FUNDACIÓN VÍCTIMAS DEL TERRORISMO 96 - ENGLISH

41 ASSOCIATIONS AND FOUNDATIONS judgment included offences of attempted terrorist homicide, unlawful possession of weapons and ammunition, possession of explosives, robbery and document forgery. Consuelo Ordóñez recalled that “ ongi etorri welcomes are among the most hu- miliating acts for victims of terrorism. We had not recorded a public ongi eto- rri since 2022. The fact that one took place this year, even concealed within the Tamborrada, shows that the Basque nationalist left did not stop honouring ETAmembers on their release fromprison out of ethical reflection, but for strategic reasons: the high social and political cost it faced because of the majority rejection these events provoke. With this ongi etorri , they must have thought that concealing it within a festival attended by large crowds would reduce the cost of holding these de- plorable events,” she denounced. KORRIKA , ONE OF THE YEAR’S MOST SERIOUS EPISODES COVITE highlights the use of Korrika as a showcase of support for ETA prisoners and members as one of the most serious episodes of the first half of 2026. Of the 129 acts recorded so far this year, 23 were linked to Korrika , where COVITE and the Fernando Buesa Blanco Foundation docu- mented 38 images of ETA members. During the 2026 edition of the race organi- sed by AEK, the two organisations recorded the public display of images of ETA mem- bers, the handing of the baton toETAmem- bers and the use of minors to carry symbols or messages supporting the organisation’s prisoners. Among the most serious episo- des were the handing of the baton in San Sebastián to ETAmembers Balbino Sáenz, Mikel San Argimiro and Xabier Atristain; the handing of the baton inBilbao to SARE spokesperson Bego Atxa and the son of de- ceased ETA member Kepa del Hoyo; and the use in Pamplona of a child carrying the lekuko batonwhile wearing a T-shirt depic- ting ETAmember Patxi Ruiz, themurderer of Tomás Caballero. For COVITE, these are neither isolated nor unavoidable incidents, but a direct consequence of Korrika ’s organisers tole- rating the exploitation of a race in defence of the Basque language to legitimise ETA and its prisoners. “Mixing the legitimate defence of a language with the glorifica- tion of terrorists convicted of murders and other extremely serious crimes is indecent, immoral and deeply offensive to victims,” Ordóñez stated. PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF ETA PRISONERS DESPITE PRISON PRIVILEGES COVITE also denounced the Bas- que nationalist left’s continued public showcasing of current and former ETA prisoners, even when many have been granted third-grade open prison status or arrangements under Article 100.2. For the Collective, this demonstrates that such prison privileges are being granted fraudulently, without prisoners proving genuine remorse or a real break with the political and social milieu that legitimises ETA. “It is impossible to maintain that an ETA prisoner is remorseful while their politi- cal milieu continues to display them as a role model and demand their release on the grounds that they are a ‘political pri- soner’,” Consuelo Ordóñez said. “The Bas- que nationalist left continues to boast of its ties to ETA prisoners, and the Basque Government continues to grant third-gra- de status and Article 100.2 arrangements as though those ties did not exist. It moc- ks victims and clearly demonstrates the preferential treatment ETA prisoners are enjoying,” she added.