On February 12, five members of the musical group Raimundo el Canaste were summoned before the judge for the purpose of displacing the txosnagune during the festivities of Estella 2024 by the city council, in order to denounce the attitude of the institution in relation to the song Beef D'Alda. It was a song full of humor, irony and criticism, addressed to the mayor Marta Ruiz de Alda (UPN), but the municipal government says that they made death threats against the mayor and accused them of hate crimes and filed a complaint. On the eve of the trial, this Saturday, a "day for freedom of expression" has been organized in Estella to show solidarity.

The day before, 237 musicians from the Basque Country expressed their solidarity and support through a recently published document. Those who have signed the text say that "music is a powerful tool for social and political criticism" and believe that musicians have a "responsibility and obligation" to do so.

The case of Raimundo el Canastro is not the only one in recent times, and the others have also been mentioned in the note that was released: among other things, the 42 Yakovlev were summoned to testify in May last year for their lyrics, by the action of the Civil Guard, and the Pamplona rapper Black Marfil was sentenced to prison two years ago. "This type of behavior is becoming common against musicians," they say, and proclaim: "All these cases are attacks on freedom of expression, and it is legitimate to criticize institutions and power through music."

List of signatories