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end of hunger strike

euskalinfo | 21.03.2005 23:27

Last night 12 Basque activists ended their hunger strike in solidarity with basque prisoner in London Iñigo Makazaga and Basque prisoners. This only lasted from the weekend, while Iñigo and basque prisoenrs started it last Tuesday and they are still doing it.



About 12 people took part in a weekend hunger strike in solidarity with basque prisoner in London Iñigo Makazaga and Basque prisoners.this happened in the Rampart cenytre - from here thanks to them for allowing us to use the place.

The weekend was very positive, with a starting meeting with Gareth Peirce (Iñigo Makazaga’s lawyer), Lander Larunbe (Basque Movement for Amnesty) and Iñigo Makazaga’s partner Ainhoa Facal. This was a good starting point to be even more aware of the need to be involved in such a symbolic action. Iñigo has been in prison for three years in London just because he was in a list of the Spanish government. However there is not evidence against him. After being for all this time locked up in his cell for 23 hours he has already had two hearings where all charges against him were dropped. However he continues thousands of miles away from his country, from his family and with no-one around that he can relate to. This weekend we had the chance of meeting his partner and his mother and friends who had come to visit him (first time for his friends -in three years!_ as he has had very limmited chances for visits). We just have words of admiratin for their strength. According to his lawyer Gareth Peirce, his case may end up soon and he may be released. However, every minute is eternal in his case. We pledge everyone reading these lines to help us publicize his case for the British authorities to take notice of it and act accordingly, because there is no need for such injustice (like many others). Iñigo Makazaga is one of the thousands of victims of the Spanish state's repression, which under the consrvative rule of PP reached the most terrible levels. He is a victim of the War on Terror where people are consider terrorist for what they think or for where they are from. The Basque collective of prisoners sufferes all kind of punishments added to their sentence, from dispersion to mistreatment, isolation, etc They are not allowed to have education as the Spanish constitution contemplates. And while state terrorists involved in paramilitary crimes walk free, Basque political prisoners are kept inside once their time is over - another PP contribution. Ill prisoners are denied health and even terminal ones are denied release as the Spanish law contemplates too. Because of all this, the collective of basque prisoners are in teh 6th term of their hunger strike.

On Saturday strikers painted banners and joint the Korrika (race linking villages in the Basque Country to promote Basque language) in Berthnal Green. This was very important to link up with other Basques and to explain to them about Iñigo's case as many did not even know it. People were very interested and we hope his case will start to be ore known.

euskalinfo
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