Josu Muguruza (1958–1989) was a Basque journalist and politician who was assassinated in Madrid on 20 November 1989. Muguruza was among the leaders of Herri Batasuna, a Basque nationalist political party. He was about to serve at the Spanish Parliament for the party when he was killed.

Josu Muguruza
Born
Josu Muguruza Guarrotxena

1958
Bilbao, Spain
Died20 November 1989 (aged 30–31)
Madrid, Spain
Cause of deathAssassination
Burial placeBilbao
OccupationJournalist
Political partyHerri Batasuna

Biography

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Muguruza was born in Bilbao in 1958.[1] He received a bachelor's degree in information sciences.[2] He was a journalist by profession[1][3] and worked as an editor-in-chief of Egin newspaper.[2]

Muguruza was a member of the Herri Batasuna and was part of the moderate group within the party who supported the peace talks between the Government of Spain and ETA.[4][5] He was elected as a deputy from the Herri Batasuna in the 1989 general elections.[6]

Muguruza had a daughter, Ane,[7] born two weeks after the murder of her father.[1]

Assassination

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Muguruza was assassinated in Madrid on 20 November 1989 before he received his certificate of election.[6] He was dining at a restaurant of Hotel Alcalá.[7] The perpetrators were the members of an anti-ETA group known as GAL.[6] Ricardo Sáenz Ynestrillas, a member of the neo-fascist group, Spanish Social Movement (Movimiento Social Espanol), was arrested and tried for his alleged involvement in the killing of Muguruza, but soon released due to the lack of evidence.[8]

Later seven individuals, including a former police officer, Ángel Duce Hernández, were arrested in late July 1990.[9][10] Of them, Duce and Ricardo Saenz de Ynestrillas were the members of a right-wing group called National Anti-Terrorist Group of Spain and were put trial for killing Muguruza.[11] Duce confessed in the trial that he and two other men murdered Muguruza for political reasons, but claimed that Ynestrillas was not involved in the attack.[11] Duce was sentenced to 100 years for the murder of Muguruza.[9] Duce was killed in a traffic accident in Alcorcón in August 1997 while he was using a six-day prison permit.[9]

Funeral and legacy

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A funeral ceremony was held for Muguruza in Bilbao on 23 November 1989.[12] A monumental sculpture was erected in his honor in Bilbao.[13]

The day, 20 November, Muguruza was assassinated has been commemorated by the Basque people since on the same day another Herri Batasuna leader Santiago Brouard was assassinated in 1984.[14]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Arantza Alegría (21 November 2019). "Capítulo 14: Los GAL y la extrema derecha contra HB. Los asesinatos de Brouard y Muguruza". Cadena SER (in Spanish). Bilbao. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Josu Muguruza Guarrotxena". Covite. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  3. ^ Diego Muro (2009). "The politics of war memory in radical Basque nationalism". Ethnic and Racial Studies. 32 (4): 673. doi:10.1080/01419870801943654. S2CID 145169626.
  4. ^ "Gunmen Kill Basque Politician in an Attack at a Madrid Restaurant". The New York Times. 22 November 1989. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Basque MPs defiant". The Times. No. 63558. Madrid. 22 November 1989. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  6. ^ a b c José Antonio Pérez (2016). "Democratisation of the Spanish state: Between extreme right-wing violence and police brutality". In Rafael Leonisio; et al. (eds.). ETA's Terrorist Campaign: From Violence to Politics, 1968–2015. Abingdon; New York: Routledge. p. 65. ISBN 978-1-317-32915-2.
  7. ^ a b Danilo Albin (20 November 2019). "Familiares de Brouard y Muguruza denuncian el "doble rasero" del Estado en el aniversario de sus asesinatos". Público. p. es. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  8. ^ "Spain: Extreme right organise". Statewatch. 1 November 1994. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  9. ^ a b c Juan Frances; Jesus Duva (17 August 1997). "Muere en un accidente de tráfico el ex policía que mató a un diputado de HB". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  10. ^ Jane Walker (31 July 1990). "International News in Brief: Spanish arrests". The Guardian. Madrid. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Two on trial in Spain for shooting Basque deputy leader". United Press International. Madrid. 25 January 1993. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  12. ^ "Timeline of terrorism in the Basque country (1968-2011)". Arovite. December 2014. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  13. ^ Javier Fernández Vázquez (2018). "After the quarantine: a closer look at monuments to victims of ETA in the Basque country and Navarre". Journal of Spanish Cultural Studies. 19 (2): 224. doi:10.1080/14636204.2018.1456148. S2CID 216092336.
  14. ^ Jesús Casquete (2013). "Commemorative Calendar and Reproduction of Radical Basque Nationalism". Politics, Religion & Ideology. 14 (1): 29. doi:10.1080/21567689.2012.739968. S2CID 147548419.