Naiale Urkijo
Vitoria (EFE).- The Basque Government’s prison adviser, Jaime Tapia, has “no doubt” that the ETA prisoners who are granted the third degree are sorry for their terrorist actions, even if they do not use expressly the word ‘forgiveness’.
This term is precisely one of the “nuanced legal discrepancies” between the regional Executive and the National Court (AN), which has revoked 10 of the 39 progressions granted to ETA prisoners and which “demands” the use of the word ‘forgiveness’ . Tapia, however, understands that there are “expressions that humanly and symbolically mean the same thing.”
Instead of taking refuge in the word ‘forgiveness’ as a “totem”, he advocates in an interview with EFE for validating “similar expressions that denote repentance, recognition of the damage, the will that things not happen again and empathy or consideration towards the victims ” which in “practice is the same as ‘sorry’”.
To determine if it is a “sincere and honest” expression that truly shows repentance, the prisoner must be observed and interviewed in the prison itself. There, as he explains, lawyers, social workers and educators “identify if there really is that attitude similar or analogous to forgiveness.”
These experts issue a report that is incorporated into other documents to give “foundation to say that the requirement” of expressly asking for forgiveness is met. For this reason, when the prison Treatment Boards raise the grade progression of an ETA prisoner, Tapia is clear that “there is regret.”
“No doubt” that they are sorry
“I have no doubts because I trust the experts who work with them. That is the best test of cotton ”and it is more valuable than a pardon that can be” false or utilitarian ”, she exposes.
Tapia stresses that the grade progressions for ETA prisoners are “motivated” and are based on a “rigorous, exhaustive and case-by-case” analysis and concludes that, in view of the records of the National Court in which he has revoked the granting of third degrees, there are only “nuance discrepancies”.
“It is not a battle, not even a legal one. It is a legal discrepancy in terms of respect, especially on our part towards the Judiciary”, assures the adviser to the Basque Government, who emphasizes in this sense that, after each revocation, the regional Administration tries to “adapt the prison treatment of that person to the judicial decision”.
Since the Basque Country took over the management of the prisons in October 2021, 668 third degrees have been granted, 41 of which to ETA prisoners (39 by the Basque Government and 2 by the AN itself).
This judicial body has revoked 10 progressions in this time, a figure that does not make Tapia feel “discredited” because 65% of the third degrees have been supported, nor does he feel “praised” when the decisions of his team are confirmed .
In the end, it is a “very evaluative question based on circumstances that are not fully regulated by law that sometimes depend on subjective variables” and hence “these discrepancies may occur.”
The new doctrine of the Supreme
Regarding the new doctrine of the Supreme Court according to which a third-degree inmate must return to jail when the prosecutor appeals his semi-liberty regime and wait in prison for the merits of the matter to be resolved, Tapia has “nothing to say ” beyond “respect and comply” with this and all judicial decisions.
Remember, however, that the suspension of Xabier Atristain and Juan Manuel Inziarte from the third grade by the National Court in application of this new doctrine “does not question” the relevance of the grade progression and, in fact, it may happen that the Court determines finally that the grade progression was “correct”.
On the other hand, Jaime Tapia “humanly understands” that there are victims of ETA who criticize that the terrorists achieve semi-liberty, but reminds them that “the laws must be complied with for the victims and for the perpetrators.”
He assures, however, that “there are many cases” in which grade progressions are not granted to prisoners of the gang “even if it seems otherwise.” They only get it when the requirements are met, he stresses.
The adviser to the Department of Equality, Justice and Social Policies “respects and understands” the victims, including the fact that during his time as a judge he spent 12 years with bodyguards and his life was “very conditioned” by the terrorist threat.
“I have suffered a lot and my family too, but I have to get over it and I have to comply with the law,” he concludes. EFE