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Executive of Egunkaria freed, denounce tortur
egunkaria - 26.02.2003 22:32
Executive of Egunkaria freed, denounce tortures
It emitted in direct since the doors of the jail of Alcalá Meco for the Basque public television ETB-2 in its edition of the Teleberri, the 3 persons put in liberty this same night, I include its director Martxelo Otamendi, have denounced, before journalists, family and friends the tortures: beatings, the market, vejaciones... , to the ones that have been submitted for the Guardia Civil during them you gave that they have been in its hands.
For more info check on:
 http://euskalherria.indymedia.org
http://www.egunero.info
http://www.argia.com
http://www.sustatu.com
http://www.euskalherria.info
http://www.irratia.com
http://www.gara.net
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| supplements | | | Let's clarify | Xare - 27.02.2003 00:28
I think this new needs some more explanation.
Basque newspaper Euskaldunon Egunkaria closed by Spanish Police
On February 20, 2003 the only existing Basque-language daily newspaper
"Euskaldunon Egunkaria" was shut down and 10 people of its current or former
staff are arrested for "supporting an armed group". the Spanish Civil Guard
carried out a large-scale raid on both the newspaper?s headquarters in Andoain
(Gipuzkoa), and local press offices in Iruñea (Pamplona), Bilbo and Gasteiz
(Vitoria), which they then sealed.
WHAT IS EUSKALDUNON EGUNKARIA?
EUSKALDUNON EGUNKARIA (The Newspaper of the Basques) was created on December 6,
1990. Today it is the only newspaper published in Basque and is sold throughout
the Basque Country, both in Iparralde and in Hegoalde (in the Southern as well
as in the Northern Basque Country on each side of the Franco-Spanish border). It
comes out six days a week from Tuesday to Sunday. It has an on-line version in
Basque and includes a section in English.
EUSKALDUNON EGUNKARIA has developed considerably since it began when it had only
32 pages. Today it produces 60 pages in the daily edition, and if you take into
account all the different products, it publishes 76 pages every day on average.
EUSKALDUNON EGUNKARIA is a standard newspaper and offers its readers sections
similar to other newspapers: Opinion, Basque Country Politics, Basque Country
Society, Economy, Sports, Features, Services, Culture, Events and TV.
EUSKALDUNON EGUNKARIA has its headquarters in Andoain (Gipuzkoa) and local press
offices in Iruñea (Pamplona), Baiona (Bayonne), Bilbo (Bilbao) and Gasteiz
(Vitoria). It has a staff of 150.
IT IS NOT THE FIRST TIME BASQUE CULTURE IS ATTACKED OR A NEWSPAPER CLOSED UNDER
AZNAR'S SPAIN
For the last five years, the spanish home affair ministry and some members of
the "audiencia nacional" back the theory that ETA is not only a terrorist
organisation but that its behavior spreads all around in basque society.
For this reason they started a political process backed by Judge Garzon, a
famous Judge that got internationa relevance during the Pinochet process and
who, recently, had a strong letter interchange with Subcommander Marcos.
According to his theory, Garzon started an operation against AEK, a social
organisation that provides adult basque language teaching.
After this taking as a base a document found to one member of ETA that had been
arrested where basque proindependence leftwing newspaper EGIN was mentionned.
According to Garzon's interpretation of that document, ETA was using EGIN as a
way to send hidden messages, and that EGIN was also part of the economical
machinery of ETA. Garzon took the decision, not only to arrest those alledged
links between ETA and EGIN, but to close the whole newspaper leaving the workers
without their job and beginning the first juditiary closing of a newspaper.
Nonetheless, this process is not over, the newspaper is still closed. Aznar's
said "Who thought we would not dare closing EGIN?". So far, Aznar was speaking
clearly, the separation line between the different powers that in a democracy
should be separated starts to be a bit difuse.
Garzon started other processes following that line. According to Garzon, the
Joxemi Zumalabe Foundation, a foundation dedicated to the support of social
movements in the Basque Country was also blamed to be part of ETA. THe reason
for this is that just by that time this foundation was hosting a debate over the
use of non violent civil dissobedience in support of self-determination right
and linguistic rights for basques. Garzon said it was part of ETA's strategy
this campaign using non violent civil dissobedience. This process took several
members of tha foundation to jail but now they are out waiting for a trial.
Garzon also started a process against Xaki, according to Garzon Xaki was a group
of people that on behalf of ETA would be defending ETA's cause on the
international stage. According to the Supreme Court, this theory had no ground
and there were not enough proofs.
A publishing house that distributes basque language books about culture was also
targeted by Garzon as a cover business for ETA. Again the supreme court said
there was no ground for such accusation.
It seems that Garzon and the spanish gouvernment are trying to find any piece of
evidence and they carry on with operations against organisations that defend
basque language and culture. This means a clear breach of justice and democracy.
Garzon and the PP gouvernment use preventive measures to get to what they think
is the "covering environment for terrorism".
After all these operations, PP gouvernment has changed a law for political
parties with one only objective: to illegalise pro independence left wing party
Batasuna. The objective was not to create a new law to improve democracy, but to
wipe out a party which they had not been able to do so with the former
legislation issued out from the Spanish constitution.
Now, when the prestige boat has sank and filled the coast with petrol and
outrage and when the Spanish gouvernment is highly questionned for his attitude
in support for Bush in the war against Irak, that is heavily opposed by the vast
majority of the population (90% of spaniards are against the war). A new judge,
Del Olmo, says that ETA uses Egunkaria, the only basque language newspaper, to
spread his ideas. The judge does not use at any moment what has been written on
Egunkaria, but some documents that had already been used to close EGIN in a
process that is still not over. On top of that Del Olmo and the ministry of
interior issued a common note explaining the closing of Egunkaria. Against does
any body remember that the basis of democracy should be the separation of
powers?
Egunkaria is now closed, and ten persons working for the publishing company
"Egunkaria Sortzen S.L." or related to it were arrested:
The following people were arrested in the raid:
* Iñaki Uria (SENT TO JAIL), Chairman of the Board of Directors of
Euskaldunon Egunkaria. Uria has a long history within the Basque cultural
movement. He was part of the group that changed the old magazine Zeruko Argia
into the modern Argia. He has taken part in the process of creating Egunkaria
since its very beginning, and in December 1990, when it first appeared, he was
appointed Vice-director and later Director. He later assumed the post of
Managing Director, which he has held until now.
* Martxelo Otamendi (FREE ON BAIL AFTER PAYING 30.000 EUROS), Editor of
Euskaldunon Egunkaria. He was a teacher and the Principal of the municipal
Basque language school in Tolosa. He has worked in Basque Television and was the
Director of the Egonean Giro show. He has been the Editor of the newspaper since
1993.
* Juan Mari Torrealdai (SENT TO JAIL), Managing Director of Euskaldunon
Egunkaria and Editor of the Basque literary magazine Jakin. He has been an
active member of the cultural Basque movement since the sixties. He was a former
Editor of the magazine Anaitasuna and an important figure in the Basque
publishing world. At the end of the 70?s he published Euskal Idazleak Gaur
(Basque Writers Today) and recently Euskal Kultura Gaur (Basque Culture Today).
* Pello Zubiria (STILL INCOMMUNICADO AND MAYBE IN CRITICAL CONDITION IN
HOSPITAL), Vice-editor of the magazine Argia. Together with Iñaki Uria, he took
part in the transformation of Zeruko Argia into Argia, and also took part in the
creation Egunkaria, the first daily newspaper in Basque. He was the first Editor
of the paper, he later went on to run Argia, which he recently left due to ill
health.
* Luis Goia (FREE ON BAIL AFTER PAYING 12.000 EUROS). Cinema producer. He
took part in Egunkaria Sortzen, the creation of Egunkaria, and was a member of
its first Board of Directors. He was the producer of a number of films including
?Off-eko maitasuna?, written and directed by Koldo Izagirre.
* Fermin Lazkano (FREE ON BAIL AFTER PAYING 12.000 EUROS), person in charge
of the company Plazagunea, which provides computerised services for the Basque
world. He was Managing Director of Euskaldunon Egunkaria at the beginning of the
90?s. Before that, he was a teacher in the AEK Basque language teaching
organisation and held several posts in this organisation.
* Inma Gomila (FREE ON BAIL AFTER PAYING 18.000 EUROS). Member of Egunkaria
Sortzen and first Managing Director of Euskaldunon Egunkaria.
* Xabier Alegria (SENT TO JAIL). Member of the Udalbiltza assembly of
elected municipal representatives of the whole of the Basque Country. He has
been accused in the legal case of the newspaper ?Egin?, another Basque newspaper
that five years ago suffered the same fate as Euskaldunon Egunkaria yesterday,
and in the case against ?Ekin?.
* Xabier Oleaga (SENT TO JAIL). He is in charge of External Communications
of the Federation of Ikastolas or Basque-medium Schools. He was editor of Egin
and later, in the mid 90?s, was appointed deputy editor of Egunkaria.
* Txema Auzmendi (SENT TO JAIL). He is a Jesuit and Deputy Director of Radio
Popular of San Sebastian. He was one of the promoters of the newspaper and he
has been the Secretary of the Board of Directors since the beginning.
WHEN THE TROUTH STARTS TO COME OUT IN SMALL PIECES IT GETS MORE AND MORE
FRIGHTENING
The first managing editor of Egunkaria, Pello Zubiria, detained on the raid
against the paper may have attempted suicide at the Gregorio Marañon Hospital in
Madrid where he had been hospitalized 24 hours before according to official
sources because of stomach problems.
Zubiria was taken to the medical centre on Saturday February 22nd since he was
apparently having a nervous breakdown and was admitted to the centre at the
behest of the judge in charge of the case. The family wasn't told about the
hospitalization until Monday February 24th.
The suicide attempt took place on Sunday when Zubiria tried to smother himself
with a pillow case according to the same sources. The former managing editor of
"Egunkaria" suffers from a serious chronic illness and needs special attention,
with correct medication and a very strict diet if his precarious state of health
is not be altered.
The editorial staff at the magazine Argia publically announced that somebody in
a responsible position at the Gregorio Marañon Hospital had commented to a
Spanish government authority that "it's a good thing that what happened took
place at the hospital because otherwise ..."
The overzealous action taken against the paper "Egunkaria" is graver still when
it affects the weaker people detained such as Pello Zubiria. Mr. Zubiria has
been held incommicado and detained in great secrecy. No one knew or could know
of his whereabouts until yesterday when news of his suicide attempt leaked out.
The overzealousness of the Spanish police and justice seems to have rubbed off
even on the hospital staff since they declined even to inform Mr. Zubiria's
family of the state of his health with the argument that they could not do so
under the Spanish judge's orders.
Pello Zubiria suffers (since several years) a severe denegerative disease,
Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS). Relatives told Police about AS when they arrested
him, but it doesn?t seem anyone cared. Zubiria is an active partner in the
global net of AS patients, Kickas.org, where his case has spurn solidarity.
He also has a personal website in Spanish and Basque to help other people with
AS: Izorrategi.org.
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 Otamendi 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».
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