17 October 2007

THOUSANDS TAKE TO THE STREETS TO PROTEST


Hundreds of towns, villages, factories, universities and high schools in the Basque Country witnessed any kind of protests against the arrest of the Batasuna's leadership by Spanish police on the night of the 4th of October. 23 were lifted and 17 of them were put in prison. Antoher one was arrested last Tuesday and the police are looking for some more.

Rallies, marches, barricades, sabotages and all kind protests took place along the Basque Country for the last days against what the pro-independence movement defined as a "declaration of war". The Spanish government wanted to make them pay for the failure of the negotiation process and to cover the disapointment created when the Spanish representatives at the table rejected the proposal drafted by the international mediators and accepted by the both ETA and Batasuna.

The arrests caused outrage at the Basque Country among all sectors, political parties and trade unions as well as internationally.

Protests took place in many parts of the world. In Ireland Dublin, Cork and Belfast gathered dozens of people and called for a national picket line this Saturday 20th of October at Cultúrlann, Falls Road in Belfast at 1pm.

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