Protest at Visit of Spanish Ambassador to UCC//Protestas ante la embajadora española en la Universidad de Cork

photo gallery

==fr==

Members of the Cork Basque Solidarity Committee and Ógra Shinn Fein held a protest yesterday at the visit of the Spanish ambassador to University College Cork. The protest was to highlight to continued denial of human rights in the Basque Country and the refusal of the Spanish government to engage in a meaningful peace process.

As part of the protest, the group held a re-enactment of the kind of torture that is routinely inflicted on Basque political activists by the Spanish state.
Spokesperson for the Cork Basque Solidarity Committee Donal McGrath said:
"Yesterday's protest was to highlight the reality that, while Spain preaches about democracy, it refuses to negotiate with the Basque independence movement and continues its programme of represssion in the Basque Country. The past decade has witnessed the banning of political parties, the forced closure of pro-independence media outlets, and the torture of political prisoners. Repeated attempts by the Basque pro-independence left to initiative a peace process, including the implementation of a number of ceasefires by ETA, have been spurned. ETA ended its campaign earlier this year and senior figures in the Basque Independence Movement have said their struggle should in future be pursued by exclusively peaceful means. However instead of opening up negotations or accepting the right of the Basque Country to self dtermination, the Spanish government has if anything clamped down harder on any expression of dissent."
"Our protest yesterday was designed to highlight the hipocrisy of the Spanish government and show the ambassador that the Basque Country does not walk alone"

==it==

Members of the Cork Basque Solidarity Committee and Ógra Shinn Fein held a protest yesterday at the visit of the Spanish ambassador to University College Cork. The protest was to highlight to continued denial of human rights in the Basque Country and the refusal of the Spanish government to engage in a meaningful peace process.

As part of the protest, the group held a re-enactment of the kind of torture that is routinely inflicted on Basque political activists by the Spanish state.
Spokesperson for the Cork Basque Solidarity Committee Donal McGrath said:
"Yesterday's protest was to highlight the reality that, while Spain preaches about democracy, it refuses to negotiate with the Basque independence movement and continues its programme of represssion in the Basque Country. The past decade has witnessed the banning of political parties, the forced closure of pro-independence media outlets, and the torture of political prisoners. Repeated attempts by the Basque pro-independence left to initiative a peace process, including the implementation of a number of ceasefires by ETA, have been spurned. ETA ended its campaign earlier this year and senior figures in the Basque Independence Movement have said their struggle should in future be pursued by exclusively peaceful means. However instead of opening up negotations or accepting the right of the Basque Country to self dtermination, the Spanish government has if anything clamped down harder on any expression of dissent."
"Our protest yesterday was designed to highlight the hipocrisy of the Spanish government and show the ambassador that the Basque Country does not walk alone"

==en==

Members of the Cork Basque Solidarity Committee and Ógra Shinn Fein held a protest yesterday at the visit of the Spanish ambassador to University College Cork. The protest was to highlight to continued denial of human rights in the Basque Country and the refusal of the Spanish government to engage in a meaningful peace process.

As part of the protest, the group held a re-enactment of the kind of torture that is routinely inflicted on Basque political activists by the Spanish state.
Spokesperson for the Cork Basque Solidarity Committee Donal McGrath said:
"Yesterday's protest was to highlight the reality that, while Spain preaches about democracy, it refuses to negotiate with the Basque independence movement and continues its programme of represssion in the Basque Country. The past decade has witnessed the banning of political parties, the forced closure of pro-independence media outlets, and the torture of political prisoners. Repeated attempts by the Basque pro-independence left to initiative a peace process, including the implementation of a number of ceasefires by ETA, have been spurned. ETA ended its campaign earlier this year and senior figures in the Basque Independence Movement have said their struggle should in future be pursued by exclusively peaceful means. However instead of opening up negotations or accepting the right of the Basque Country to self dtermination, the Spanish government has if anything clamped down harder on any expression of dissent."
"Our protest yesterday was designed to highlight the hipocrisy of the Spanish government and show the ambassador that the Basque Country does not walk alone"

==eu==

Crónica desde Cork.

Cuando le embajadora de españa en Irlanda fue invitada a hablar a los estudiantes de la universidad de Cork sobre la presidencia del estado espanol de la UE, quizas pensaba que le harian una pregunta sobre las relaciones de estado español con el Pais Vasco del Sur. Pero seguro que no esperaba que habría tantas preguntas sobre el tema, ni que le enfrentarían con pikete y teatro con la actuación de la tortura practicada por el estado español.

Al llegar a la universidad, la embajadora pude ver a miembros del Comite de Solidaridad con Euskal Herria y de Ógra Shinn Féin haciendo el teatro callejero y portando carteles diciendo que españa tortura a detenidos vascos y con la pancarta del comite con la lema "Libertad para el Pais Vasco" en Ingles.

La embajadora entró en la reunión a dar su charla. Al terminar los estudiantes empezaron a hacer preguntas. El tema Vasco era lo mayoritario. "Si el estado español es un estado democrático", le pregunto un estudiante Kurdo, "por que no se permiten a los Catalanes y a los Vascos hacer referendo a ver si el pueblo quiere la independencia?" Tambien le preguntó porque se niegan a negociar con el movimiento independista Vasco, cometando que ETA esta en tregua desde enero.

La embajadora se encontro evidamente muy incomoda y muchas preguntas siguieron con el tema del Pais Vasco.

De afuera de vez en cuando se oia gritos de "Jo ta ke!" y, en Inglés, "Libertad para el Pais Vasco!"

En el comunicado a la prensa, un representante del Comite de Solidaridad con el Pais Vasco dijo que "el estado español se niega a negociar con el movimiento independista" .... " aun que ETA hizo varias treguas y esta ahora en tregua de nuevo desde el Enero pasado." "Sin embargo, el Estado Español .... ha ampliado la represión", siguio el representante. "Nuestra protesta hoy demuestra que el Pais Vasco no camina solo."

==es==

Crónica desde Cork.

Cuando le embajadora de españa en Irlanda fue invitada a hablar a los estudiantes de la universidad de Cork sobre la presidencia del estado espanol de la UE, quizas pensaba que le harian una pregunta sobre las relaciones de estado español con el Pais Vasco del Sur. Pero seguro que no esperaba que habría tantas preguntas sobre el tema, ni que le enfrentarían con pikete y teatro con la actuación de la tortura practicada por el estado español.

Al llegar a la universidad, la embajadora pude ver a miembros del Comite de Solidaridad con Euskal Herria y de Ógra Shinn Féin haciendo el teatro callejero y portando carteles diciendo que españa tortura a detenidos vascos y con la pancarta del comite con la lema "Libertad para el Pais Vasco" en Ingles.

La embajadora entró en la reunión a dar su charla. Al terminar los estudiantes empezaron a hacer preguntas. El tema Vasco era lo mayoritario. "Si el estado español es un estado democrático", le pregunto un estudiante Kurdo, "por que no se permiten a los Catalanes y a los Vascos hacer referendo a ver si el pueblo quiere la independencia?" Tambien le preguntó porque se niegan a negociar con el movimiento independista Vasco, cometando que ETA esta en tregua desde enero.

La embajadora se encontro evidamente muy incomoda y muchas preguntas siguieron con el tema del Pais Vasco.

De afuera de vez en cuando se oia gritos de "Jo ta ke!" y, en Inglés, "Libertad para el Pais Vasco!"
En el comunicado a la prensa, un representante del Comite de Solidaridad con el Pais Vasco dijo que "el estado español se niega a negociar con el movimiento independista" .... " aun que ETA hizo varias treguas y esta ahora en tregua de nuevo desde el Enero pasado." "Sin embargo, el Estado Español .... ha ampliado la represión", siguio el representante. "Nuestra protesta hoy demuestra que el Pais Vasco no camina solo."