Estanis Etxaburu
"GATZA"

A quarter of a century, 25 years, 300 months, more than 9.000 days. Just imagine, all this time kept inside a cage decorated with concrete. A period when he has learned about the existence of militarised regimes, when the antiriot police controlled the inside of the Soria prison. With continuous searches, beatings and a daily strain. Then further high security prisons came, like Puerto, Alcalá or Herrera de la Mancha, laboratory prisons where the close watch restrained personal privacy by means of censorship, recording and all kinds of direct control, and all types of vexation and humiliation.

Later, the first days of the scattering programme, a journey and another and another, everything cruelly calculated by the institution called "Instituciones Penitenciarias", managed by PSOE, designed by people who put a name and destination for each transfer, hundreds of miles from family and environment. The same people who, today, officially say that they are against the scattering policies but whom we have never seen taking part in any activity or denunciation of such criminal political measures, directly hitting the prisoners, their families and friends.

"Gatza" in his 25 year of captivity has known the different phases of the scattering programme: selective and by groups at the beginning, generalised and with isolation always in mind in the later phase (nowadays in full force), together with the hardpship of lifestyle, permanent violation of human rights, isolation, torture...

These conditions have been met by families and friends in different ways and with a physical attrition, which has often almost broken our hearts. We have seen our dear ones behind a cristal wall with emaciated faces. Sometimes, we have been able to touch these weakened bodies. We have seen then in prison hospitals. We have seen then physically beaten but with a smile in their faces, always trying to show their attitude of firmness and love atb the same time and this has made us keep our heads high in face of the whole world and for many years. They are there, far away, suffering a physical and political isolation, clearly degradating and looking for the extermination of a Basque political idea, using the principle that "everything is valid", and making the families a subject of retaliation.

The 25 year of captivity of "Gatza" provide a political path of dignity, together with the whole lot of political Basque prisoners, their families and friends who have preceded us in our way. Families who started protesting back in the seventies, and still keeping their attitude, whitehaired and wrinkled but with the same internal strength and high spirits. And nothing will make them change this dedicated attitude, under the symbol of the oil lamp and the bandana, always together with solidarity, love and hope.

This quarter of a century of "Gatza" in prison takes us unavoidably to the recollection of all prisoners, exiled, families and friends fallen in the way, because of the imposition of the Spanish and French states, their institutional violence, sometimes covered up, always permitted and sometimes even decorated with medals. The cold and bleak prison cells which have taken our beloved ones, exiled and with such hopeful living conditions, with tragical consequences and the damned long roads, so trying for families and friends.

25 years ago a Statute of Autonomy proclaimed that all Basque prisoners were to be taken home but only 7 months ago all political prisoners have started again with a permanent protest (have they ever interrupted it...?) against the political isolation they suffer, the request of the application of the status of political prisoners and the application of their fundamental and political rights. Scattering is still in full force, even harder than before, causing pain with its criminal consequences.

For many years we have been knocking at thousands of different doors, looking for solidarity, practical and permanent help to present a united front against the endless breaching of rights. But we have not received a lot of help and only a few of us have pronounced the name of the last person that the scattering programme and the farce judgements of the "Audiencia Nacional" have put into a state of coma and who is, fortunately miraculously still alive, ¡¡Irantzu Abad!!,

The time has arrived for everybody to denounce the violent prison policy of Madrid and Paris, directly hitting ourselves, families and friends of the political Basque prisoners, which has taken us to be permanently mobilised to make then change the situation. It is absolutely necessary to understand and assume that the scattering programme is not only a problem of prisoners and their families. If we mention the divine word "rights" we all have to consider that it must be the same in all and any political situation, and the whole Basque Country should demand the application of these rights.

The time has come not to extend the 25 years of captivity of "Gatza" and to bring all the Basque political prisoners to the Basque Country, as the first step towards solution. We want them near as the first step to have them at home. We want to hear their opinion of the actual political situation, because political reasons imprisoned them. Political reasons which brought cruel and brutal repression against our relatives and friends and, at the same time, against us. We want to see them discussing these matters with different people, to enable us to decide about our future, absolutely different from the actual present. The time has come to demand other agents to take steps to finish with the criminal and cruel scaterring policy, causing pain and death, to demand that all rights be respected. The actual situation is a clear sign and shows the real character of the states denying these rights: antidemocratic, unjust and violent states.

It is necessary to harmonise a democratic and definitive political situation, not only patches or partial solutions which will make us what we are now, families of Basque political repressed people. Our main aim is to disappear as an association, because it would mean that there would not be any more political repressed people. We need the real engagement of everyone living and working in our Country. We must place our bets in the non-arrival of the year 26 of captivity for "Gatza", we must bet on the end of the scattering programme, on a future totally different from the present. We must make a reality of the future we foresee.

This is the reason why many relatives and friends, solidary people and people who have personally suffered repression will meet this Saturday in Zornotza and will remember that "Gatza" has been a prisoner for 25 years, all the people who have fallen in these long years, and all the absent ones. We shall bring them home sooner or later. Together, we shall make it possible. A great hug "Gatza".