Josean Izarra Vitoria
Victoria
Updated Thursday, March 28, 2024-1:24 p.m.
The former Minister of Justice and spokesperson for Sare Joseba Azkarraga has accused the judges and prosecutors of the National Court of being the "legal weapon of the extreme right" against ETA prisoners. The harsh recrimination of the nationalist politician who this week gave his support to the Bildu candidate Pello Otxandiano comes after the appeals that have suspended the granting of the 'third degree' to the ETA members Joseba Borde and Juan Carlos Subijana who yesterday returned to prison from Basauri.
Azkarraga, the leader of the platform that demands the release from prison of the almost 140 imprisoned ETA members, interprets that judges and prosecutors act with an "attitude of revenge and revenge" towards the ETA members to whom the Urkullu Government grants parole. 'semi-freedom'. According to Sare data, the Basque Executive has granted 74 'third degrees' to ETA members since October 2021, which allows the members of the gang to serve the remaining time of their sentence at home. On 37 occasions, according to Azkarraga, the Prosecutor's Office has appealed these decisions of the Basque Executive, which are based on the reports made by the Treatment Boards of the three Basque prisons.
The data from the Association of Victims of Terrorism (AVT) on the granting of these prison benefits by Counselor Melgosa (PNV) are very different. According to the AVT Penitentiary Policy Observatory, there have been 63 'third degrees' granted to 52 prisoners from the gang (in eleven cases they have been repeated after being rejected by the judges). Those revoked by the National Court have been 15, with 7 more that were appealed and suspended and another 6 that were appealed but were dismissed.
The last two appeals presented by the Prosecutor's Office have caused, as EL MUNDO announced yesterday, that Joseba Bordes (65 years old) and Juan Carlos Subijana (59 years old) were re-entered the Basauri prison yesterday after spending 3 days in their homes. The initiative of the Prosecutor's Office automatically suspends the semi-freedom granted to both ETA members and is the third time in which the 'third degree' has been annulled. On the two previous occasions, the judges of the National Court assumed the arguments of the Prosecutor's Office against the criteria of the Basque Government.
Azkarraga, accompanied by relatives of the two former members of ETA, has detailed the sentences imposed on the two prisoners, their presence on scheduled departures and ordinary permits, that they also carry out work in the Basauri prison and that both have presented written recognition of the damage caused. At no time has he alluded to their status as former terrorists or to the serious crimes committed such as participation in several murders. Juan Carlos Subijana participated as a collaborator in the murder of prison official Máximo Casado on October 22, 2000. Casado's colleagues in the Zaballa prison in Alava are now in charge of guaranteeing ETA prisoners the prison benefits granted to them by the Urkullu Government.