SPAIN: As ETA's cease fire begins, the fate of imprisioned suspected members remains uncertain

Record ID: 872900

  • Title: SPAIN: As ETA's cease fire begins, the fate of imprisioned suspected members remains uncertain
  • Date: 25th March 2006
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF BASQUE FLAG
  • Embargoed: 9th April 2006 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Spain
  • City:
  • Country: Spain
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVAAEUVIF04P6AH2X1B7T6J3WEPE
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: A ceasefire declared by Basque guerrilla group ETA came into force on Friday (March 24), spreading hope that four decades of violence and fear might finally have come to an end.
    In Getaria, one of ETA's strongholds on the coast of the northern Basque region, residents, most of them fishermen, were buoyed by the prospect of peace.
    "Here people really want peace, let's see if that peace shows up. Peace will be here. That will be the best," the wife of a fisherman told Reuters.
    ETA has killed around 850 people in its 38-year campaign for Basque independence but unexpectedly announced a permanent ceasefire on Wednesday (March 22) which came into effect at midnight.
    As the ceasefire began, former ETA prisoners wonder about the future of about 650 alleged members of the organization who are currently in jail. For Joseba Agudo, a Basque lawyer who has worked for years in defence of the human rights of ETA prisoners, the participation of prisoners in a possible upcoming process is vital."
    "Without any doubt, the participation of all men and women who are jailed or fugitives has to take place now, because the process is going to be legitimised. This was what happened in Northern Ireland and South Africa where the processes would not have happened the way they did if it wasn't for the prisoners who took part in them. So the 650 prisoners must take part in the finding of the solution and in the peace process if they act legally," he told Reuters Television in San Sebastian.
    Former prisoners welcomed the announcement as they see a door opening for the resolution of the situation of many imprisoned people who are expecting to be released as a part of a possible agreement with the Spanish government.
    Estanis Exaburu, who spent 17 years in jail and is the head of an organisation in support of ETA's prisoners, considers people's role more vital then the politicians in the process.
    "The decision of a definite ceasefire taken by ETA is considered positive by us, we welcome it, but we hope it will be a step forward from which all of us will take advantage, because we don't believe in institutions, nor in politicians, even if we know politicians have to find a solution to this, but always under pressure from society, telling them what they must fix, that the people's dream has to become real. And our dream is to close down this association of relatives forever," he said.
    Eta, which means Basque homeland and freedom, was founded in 1959 during Francisco Franco's dictatorship. It carried out its first planned killing in 1968.
    According to the organisation, the objective of the ceasefire is to further the democratic process in the Basque country and to gain recognition for Basque rights.
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