque prisoners. His one and only crime was to work towards the freedom of speech of those Basque women and men that every morning wished to read the news of their country and the whole world, and do so in their own ancient language.

The Spanish Audiencia Nacional, heir to the infamous Francoist Tribunal de Orden Publico, has imposed a bail of 600,000 euros on Uria as a pre-condition for him to secure his freedom. Later the amount was reduced to 450,000 euros, a steep amount that makes it impossible for his loved ones to raise it any time soon.The Asociacion Disapora Vasca, nationalist group integrated by over 300 people with presence in 20 countries, whishes to inform that we support the campaign of signatures initiated by the group “InakiUria Askatu” (Free Inaki Uria), to demand his freedom. We invite you to access the web pagehttp://www.uriaaskatu.com/gutunerako.php and add your signature as to tell the Spanish Government that our political prisoners are recipients of our support and our solidarity not only from the Basque women and men in Euskal Herria but also from the ones in the Diaspora, and also from those women and men that defend the freedom of speech throughout the world.

Due to the fact that the page is written entirely inEuskera, we provide this information:

Izen-abizenak: Name and Last Name.
E-posta: E Mail.
Nortasun Agiria: ID Card Number.
Kargua/lanbidea: Occupation.

Once the fields have been filled, you can click on“bidali” (send).

We want to thank you in advance for your support.

Iñaki askatu orain!

Free Iñaki Now!

Asociación Diáspora Vasca

Germany, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bolivia,Brazil, Castile, Catalunya, Colombia, Chile, Denmark,Ecuador, Spanish State, French State, United Kingdom,México, Perú, Puerto Rico, Sweeden, Switzerland,Uruguay, USA, Venezuela.

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Angel Acebes the Scumbag

Here you have uber-scumbag and Spain's former Interior Minister Angel Acebes, as he arrives today at the parliamentary commission investigating the March 11 train bombings, in Madrid, where Acebes was due to testify. Acebes and the Popular Party have been criticized by the international community for blaming the Basque separatist group ETA for the attacks on the eve of the general elections fearing a voters backlash if the attack were related to former Prime Minister Jose Maria's support for last year's U.S.-led invasion of Iraq .

My opinion?

This sad little piece of shit along with Jose Maria Aznar, Ana Palacio and Mariano Rajoy should be taken to The Hague to be put to trial for their repressive campaign against the Basque people. If Europe wants to honor its history and racial diversity, no one should be allowed to conduct all out campaigns against the nations without state within Europe.

As I said before, they did not blame the attacks on just ETA, they blamed the attacks on the whole of the Basque society, they blamed the attacks on the yearn of the Basque people to exercise their right to self determination.

Acebes

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Edurne Pasaban

Gora Edurne!

Edurne Pasaban smiles after returning from her K2 summit climb in Islamabad July 28, 2004. Nursing bandaged, frostbitten feet, Pasaban has just joined the ranks of the international mountaineering circuit's elite. On Monday, the slim 30-year-old from Euskal Herria became only the sixth woman to reach the peak of K2, the world's second highest mountain.

Here you have a little more information at Berria.

Edurne Pasaban

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Basques Must Decide

After three years of being banned by the Government of fascist Jose Maria Aznar, Juan Jose Ibarretxe, the Prime Minister of the Basque Autonomous Community was receive by Spain's new Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

Rodriguez Zapatero was nice enough to even display an Ikurrina along with he Spanish flag outside of the Presidential Palace of La Moncloa, something never done before.

On his first official visit to Madrid in three years, Ibarretxe took the opportunity to present his new plan that would revamp the relationship between Gazteiz and Madrid. Rodriguez Zapatero may have been nice enough to display an Ikurrina (a flag that was called "terrorist banner" by an Argentinean rightist news paper last week) but his position regarding the Plan Ibarretxe is the same as Aznar's, according to them it is an attack on the Constitution, the Spanish Constitution that is.

It is this position, or rather opposition to a peaceful and negotiated solution to the conflict that had Aznar ordering his underlings to produce banners last March that read "With the victims, with the Constitution, against terrorism" when him and his officials at the PP wanted to pin the bombings in Madrid on Basque nationalism as to kill to birds with one rock. First, to continue to deny the Basques their right to self determination, and second, to take the attention of the public off the boneheaded support of Aznar for the war on Iraq.

Ibarretxe told Rodriguez Zapatero that on the issue of their self determination the Basques must decide and he made a plight to continue with his project and to call for a referendum in which the Basques are allowed to express their opinion. The plan has room for improvement even from the Basque point of view, just recently Arnaldo Otegi of the nationalist left has pledged his will to sit down and negotiate with the other political forces in the Basque Autonomous Community.

Hopefully something good will come out from all this.

Ibarretxe in Madrid

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Woody in Donostia

My dear friend Woody Allen will open up the Donostia Film Festival with his movie "Melinda and Melinda".

I remember when I was a kid and I used to watch his movies with my parents, we appreciated his dry humor and his wit. Then came that ugly episode in his life and the even ugliest decision of a judge not to indict him for statuatory rape.

But hey, we have Roman Polanski and the one dweeb that sings "Great Balls of Fire", so why shoud I feel animosity for this adorable geek?

Good luck at Donostia Woody!

And please, can you inform the press that Donostia is a Basque city, not a Spanish one? I would really appreciate it. Agur!

Woody

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Occupying Forces

This is the XXI century and smack in the middle of "civilized and democratic" Europe, then the Spanish repressive system decides to occupy an entire Basque town for over three hours to make it known that Madrid does not approve of the Summer Camp organized by a Basque youth organization.

They take over the entire town, they randomly stop people to question them and check their id's, throughout the whole ordeal they behave in an arrogant and rude way and they even refuse to inform the mayor of what is going on.

Does that respond the obtuse and asinine question of why the Basques want independence?

Here is the note at Berria:

Spanish Civil Guard officers occupy Etxarri-Aranatz due to Summer School

After the town had been taken over for three hours, the organisers decided to suspend the activities

Alberto Barandiaran – ETXARRI-ARANATZ (Navarre)

At midday yesterday Spanish Civil Guard and plain-clothes officers staged a three-hour occupation of the town of Etxarri-Aranatz (Navarre), because of a Young People's Summer School being held there, and proceeded to identify many people. The town's main street was full of officers openly carrying weapons and when the mayor asked for an explanation for the show, they told him that they were "routine, precautionary exercises". "Besides, the way they told us was as if they were doing it for our own security," complained the mayor, Juan Bautista Marinelarena.

Marinelarena stressed that the occupation "was an attack on the whole town of Etxarri-Aranatz" and that the attitude of the security forces was unacceptable. "It has been a provocation and could have had serious consequences if the citizens of Etxarri had not acted in a mature way," added the mayor.

Emilie Laplacette, speaking on behalf of the organisers, stressed that it had been "yet another chapter in the series of attacks on young people". "But we want to make it quite clear that they will never block the course the young people have embarked on," she said.

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Mostar's Old Bridge

During the Balkan War if there was one country that endured the most wrecking effects of an armed conflict, that country was Bosnia.

Compared to the killing of 8,000 men and boys in the town of Srebrenica at the hands of the Serb forces what happened in Mostar does not look too bad.

On November 9th of 1993 the Croatians shelled the town and destroyed the Ottoman style bridge that connected both parts of the city. For many, the destroyed bridge came to identify the savagery of war.

Yesterday the town of Mostar marked the opening of their new bridge that is an exact replica of the old one. People from all around the world went there to take part of the celebrations. The people from Mostar hope that the new bridge will be identified as a link of friendship between Bosnians and Croatians.

For the good of humankind, I wish it is so.

Mostar Old Brigde

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You Can Buy Those?

Jose Maria Aznar, the fascist and totalitarian former Prime Minister of Spain, the one that lied to the entire world about the real authors of the terrorist attacks in Madrid for his own political benefit, endangering the international community efforts to curb such attacks, used tax money to buy a medal from the US government.

You would expect that such honors would be bestowed to positive figures in the international arena, but if a brutal pocket dictator can pay 2 million dollars for one of them, well, that speaks volumes of those who decide who should be awarded with one of those medals.

Let us remember that once before, Aznar, the heir to the Francoist regime, a regime that allied itself with Hitler and that deployed a sizeable number of troops in the Basque Country to hunt down Allied pilots, Jewish people and Basque freedom fighters once was honored by a Jewish organization that called him the best statician of the year.

Wonder how much he paid them. How much does it cost to forget the crimes commited against the Jewish community in Europe during the Nazi period?

Here is a note about Aznar shopping for medals at Berria:

Aznar used taxpayers’ money to secure medal in United States

He paid lobbyists to promote his image in order to get the Congressional medal

Agencies – MADRID

The Spanish Ser radio station revealed yesterday that while in power the former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar engaged an American firm of lawyers who act as lobbyists to promote his image and collect signatures to enable him to get the Congressional Gold Medal. The contract was signed in secret and was paid for with Foreign Ministry funds.

The news has sparked off widespread criticism. In accordance with the terms of the contract signed with the Piper Rudnick firm of lawyers, the Spanish Ambassador to the United States Javier Ruperez paid 700,000 dollars at the beginning of the year and had undertaken to pay other sums during the following months until the figure of two million dollars had been reached. According to the document, the contract would be broken if Aznar lost the Spanish General Elections last March.

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Reno's Little Baskos

Reno's Little Baskos 

 

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To Every Action...

...There is a reaction.

The Spanish Ambassador to Mexico lied, plain and simple.

She lied because the persecution and repression of Basques is institutional, they all play ball as long as the result is to destroy the lives of as many Basques as they can.

A recap here:

On July 17 2003 the Spanish Inquisitor Baltasar Garzon met with Mexican President Vicente Fox, they told the Mexican public that the reason for their meeting was to talk about the abduction and murder of hundreds of women and girls in Ciudad Juarez. Garzon was also looking for support for his nomination to the Peace Nobel Prize.

On July 18 2003 Mexican police officers and Spanish agents in disguise arrested five Basques and four Mexicans (one of Basque background) on an operation code named "Donosti" in four different states in Mexico, also one Basque was arrested in Euskal Herria, the father of the Mexican citizen of Basque background.

On July 24 2003 the Spanish Inquisitor Baltasar Garzon sent the extradition demand paperwork to the Spanish Ambassador in Mexico asking for the arrest of the nine people accused of running a money laundering operation in Mexico, that is six days AFTER the nine were arrested.

Eventually, the three Mexican citizens were released from house arrest for lack of evidence, there was no crime to accuse them of, yet, the five Basques and the Mexican of Basque background remained jailed accused of the same crime, the one that couldn't be proved, reason why the Mexicans walked.

And was just for starters, since then the extradition process has been plagued with violations and irregularities, from the hands of corrupt Mexican officials that seem to be taking their cues from the one that promised to change the way things are done in Mexico, President Vicente Fox.

The cherry on top? Spanish Ambassador Cristina Barrios Almanzor decides to lie about the whole thing and claims that she received the note to request the arrest and extradition of the nine PRIOR to the day of the arrests.

Not to be out done, the Mexican Foreign Ministry calls the accused by the title of "etarras", meaning that pending trial and stomping on the assumption of innocence until proven guilty they also take their cues from Baltasar Garzon and Vicente Fox.

The reaction?

Thanks to the blatant displays of disregard for international law and Mexican Constitution, both the PRD and the PRI, the main opposition parties in Mexico have demanded fort he whole extradition process to be studied and analyzed for possible infractions. And if it is true that the Spanish Ambassador lied they suggest that some diplomatic action most take place.

When you play with fire...

If the Kroc Institute wishes to honor Baltasar Garzon, they should give him a job as a Ronald McDonald at some unit in Madrid, like the Sup Marcos said, Garzon is no judge, Garzon is an authentic and sinister clown.

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SRE Strikes Out

The SRE (Mexico's Foreign Ministry) decided to issue an statement and in the process of doing so they made fools out of themselves.

On a press release sent only to foreign news agencies in Mexico that they labeled "Status of the six etarras" they explained the legal status of the six Basque political prisoners jailed in that country.

Problem is, the presumption of innocence is corner stone on almost every country's legal system. Which means that one is innocent until proven guilty and it is up to the prosecutor to prove one's accountability.

The six Basque political prisoners in Mexico are being accused by Clown Garzon and his Inquisitors of belonging to armed group ETA, the members of ETA are known as "etarras". Until today Garzon and the Kingdom of Spain have been unable to produce solid evidence (the have not produce not even soft evidence for that matter) that the six Basques imprisoned in Mexico are members of ETA, today those six Basques are innocent, until proven guilty.

If they are ever proven guilty, if Garzon demonstrates that they belong to ETA, then that day they could be called "etarras".

But today, like a year ago when they were illegally arrested, they are innocent, therefore, they can not and should not be called "etarras".

The problem with the SRE's release is that by calling them "etarras" they are finding the six Basques guilty even before they go to trial, that is a dangerous precedent, mostly coming from a Foreign Ministry that is left with the responsibility of deciding if the extradition demand from Spain proceeds.

By calling them "etarras" they are assuming that they are guilty, which prejudices their decision, if they are guilty of belonging to ETA then they should be extradited. The language of the release indicates that their decision has been manipulated by someone.

Who?

What about the person that just last week was shunned by two Catalonian politicians for his part on the dirty war, incarceration and torture of Catalonian nationalists?

Yes, his name is Baltasar Garzon, the one that people from the Kroc Institute call a "hero of Human Rights". Maybe that is why they should stick to flipping hamburgers.

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Bako's Little Baskos

Bako's Little Baskos 

Hunger Strike

On a sad turn of events the six Basque political refugees imprisoned in Mexico awaiting their extradition process have announced during a press conference today in Mexico City that they will start a hunger strike until they are set free.

As it was previously reported, the extradition process has been plagued with irregularities quite common among the corrupt authorities in Mexico.

Our best wishes to these six Basques struggling to demonstrate their innocence in one of the most corrupt countries in the world, a country that is using them as bargain chips to the advantage of fascist pseudo-judges like Baltasar Garzon.

Freedom to the six in Mexico!!!

Basque Political Prisoners

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Vascos Mexico

Vascos Mexico

There is a new site on the net dedicated to the Basque community in Mexico. The web-master is Jaione, she is an excellent lady completely dedicated to the spread the knowledge of the Basque culture and history around the world. She is also involved in the defense of the Basque people right to their self determination.

Please visit the site Vascos Mexico, fair warning, it is in Spanish.

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A Little Hope

The French authorities decided to put a stop to Baltasar Garzon's wild demands and this time they said no to a request to extradites members of a leftist organization.

Being a member of a leftist organization makes a leftist out of you, not a terrorist, and as far as we know, being a leftist is not a crime. How does Garzon goes from point A to point B is easy to explain, he has nothing but hate and contempt towards the Basques, and he is trying to abuse the power given to the law enforcement agencies in Europe through new cooperation treaties to put his hands on those Basques that happen to be French citizens because they were born in the part of Euskal Herria under French occupation.

In the past Madrid sent GAL commandos to hunt down, torture and murder Basques in France, today, Garzon corrupts the law to do the same.

And morons ask why is it that the Basque society longs for independence.

I am tired of these morons, that is why I decided to remove one of them from my list of contacts, that particular person was very concerned about the Nazi persecution of Jewish people, but she could care less about the Fascist persecution of Basque people, she was not consistent with what she heralded, she does not belong among my friends nor among my links.

Here is the note at Berria:

France decides not to serve EAW on Segi members

The young people believe the Public Prosecutor has put forward arguments of the kind that will not allow the granting of other requests that might be filed

Gurutze Izagirre – DONOSTIA (San Sebastian)

France will not be handing over to Spain Amaia Rekarte, Yves Matxikote and Haritza Galarraga, the three Lapurdi (Labourd) members of the left-wing Basque nationalist youth organisation Segi . That is what the French Supreme Court of Appeal told the lawyers of the three young people yesterday. They were not, however, informed of the reasons for the ruling. The news took the three young people by surprise. Yesterday they were attending a press conference in Paris on the EAW (European Arrest Warrant) and after hearing the news they happily set off back to the Basque Country in the afternoon.

So French Justice has turned down the request filed by Baltasar Garzon, the Spanish National Criminal Court judge. Garzon had asked France to serve an EAW on them on the grounds that they were members of "a terrorist organisation".

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Death in Fleury

One terrible thing about political prisoners is the constant abuse they suffer on the hands of the states that consider them a threat to the status quo. The Basque political prisoners have it real bad, they are victims of an state of exception that in reality constitutes a gulag that grinds them down, taking away not only their lives, but extending that hell to their relatives and friends.

It is this constant persecution and harassment what is at blame for the death of Oihane Errazkin.

Here is the note at Berria:

Basque prisoner Oihane Errazkin found hanged in Fleury

The Askatasuna association says the "persecution" of Basque political prisoners and their dispersion are responsible for her death; it has asked the organisations that are keeping quiet to break their silence and has called for mobilisation

Eneko Bidegain – BAIONA (Bayonne)

Warders of the Fleury Merogis prison found the Basque prisoner Oihane Errazkin dead yesterday morning. 31-year-old Errazkin from Donostia (San Sebastian) is believed to have committed suicide; she had hanged herself. Mrs Leguedey of the French Prisons' Authority gave BERRIA few details about yesterday's events. She confirmed that prison warders had found her dead. "A judicial enquiry has begun. The Public Prosecutor is handling the matter. It's out of our hands." That was all she said.

Oihane Errazkin's body was taken away from the prison yesterday. It was at the Evry mortuary yesterday afternoon. Relatives and their lawyer set out for Paris. Jon Enparantza, the lawyer, told BERRIA from Paris that the relatives were going to see Oihane Errazkin's body at 09.00 this morning. Then a post-mortem examination was going to be performed. They would have another opportunity to see her body afterwards.

Her body will be brought to the Basque Country some time during the next few days. The plan is for tribute to be paid at the airport of Miarritze (Biarritz) when her body is brought back. After that a national demonstration will be organised in Donostia (San Sebastian) before a final tribute.

Errazkin's fellow prisoners Lorentxa Beyrie and Saroia Galarraga asked their trial to be postponed during their hearing yesterday. Beyrie and Galarraga, like Xabier Abaunza and Gabi Saez who were tried with them, were "devastated". The judge nevertheless decided to proceed with the trial. Those being tried said Oihane Errazkin had been "a victim of the French system".

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Aznar the Liar

So, what we learned yesterday is that the people in charge of finding out what kind of explosives were used in the Madrid attacks did exactly what they were supposed to do and on the report they clearly stablished the brand used by the criminals.

But then someone higher on the echelon decided to fabricate a different story for his own political benefit, unable to forsee that he was preparing his own debacle.

Aznar, by any chance, would you know who that person is?

Acebes?

What about you Palacio?

Or was it you Rajoy?

Here is the note from Berria:

Police bomb disposal experts deny they pointed finger at ETA on March 11

They told the commission investigating the attack that they had said the bomb had contained dynamite and not Titadyne, habitually used by the armed group

Editorial Staff

According to declarations made yesterday by bomb disposal experts of the Tedax section of the Spanish Police before the commission investigating the March 11 Madrid bombings, it was known by 14.00 hours on the day of the attack that dynamite was the explosive used. But they denied that they had directly or indirectly pointed the finger at the armed organisation ETA. An Islamic group was responsible for the attack, which killed 200 people and injured hundreds when bombs were detonated on trains.

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Aznar, Busted!

Experts determine that Spanish officials lied deliberately when they accused Basque nationalism of the attacks in Madrid.

Notice, I said Basque nationalism and not ETA.

Why?

Because they went for a one-two combination when they decided to blame ETA.

To the ignorant and the uninformed it may look like they wanted to accuse the Basque armed group of the attacks.

But it did not stop there, remember, Aznar had members of the PP and their followers displaying banners that read "With the victims, with the Constitution, against terrorism".

The Constitution part is a direct attack on the efforts by the nations without state within Spain to achieve self determination, meaning the Basque Country, Catalonia and Galiza. The neo-Francoists claim that any measure adopted towards the achievement of a greater degree of autonomy is a direct attack on the Spanish Constitution, one could argue that the Spanish Constitution is the set of laws of an invading power imposed on the defeated countries.

So, Spain went beyond accusing ETA of the bombings, they went as far as saying that Basques and their dream of self determinatin unleash death on average Spaniards, they try to instill fear in the souls of the Spaniards so they vote for people keen of rigid rules that will suffocate any attempt of Basques, Catalans and Galizans to develope their national identities, and that will not do.

So they lied, and they lied, and they added insult to injury...and on monday they found themselves out of job.

Here is the entire note at Yahoo News:

Expert: Spanish Officials Blamed Basques

Wed Jul 7,11:45 AM ET

By DANIEL WOOLLS, Associated Press Writer

MADRID, Spain - The Spanish government accused Basque separatists of carrying out the Madrid train bombings — now blamed on Islamic terrorists — before experts had determined what kind of explosives were used, an official testified Wednesday. Juan Jesus Sanchez Manzano, head of the Interior Ministry's bomb disposal unit, testified in the second day of Spanish parliamentary hearings into the March 11 attack, which killed 190 people.

Sanchez Manzano said the type of explosives used in the blasts — Goma 2 Eco, a kind of dynamite — was not precisely identified until the next morning, after experts had been able to examine a backpack bomb that failed to explode.

By then Interior Minister Angel Acebes already had blamed the Basque separatist group ETA for the train bombings. Lawmakers at the hearing said police incorrectly told Acebes the explosives were Titadyne, a type of dynamite used by ETA, which later denied involvement in the attack.

Acebes continued to blame ETA even as he acknowledged that the explosives were still being analyzed.

"It is possible there was some kind of confusion," Sanchez Manzano testified. But nobody in his bomb disposal unit ever identified the explosives as Titadyne, he said.

And also at CNN.

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Euskaltel in Trouble

It was a sad day yesterday for the Basque Country, the two riders that had the highest chances of being on the podium fell prey to a trecherous stage.

Now Iban Mayo and Haimar Zubeldia are too far behind to be a treath to Jan Ullrich or to Lance Armstrong.

But there is still plenty of Tour for both of them to ridicule the Texan on stages that used to be his specialty.

And there is always next year, and Joseba Beloki, Iban Mayo and Haimar Zubeldia are young enough to give us some thrills in the Tour for years to come.

Here is a note that appeared today at Berria:

Euskaltel’s Waterloo

Mayo and Zubeldia have said goodbye to the podium. Mayo suffered a fall and Zubeldia got held up on the cobblestone section and lost 3.48. The stage was won by Jean-Patrick Nazon

Andoni Urbistondo

June 18, 1815. The end of the Battle of Waterloo. The British under Wellington and the Prussians under von Blücher and von Bulow defeated the French army led by Napoleon. It marked the end of the Napoleonic Empire. July 6, 2004 did not see the end of an empire, because there wasn’t one, but it did see the shattering of the dreams of nine cyclists and a team, on whom a country had pinned its hopes. Until now Waterloo has been a milestone in the history of Europe. From now on it will be an episode in the black history of the Euskaltel-Euskadi team. Haimar Zubeldia and Iban Mayo, the two leaders of the team, said goodbye to the Tour de France, to the podium, during the stage which set off from that Belgian town.

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Txupinazo!!!

Chupinazo

Revelers throw an unidentified woman into the air as others wave the Basque flag during the 'Txupinazo' of the official opening of the 2004 San Fermin Festival in Irunea, Euskal Herria, Tuesday July 6, 2004. The festival includes morning running of the bulls down the main street of the city and afternoon bullfights.

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Lance the Scumbag

That is correct, Lance has complete disregard for the laws of chivalry that all the other riders observe.

Last year the dumbass Lance fell to the ground because he got too close to the public, in that crash he also took down Iban Mayo, on of the Basque riders for Eukaltel Euskadi. Lance was on the lead, so Jan Ullrich from Germany stopped as to allow Lance to get back on his bike and take off again.

After the Tour Lance complained bitterly like the little bitch he is that Jan Ullrich never stopped, the fucking little liar disregarded footage and photos that show the exact opposite.

Well, today it was Iban who was on the lead and it was Iban the one involved in a crash, and what did Lance do? Send his entire team surging as to blow Iban and his teams lead.

Talk about chivalry Lance.

And what is it with Basque riders getting seriously injured each time Lance is around? Last year it was Joseba Beloki, and on that occasion Lance did not stop to try to help his fallen peer, he kept riding trhough a field that miracously had no holes or big rocks that would damaged a flimsy ass race bike.

This year was Iban, who ended up with a huge gash on his tigh, hmm, something smells in the Kingdom of Denmark, err, France.

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Adding Insult to Injury

While the real bad guys run free, the Spanish State insists on turning Inaki Uria's life into a living hell.

Inaki's one and only crime is to love his language, Euskera. He is in jail because some fascists fellas in Madrid can not and will not understand the Basque society's will to preserve and advance their ancient language.

How can an allegedly democratic country keep a news paper administrator behind bars for over a year blows your mind. And to think that this fella Del Olmo's partner in crime Baltasar Garzon just paraded himself as a paladin of human rights in California is sickening.

Here is the note from Berria:

Inaki Uria's defence lawyers appeal against Del Olmo's ruling

In response to the request to reduce the bail figure, the Public Prosecutor asked that the amount be reduced to 450,000 euros and that it should be paid in cash; Del Olmo accepted the proposal as it stood

Eider Goenaga – DONOSTIA (San Sebastian)

Inaki Uria's defence counsel have filed a fresh appeal against the ruling handed down by Juan Del Olmo, the Spanish National Criminal Court judge, and they will continue in this direction until they have secured the release of the managing director of Egunkaria. In fact, the ruling published by Del Olmo last Friday makes Uria's release impossible; the judge has ruled bail of 450,000 euros in cash. Uria's lawyers have three days to file an appeal against Judge Del Olmo's ruling.

The previous bail figure set by the 1st Section of the National Criminal Court was 600,000 euros, also in cash; but Uria's defence counsel filed an appeal with Del Olmo to reduce the amount. Uria's lawyer, Jose Maria Elosua, argued that the amount was "excessive", that his client did not have the financial means to pay and that a disproportionate step of this kind infringed the "principle of equality". His defence not only asked for the amount to be reduced, but also for an opportunity to be given for it to be paid by providing security.

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Back to Work

Well, time to get back to earning the bacon.

It has been to weeks since I left my former job, and is time to become a "productive member of society" again. Not because I want, but because someone has to pay the bills and I am not into pimp daddies.

Anyway, tomorrow I will learn about my schedule and therefore my free time availability, since I have no clue when I will be able to blog again, I present you with a bunch of posts. And I promise you I will follow Bill's advice and start posting more often.

Enough chit chat, I now present you with...

The Spanish Blunder or How Aznar and his Thugs Tried to Vilify the Basques.

Do you remember what happened after the terrible attacks in Madrid on March 11th?

How the junta that ruled Madrid tried to blame it on the Basques?

How they went as far as misleading the German intelligence community by providing them with the wrong information?

Well, it gets worst, thanks to new documents disclosed last weekend, now we know that the Spanish authorities were quite aware of an impending Islamist attack on Spanish ground or Spanish interests abroad months before it happened, and even then, when it happened, they were bold enough to use it for what they thought was their political benefit.

Here is the story:

Spain a terrorist target for months prior to Madrid bombings, docs say

10:35 PM EDT Jul 05

MADRID, Spain (AP) - Dozens of declassified documents were delivered Saturday to
Spain's parliament ahead of hearings on the March 11 train bombings in Madrid.

One police document reportedly said islamist terrorists had been plotting to attack Spain since late 2003, months before the blasts that killed 190 people.

A parliamentary commission will begin work Tuesday examining evidence and interviewing officials and witnesses to determine whether the bombings might have been prevented and whether steps taken since have increased Spain's security.

The commission, made up of lawmakers from all parties in parliament, has sparred with the government and security agencies over what classified material it will be allowed to examine.

The bombing has been blamed on Islamic militants with possible links to the international terrorist group al-Qaida.

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Basque Orange

The Tour de France is about to start, the big question is, what is all that noise about Lance Armstrong doping his way through the tour?

Oh yes, they got an Italian, they got a Basque, but somehow Lance continues to evade the "vampires". Could it be that the Tour organizers need him in order for the event to draw crowds? It could be, money talks they say. It seems like a big cover up, I wonder if Lance was required to pay a large amount of money so he can hold the title of six wins in a row. Or if it is time to hail a new hero.

Or will he go down like David Millar from England?

This English scumbag has been raking in medals and trophies all over the place, and he was using the same dope that Lance is accused of using, one that goes right under the radar.

Thanks god there is real riders, like Ulrich, Hamilton, Vinokourov and...

...The Basque Orange!

Yup, this year seems to be the year of the Basques at the Tour. Last year our hopes were crushed when Joseba Beloki then in the ONCE-Eroski team suffered the terrible accident that put him out of the competition and ultimately complicated things for this year's event.

This year the Basque Country is fielding people like Iban Mayo (who just obliterated a possibly dope free Armstrong at the Dauphine), Haimar Zubeldia and David Etxebarria.

If you want to read a little more about the Euskaltel-Euskadi team, the all-Basque team, check this link to Daily Peloton titled "Orange Crush":

Orange Crush!

By Staff
Date: 07/01/04

By Paula Andrist

The peloton rolls along at almost 200 riders strong. They aren't hard to pick out in their day-glow orange kits, the riders of the all-Basque team, Euskaltel-Euskadi. Originally the team was formed January 1, 1994, by the Euskadi Foundation, with the stock proceeds from a company of shareholders going to support a team of the best Basque cyclists. Then named simply, Euskadi, which in Basque means "the Basques", the team grew and flourished. In 1997 when the team became too expensive for the shareholders to support, the Basque telephone company, Euskaltel (which is where the day-glow orange comes from), joined as sponsor and the team was appropriately renamed Euskaltel-Euskadi. The all-Basque unit made its Tour debut in 2001 and has been known as an animator of the race ever since.

In 2004, Euskaltel-Euskadi comes to the Tour de France with a solid line up, including two possible GC contenders and several seasoned veterans, including three Tour de France stage winners. The roster is: Iban Mayo, Haimar Zubeldia, Unai Etxebarria, David Etxebarria, Gorka Gonzalez, Iker Flores, Iker Camano, Egoi Marti­nez, and Inigo Landaluze.

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