Segi niet terroristisch, maar wel illegaal

De 4th Section of the Penal Court in the Audiencia Nacional heeft een uitspraak gedaan in de zaak van de Spaanse staat tegen de organisaties Haika-Segi.

Volgens de onderzoeksrechter Garzon zijn de organisaties allemaal ETA. De uitspraak beweert echter het tegendeel. De organisaties worden niet gezien als terroristisch, hoewel ze misschien ideologisch veelgemeen hebben met de ETA zijn ze nooit betrokken geweest bij de gewapende strijd. Hoewel de rechtbank ze niet ziet als terroristisch kregen de betrokkenen wel maximum straffen voor het illegaal zijn van de organisaties.

Verdict Nº 27/05

The 4th Section of the Penal Court in the Audiencia Nacional made public their verdict on the trial against the youth organisations Haika-Segi. This was the first of the trials included in what is known as the macro-case 18/98.

The verdict contradicts judge Garzón’s thesis, which argues that “it is all ETA”, as it declares that bearing in mind the UN definition on terrorism, as well as the jurisprudence of the Spanish Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court, the group of elements necessary to consider the youth organisations as terrorist organisations do not occur in Jarrai, Haika and Segi. Specifically, there is an acknowledgement that, “although the said organisations may have aims which are ideologically close to those which the terrorist organisation ETA pursues with its armed activity, their activities –as well as the legitimate ones- never involved the use of weapons, in the terms set out by the aforementioned jurisprudence”.

Nevertheless, although the court did not consider the youth organisations to be terrorist, it did confirm their illegalisation and handed out maximum sentences –three and a half years jail- for that crime –although many of the defendants had spent more time in jail than the sentence they have now received- including a special disqualification from being elected, special disqualification from public work or posts, high fines and the obligation to pay the cost of the trial.

The verdict devotes a large part of its 118 pages to attempt to establish connections between ETA and the youth organisations. With a historical account beginning in 1974, the tribunal attempts to establish links between the armed organisation and the youth organisations, with the poor quality of evidence remarked on by many observers. In other words, the court decision finds the connection between Haika-Segi and ETA proven but states that by definition it is impossible for these organisations to be terrorist; rather, they are merely illegal.

Website met informatie en achtergrond
Engelse samenvatting van de uitspraak
complete tekst in het Spaans