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THREE INTERNATIONAL MONITORS have given evidence about their meeting with militants from the armed Basque separatist group ETA.
The move came after the International Verification Commission announced on Friday that it had overseen ETA militants handing over a small cache of weapons as the first step towards disarmament.
It released a video, shot in January, that showed two of its members receiving guns and explosives from militants in balaclavas.
The commission’s work in monitoring the ETA ceasefire is not recognised by the Spanish government, which insists ETA disband without conditions.
Victims’ association Covite has demanded that all six members of the commission be summoned to give evidence on the whereabouts of the militants.
Commission head Ram Manikkalingam, a Sri Lankan who once advised his government during talks with Tamil Tiger rebels, pledged to be “transparent” and cooperate with the tribunal and Judge Ismael Moreno.
“We are working for the consolidation of peace and coexistence in the Basque country,” he said after leaving the tribunal.
It has been three years since ETA declared a permanent unilateral and verifiable ceasefire. ETA has upheld the ceasefire and complied with its commitment to end violence. Now it is time to seal ETA’s weapons and put them beyond operational use.
Ram Manikkalingam, a member of the commission overseeing the Basque group ETA’s ceasefire. (Pic: AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
Others to appear before Moreno were Ronnie Kasrils, a former intelligence minister in South Africa; and Chris MacCabe, a Briton who previously worked on the Northern Ireland peace process.
Ahead of their appearance, they met with Basque leader Inigo Urkullu, a nationalist who expressed his “support and appreciation” for the commissions work in “helping Basque citizens to turn once and for all the page of violence”.
Pro-independence groups in the region were more vehement, with the head of a pro-independence coalition, Amaiur Jon Inarritu, calling the summons by the Madrid tribunal “ridiculous” and “nonsensical”.
In its statement on Friday, the commission called the hand-over of weapons “a significant step”, saying the small number of arms was the result of constraints caused by operating “in clandestine conditions”.
Manikkalingam called on French and Spanish governments to facilitate the process.
The conservative government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy dismissed the move by ETA, which is classed as a terrorist group by the United States and European Union.
ETA is blamed for the deaths of 829 people in a four-decade campaign of shootings and bombings for an independent Basque homeland in northern Spain and southwestern France.
It has been much weakened over recent years by the arrests of its senior leaders.
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Solidarity Greetings to the Basque People hopefully your Independence isn’t to far away
Solidarity greetings from one terrorist group to another you mean…
KKK you must have my notifications on alert they’re freedom fighters fighting for their own land the same way the Provisional IRA fought to defend their people
Don’t flatter yourself Thomas. They’re not freedom fighters. They’re terrorists same was as the IRA or any other Republican offshoot…or Loyalist for that matter.
Tomas don’t feed it
I’m not it’s not worth it
Because you can’t justify murder, whether it’s 829 people in Spain or 3000+ in Northern Ireland/Britain or Ireland. Murder is murder.
“Defend their people”, you must be high
KKK sounds like Thatchier
Why would I be high Steve where was the Irish Government when their own civilians where being murdered by the British Army in the streets of Derry Ballymurphy Westrock Whiterock etc the list is endless someone had to defend the Irish People if this land and that was the Provisional Irish Republican Army and i for one am grateful for them
Were they defending their people at Kingsmills or Enniskillen?
John Hume did more with his words than your shower of low life’s did with a gun !!!
Alan what are you trying to insinuate ?? And who is a low life
Sinn Fein / Ira of course who else !!!
Alan tell me this, was it John Hume who defended the nationalist citizens of Short Strand when the loyalist hordes came to burn St Mathews church and to try and do to the Short Strand what they did to Bombay street.
Was my post removed?
Sound like Thatchier (sic)? How so, because I don’t support murderers? Says a lot about you…
What does it say about me KKK your just a typical blueshift with the same old story whilst we try to move on ppl like you keep trying to drag us into the past which will never happen
and you… the KKK would know all about murder wouldn’t you? You must’ve smelled your own…
Jon Rudd ??
Sorry Joan, you lost me there?
A Blueshirt!? Why exactly? Attack is the best form of defence with you and your ilk. You talk about moving on, yet you glorify murderers. You can’t even own up to your sordid past. That is why you will always be a minority group in this country..
KKK you constantly twist articles to start arguments about SF , IRA and the nationalist community is that all you live sleep and breath .. Let it go Kris let it go
Glen, Kris’ problem is that more and more nowadays, the Provos are being seen as freedom fighters and not terrorists. He calls it history being rewritten when in fact it’s just the truth coming out. You cannot debate with people whose minds are so closed Glen.
Certainly not Glen. Thomas McManus is under the impression that the IRA were/are freedom fighters when they were/are terrorists. ETA have murdered over 800 people as part of their armed campaign. They are also terrorists.
Good man Roland…I think you’ll find that that the vast majority of people see the IRA as terrorists, not freedom fighters. You see they have no mandate. They are terrorists. It is you that has the closed mind, with your camouflage blinkers. By the way did you try and educate yourself on the link I posted below by having a read?
My point kris is that you seem to have an unhealthy obsession going on
As far as I’m concerned the volunteers of yesteryear were freedom fighters I have little or no respect for the gangsters that followed them after the agreement
You see this is what I find disturbing Glen. By your analysis every murder, maiming, and bombing campaign that occurred before 1998 was legitimate. Is this correct?
I support any attack carried out on an occupying force as legit don’t you
Was Enniskillen legit? Was Kingsmill legit? Were the bombing of Guildford, Warrington, Birmingham, shopping centres in Manchester legit?
Occupying force is legit
There is no legitimate reason in bombing public places but it has to be said kris that it has long been rumored that the British mi5 was involved in bombings to be blamed on the IRA
Now you are saying MI5 are responsible for bombings and blamed them on the IRA. I have heard it all now. You truly have been brainwashed by the Republican propaganda. You need to stop reading An Phoblacht and listening to Comrade Adams….Republican paramilitaries have caused more hurt, despair and destruction than any other group on these islands. They are parasites.
Kris
Sorry do you know me ?
I have never stated what political party if any I support
I have never said I read An Phoblacht
I have never said I believe in those rumours
You have an intense obsession with this topic as I stated before and your agenda is to accuse people in the wrong and start arguments hence the reason I started this debate with you and you have proved me right
That was my agenda so with that said maybe you can sort your issue out and stop trolling
Kris is completely polarised is his views. There can be no reasonable debate with him.
Really Fang. It’s just I’m against murderers. You either agree or disagree, that’s up to you.
So what’s your opinion on the UVF or the British army? In the interest of consistency, I’m sure you feel the same about them as you do the IRA.
Fang, you cannot have a reasonable debate with KKK. The guy is totally blinded by his hatred of republicans. There’s a few of them comment on journal stories just to lead the comments off topic. Sad.
but are in favor of murders kris just as long as its the side you like doing it
Tomas. How can you even engage in debate with someone who uses KKK as his online name. KKK how can you dare criticise IRA freedom fighters when you choose to contrive a name like KKK. Blue shirt and a white pointed hood.
Is appears the inbreeding program has worked for the terrorists of SF , is it true they all gave webbed feet. Ah ya gotta love those idiots in SF they give us a great laugh. They are a lot similar to humans in many ways
Kris went very quiet when you asked him his opinion on the UVF and the British army.
I mean REALLY quiet.
What was written on the gable ends in those places?? IRA= I Ran Away
Dagnet, you obviously forgot about this one so:
“14 dead and not forgotten.
We got 18 and Mountbatten.”
Good man tomas your just telling the truth. Some people are just so ignorant
There would be no near for violence if people’s right to freedom was respected.
People have differing notions of freedom
Great news. Hopefully soon our Celtic brothers in the Basque region will have independence.
They’re not Celtic. I think you are mistaking the Basque Region with Galicia in North Western Spain.
Em Kris, I think you’re mistaken in thinking that I give a fvck what you think.
Em Roland. I think you will find it is you that is incorrect. Do some more research. In the meantime, feel free to peruse the link below at your leisure.
More braindead shinners :D
Correction – recently the Celtic Gene was traced to the Basque Country. If you visited you would understand as the people look, play music, have the same sense of humour and love of life as the Irish. A great place that deserves Independence. Gora Euskadi.
Any organisation, whether it nationalist, unionist, basque or otherwise, that indiscriminately kills civilians deserves absolute contempt and scorn. The sad thing is that, in time, the ideology and cause that such groups champion takes a back seat.
Filth, all of them.
The Spanish army is pretty well versed in indiscriminate killing of civilians. What’s your opinion on them?
He just said “any”.
How are the Spanish army well versed on killing ?
You’re not talking about the Franco era are you ? The 30s ?
The very same. Like I said, all filth.
I feel the same. A lot are inconsistent in their views though, rabidly defending one side and condemning the other. In situations like this, everyone has blood on their hands.
The Franco era lasted until his death, the Basque people were the only who kept the fight going against Franco’s regime, they also stormed the beaches in Normandy with the allies, so look up a bit of history first and you will be surprised
SF go one further and not only nudets innocent people they also have a keen interest in rape and incest. Sick animals should be put down.
And they also fought with Hitler on the Russian front…Just to give a bit of perspective too.
Ah Dagnet and Ironman, how’d the protest go tonight? The PSNIRA still won’t let you down the road? Ah well, back to the caravan for some buckfast and glue. Ye horrible excuses for human beings.
And the Spanish Guardia civil who just recently indirectly caused the death of 15 illegal immigrants by firing rubber bullets at them while trying to sneak across the border in Ceuta causing then to panic and fall in the sea, and the ones who made it a shore where dragged up to the Moroccan border and tossed back over the other side without any medical assistance breaching various human rights and the government seen no wrongdoing on the part of the Guardia Civil and now they are saying that this commission on the weapons is on the payroll of ETA
Savages admired by other savages with no respect for the lives or views of others.
Give it a rest, Paddy. You’re so predictable.
yeah because unionists are famed for their respect of others views,go on paddy you are always good for a laugh
Paddy is right
Oh give it a rest
Terrorists always stick together
Tell me about it, the Americans and British have been terrorising different regions around the globe as brothers in arms for a very long time.
So you’re a pizza delivery boy. And you’re in your 40′s. Explains a lot about.
Hopefully you deliver to barracks and get topped along with the sandbags next time!
Ironman talks about republican inbreeding. Think you’ll find that Edwin Poots is the poster boy of inbreeding.
Idiots
I wonder are their economic policies as hair brained as that lot on Parnell sq
Jazuz wept kkk do you ever shut up?
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