12 March 2025
Bilbao Campus
n the framework of March 11, European Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Terrorism, the University of Deusto hosted on March 12 a meeting between students and Mari Carmen Hernández, a victim of ETA terrorism, who shared her testimony about the years of harassment and violence suffered by her family. During her speech she also told of the fear and helplessness they experienced long before the murder of her husband, Popular Party councilman Jesús Mari.
As she explained, the harassment began with organized demonstrations in front of their home, where candles were lit, banners were displayed and stones were thrown. Despite constant calls to the police, the responses were insufficient or late, leaving the family in a situation of constant vulnerability.
On the day of the murder, Mari Carmen Hernández was in the kitchen when she heard on the radio that a crime had occurred in her town. Minutes later, she discovered that the victim was her husband. This event marked a before and after in her life, highlighting the difficult reality experienced by many families threatened by terrorist violence.
In 2007, the Office of Attention to Victims of Terrorism of the Basque Government proposed that they participate in a pluralistic meeting between victims of different types of terrorism. As she recounted, there were those affected by the Spanish Basque Battalion, a parapolice group of the extreme right; by the GAL, a State terrorism during the government of Felipe González, which acted in a similar way to ETA; and by the case of Lasa and Zabala, two young men linked to ETA who, despite not having a criminal record, were tortured and murdered.
Mari Carmen Hernández attended this meeting with the intention of listening to other stories and encouraging dialogue. The meeting was held in Ireland, in a peace center, in a place away from the media. The first session was particularly hard, with conflicting ideas and emotional barriers that were gradually broken down to build a space for coexistence. During the first two years, the meetings took place in Ireland, and later moved to Palencia.
The testimony of Mari Carmen Hernández served to reflect on the importance of memory, justice and recognition of those who suffered harassment and persecution by ETA. Her intervention at the University of Deusto underlined the need to strengthen dialogue and empathy as key tools for reconciliation.
