“This is a condemnation of all of us who organize politically in defense of democratic rights, equality, and freedom. The arrests of the Zaragoza 6 reflect the political decision to systematically criminalize protest, seeking to punish them to instill fear. It reinforces the political power of the police and judicial apparatuses, over and above the democratic rights won through centuries of struggle.”
Since the emergence of the Gazte Koordinadora Sozialista (GKS), [click here to read more about the emergence of the communist youth movement, GKS] the official leadership of the Nationalist left (EH Bildu) in the Basque Country has treated them as a nuisance; maintaining an official appearance of ignoring them. Last year, Arkaitz Rodríguez, the general secretary of Sortu (the largest party in the EH Bildu coalition) described the group as ‘reactionary’.