From: "Ratibor Trivunac" <rata-AT-beotel.yu>
Subject: AUT: Fw: EGUNKARIA'S DETAINEES REPORT TORTURE
Date: Wed, 26 Feb 2003 21:07:26 +0100


    From time to time I'm receiving news from Basque country and, although I
do
not support national liberation movements, I am interested in what is going
on there.
Later in the message you will find last report I got. What can companer-AT-s
who are living in Spain tell us
about situation there and relations between
anarchist/anarcho-syndicalist/libertarian communist
organizations and Basque nationalist groups?
    Last time I visited Spain I was guest of CNT that is working in Basque
part of the country. If I remember
correctly CNT there was printing their material bilingually and that is, of
course, further that organizations of
this type should go - preserving one peoples culture without falling in
statist traps....

Solidarity,

Rata


> EGUNKARIA'S DETAINEES REPORT TORTURE
> The five detainees released yesterday -after paying massive bails!- have
> reported tortures. They were met by their relatives whom had travelled all
> the way from the Basque Country to the Soto del Real prison (Madrid), in
> an emotive atmosphere where 'sadness, excitement and rage turned all the
> sudden into frustration' (Egunero paper). Xabier Oleaga, Xabier Alegria,
> Txema Auzmendi, Joan Mari Torrealdai and Iñaki Uria were sentenced to
> 'unconditional imprisonement'. Pello Zubiria remains in hospital.
> Egunkaria's director on his release reported in a press conference where
the
> Basque TV Euskal Telebista (ETB) was also present: 'they've treated us
> like rats - the treatment was merciless, brutal'. He also said that they
> applied twice the 'bag' (suffocation with a bag) to him in the five days
they
> were inside, while they insulted him non-stop. They also made him stay
> crouching and naked, and that they made him do exercises endlessly.
> M. Otamendi was clearly affected and added that the other detainees had
> also battered in the police station, specially writer Joan Mari
Torrealdai.
> 'You could hear the screams of your workmates and even the noise of the
> beatings'. The interrogations happened at any time either in the evening
or
> the day. He was told repeatedly "you know you'll end up speaking - never
> mind when: today, tomorrow. you'll decide when".
> Egunkaria's director reminded that they weren't the first ones to be
tortured
> in the Basque Country, but that 'until it doesn't happen to you, and like
> twice in his case experiencing the bag' you can't imagine it. He asked the
> media to demand from the institutions the cease of torture as the media
tend
> to ignore this practice and many others don't have the possibilities to
speak
> out about it. Martxelo Otamedi highlighted the Guardia Civil's impunity
and
> thanked everyone for their support.
> At this time we have to remind that under the 18/98 Summary, many other
> organisms and projects have been closed down and their members
> imprisoned. In all the cases people were imprisoned for long periods,
never
> proving that they belonged to ETA and getting released afterwards
> (sometimes months or even years) because of lack of evidence. The only
> evidence which is used is that you belong to this group, or this paper, or
this
> organization and that this is in ETA's orbit, therefore you belong to ETA
and
> we treat you like that.
> The Spanish media ignores the releases and their reports of torture
> While the Spanish media echoes the reasons given by judge Del Olmo for
> the Egunkaria detentions (imprisonment) and the Basque regional president
> Ibarretxe's meeting with Egunkaria's members, all of them -as usual!-
> ignore the release yesterday of five of them. Once again, after a media
> campaign blaming people violating their right of alleged innocence, when
this
> is proved false, the Spanish media vanishes from the scene of the crime!
> Once again, they weren't there to listen to the reports of torture. Once
> again, the Spanish media ignores the use of such brutal methods
> (TORTURE) even with innocents. Do we need to remind that those people
> whom have been kept in isolation for five days and tortured were release
> after this period without charges? How something like this can be
justified?
> And the remaining ones are still allegedly innocent till it's not proved
> otherwise on a trial (if we can trust their trials too). El Mundo: the
headline
> for the information on the reasons for the Egunkaria detentions is
followed
> by another one for 'ETA, the terror's dictatorship'. Misleading indeed.
This
> is the impartial and well informed Spanish media for you.
> Meanwhile the Spanish government keeps on accusing Egunkaria of being
> part of ETA and demanding explanations to the Basque regional government
> for the funding of this paper since 1994. We remind that this paper was
> funded 5 years after being funded because it's the only existing paper
> entirely in Basque language and because according the 26th June Act,
> passed to support of media initiatives using the Basque language,
therefore a
> responsibility of this regional government and also the Madrid one.
Instead,
> the Madrid one closes this paper and tortured and imprisoned its
> directorship. Home Minister Acebes sentenced: «it's absolutely
> incomprehensible and intolerable in democratic terms that a political
party
> such as PNV continues funding Egunkaria».
> Situation of egunkaria's detainees
> Imprisoned without bail
> - Joan Mari Torrealdai: President of Egunkaria's Administration Council
and
> director of the Jakin magazine.
> - Iñaki Uria: Vice-President of Egunkaria's Administration Council
> - Xabier Oleaga: responsible for the Ikastola Network Membership
> Communication and second director of Egunkaria. Former director of calso
> closed Egin paper's.
> - Txema Auzmendi: Herri irratia's (radio) second second director and
> member of the Egunkaria Sortzen group (source group).
> - Xabier Alegria: member of Udalbiltza (Basque councils network)
> Release under bail:
> - Martxelo Otamendi: Egunkaria's director - 30,000 euros bail.
> - Fermin Lazkano: Plazagunea's director and former Egunkaria finance
> officer - 18,000 euros bail.
> - Inma Gomila: Egunkaria's finance officer. 18,000 euro bail.
> - Luis Goya: member of the Egunkaria Sortzen group (source group).
> 12,000 euros bail.
>




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