FUNDACIÓN VÍCTIMAS DEL TERRORISMO 94 - ENGLISH

49 ASSOCIATION OF VICTIMS OF TERRORISM OF CASTILE AND LEÓN T he Collective of Victims of Terror- ism (COVITE) recorded a total of 374 acts of support for ETA throughout in 2025 on its Radicalisa- tion Observatory, a section of the Collec- tive’s website where all incidents related to violent radicalisation in the context of ETA terrorism are documented. The data collected throughout 2025 indicates that there were 47 fewer incidents than in 2024, representing an 11% decrease compared to 2024, a year in which a to- tal of 421 acts of support for ETA and its prisoners were documented. For the third consecutive year, COVITE has noted the complete disappearance of the ‘ongi etorris’ directed at ETA prison- ers upon their release from prison, as in 2023, 2024 and 2025 the organisation, chaired by Consuelo Ordóñez, did not document a single incident of this kind, which the organisation describes as ‘good news’. “COVITE launched the Rad- icalisationObservatory at the end of 2016, almost 10 years ago, precisely to highlight and denounce the fact that the ‘ongi etor- ris’ attacks, which recurred after every release of an ETA member, caused pro- found harm to their victims. Some were even held in locations directly linked to the victims, such as beneath their homes, which highlighted their particularly cruel nature. The disappearance of these acts is a positive step for the victims and for so- ciety,” said Consuelo Ordóñez in a state- ment released on 7 January 2026. However, COVITE has warned that the slight drop in the number of incidents and the disappearance of the ‘ongi etorris’ should not be misleading. The number of incidents recorded in 2025 remains high and highlights the fact that ETA’s social legitimacy remains very much present in the public sphere of the Basque Country and Navarre. This conclusion is particu- larly worrying given the high number of ETA members who have been released from prison in recent years, which has led COVITE RECORDED 374 ACTS OF SUPPORT FOR ETA IN 2025 IN ITS RADICALISATION OBSERVATORY In a statement issued on 7 January 2026, the Collective warned that, despite the disappearance of the so-called `ongi etorris´and a slight decline in reported cases, social support for ETA remains very much alive in the Basque Country and Navarre to a decline in certain forms of protest and mobilisation that were previously more common within the Basque nationalist left. However, despite this, this reality has barely resulted in a significant reduction in the total number of events in support of ETA, which demonstrates that the un- derlying problemof legitimising terrorism persists. In this regard, throughout 2025 the Collective observed that “the cult of ETA through other types of events remains verymuch present in the public sphere”, as reflected in the 374 events documented by the Observatory on Radicalisation. Of the total number of acts carried out, 141 took place in Vizcaya, 129 in Guipúzcoa, 69 in Navarre, 19 in Álava, 10 in other prov- inces and 6 abroad, mainly in the French Basque Country. With regard to the types of acts of sup- port for ETA recorded in 2025, 161 were demonstrations calling for the release of imprisoned ETA members; 116 involved graffiti and banners explicitly praising ETA and its prisoners; 23 involved pub- lic festivals that provide an ideal setting for glorifying ETA and its prisoners, as has been the case with summer festivities or on specific dates such as Christmas Eve andNewYear’s Eve; 39 public tributes to deceased ETAmembers; 5 were tributes held in public spaces for ETA members who are still in prison, involving the dis- play of a photograph of the ETA member in question and the performance of an aurresku in their honour – a new type of event that COVITE has observed over the last three years in which there have been no ongi etorris (2023, 2024 and 2025); and the remaining 30 events have been classified under the category ‘Oth- ers’, as they could not be classified under any of the previous categories. The most common form of commem- oration throughout 2025 has been the tributes paid to the ETA members “Tx- iki” and Otaegi. Graffiti, banners and public events in their honour, mark- ing the 50th anniversary of their exe- cution, intensified significantly from the summer months onwards and contin- ued throughout the rest of the year. COVITE has reiterated on numerous occasions that “those executions were a crime committed by an illegitimate regime, namely Franco’s dictatorship, and, in that sense, both were victims of Francoism”. However, the Collective also stresses that “the injustice of their ex- ecutions does not erase their criminal responsibilities as members of ETA. “The ethical judgement regarding the violence they perpetrated and the political project they served—namely that of ETA—remains relevant and must be addressed,” COVITE has stat- ed. In this regard, the Collective insists that the Basque nationalist left does not honour “Txiki” and Otaegi for having been victims of Francoism, but for having been members of ETA. “Proof of this is that they do not remember in the same way those who peacefully opposed the dictatorship and were also victims of Francoism; on the contrary, they delib- erately ignore them.” Therefore, in CO- VITE’s view, “the repeated vindication of ‘Txiki’ and Otaegi serves a clear political objective: to legitimise ETA and white- wash its criminal history.” ASSOCIATIONS AND FOUNDATIONS