POLITICAL REPRESSION CONTINUES IN NORTHERN BASQUE COUNTRY

More people were arrested in the Northern Basque Country this week as part of a continuing crackdown on the activities of the left wing pro independence Basque national movement by the French police.

On the 4th November, 11 people were arrested at their homes in the Basque region of Lapurdi/Labourd, in the State of France and 5 more were arrested the following night. The French police say the arrests were made as part of an investigation into the way that the left wing Basque movement funds itself.

With the Spanish and French police working ever more closely in collaboration with each other, it was inevitably going to difficult for some of the groups that have been outlawed on the Spanish state side of the Basque Country, to remain active on the French State side of the country.

In September 2008, in a three day period, French police made over 20 arrests. First a bar (Kalaka) in Donobane Garazi was stormed and 6 arrests were made, then two more political activists were arrested at their homes the following day. The next day 14 Batasuna members were arrested by police, as reported previously by the Celtic League. In 2003, Batasuna and the youth group Segi were outlawed in the Spanish State, but have continued to remain active in the Northern Basque Country in the State of France.

The French police seem intent, in recent months, on suppressing the left wing Basque nationalist political movement and are attempting to do this by targeting the way that groups raise funds, in a similar way that the Spanish state police have done over the last year. It has been unconfirmed whether those arrested this week were members of Batasuna, but it is quite possible that this is only the beginning of a more permanent crackdown of the organisation in the State of France.

J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League 07/11/08