On November 1st, at 00.00 a.m., twenty Basque political prisoners -imprisoned in jails of the Basque Country and the French State- started an indefinite hunger strike.

The main idea in the five claims' list that the prisoners' group issued to the prisons' managements is that the political prisoners should be released to take part in the process of the Basque Country.

BASQUE POLITICAL PRISONERS' CLAIMS:

1. The release of all the Basque political prisoners so that they can take part in the national construction process of the Basque Country.

2. The transfer of all the Basque political prisoners to the Basque Country.

3. The release of all the Basque prisoners who, for different reasons, are seriously ill.

4. The release of all those who have already served their sentence.

5. End to the expulsions and extraditions, and the respect for the Basques' right to live free in the Basque Country.

Since January 1996, the Basque political prisoners have carried out a joint and non-stop fight. On January 15th that year, the group of Basque political prisoners started an indefinite fight to demand their transfer to the Basque Country. In addition, the prisoners in the French State also claimed "Basque people's right to live free in the Basque Country". This fight has had different stages and methods such as hunger strikes or "chapeos", that is, prisoners' refusal to get out from their cells all day. These and other actions have been carried out to struggle against the most cruel side of the prison policy: solitary confinement, threats of being handed from one Police to the other, continous frisks, searchings, punishments, abuses and provocations on the part of prison officials. On November 1st, a further huge jump was made.

This demand for the prisoners' repatriation and the respect for their rights has always been supported by the majority of the Basque people. Big demonstrations and initiatives have been carried out by the Basque people and institutions. To name only a few, the statement of support passed by the Parliament of Gasteiz on January 19th, 1996; the big rally organised by PNV-EA-HB-IU and different grass-roots organisations (Ibaeta, Batera...) on January 9th, 1999; and the rotating hunger strikes carried out by representatives of the Basque political, cultural, social and labour world. All these initiatives are still supported by an increasing number of Basque people.

The Spanish Government felt compelled to make some changes in their prison policy. However, these changes have never satisfied Basque people whatsoever. The Spanish Ministry of the Interior stated that "bringing 105 prisoners nearer" was a "gesture" of goodwill in their prison policy, but in fact only 27 prisoners were transferred to jails located in the Basque territory. This political manoeuvre was then hardly critised as it confirmed the Spanish Government's manipulation of prisoners.

Since the Basque Country embarked on the new political process -after the Lizarra Garazi Declaration was signed (September 12th, 1998) and ETA announced an indefinite cease-fire (September 16th, 1998)-, it is even more important to demand political prisoners' release and their direct participation on the democratic process. This is actually what they are claiming with their new initiative.