- To deal with the fine imposed on two citizens for placemaking, on 22 December at 22:00 hours they organised joint concerts in Eskilarapeko: Oh Ama! Makis and The Sonic Sactuary.
On May 18, the Municipal Guard held two neighbours of Ermua for over half an hour while putting up posters.
Subsequently, the City Council of Ermua decided to report to the Security Department the application of the Mordaza Law for refusing to identify itself while sticking the posters.
We think it is very serious that a city hall uses the Mordaza Law against its neighbors, especially when all parties have denounced this law, except the PP and the VOX.
We believe it is very serious that the City Hall is repressing the freedom of expression of its neighbours, systematically extracting the posters and banners placed by the collectives and social movements of the locality, especially if they are vindictive, on the basis of a municipal ordinance created with the sole objective of limiting a fundamental right that the City itself does not fulfil when it does not want.
It is very serious that the City Hall is repressing the freedom of expression of its neighbours, systematically removing the posters and banners placed by the collectives and social movements of the people.
We believe that it is an abuse of power for the City Hall to apply citizens’ freedoms, using the municipal police. And we also believe that coexistence responds to respect for freedoms and fundamental rights.
Therefore, the groups and entities of Ermua undersigned request the City Hall:
1. Withdraw the complaint from both neighbours on the basis of the appeal lodged by the denounced citizens.
2. The abandonment of the repression of citizens' freedoms and the non-use of municipal police for this purpose.
3. Let the City Hall respect citizens' freedom of expression and stop systematically starting the posters and banners that we put in local associations and institutions.
We ask that the municipal cleaning ordinance not be used to limit the exercise of this right and, through dialogue with all the associations of the people, we propose to seek alternatives to protect the aesthetics of our streets, while allowing them to be an open space to disseminate the freedom of expression of our inhabitants.
Because we want Ermua to be a live, dynamic, participatory, plural, inclusive, supportive and free people.
*Signatories: LAB, ELA, ESK, Ermua Women's Assembly, NUSHU - Young Women, Zipriztintzen - Gizon Taldea, Gazte Asanblada de Ermua, Komite Internazionalista de Ermua, Sare, Ernai.