The Hague: action against itoiz dam today!

For Immediate Release
International Protest Against Itoiz Dam in
Navarra
- - protesters build wall in door of Spanish
Embassy, The Hague.

At 6:00 this morning, June 20 2000, a group of
about 30 people constructed a wall of bricks in
the door of the Spanish Embassy in The Hague,
The Netherlands in protest against the building
of the Itoiz Dam in the Basque Country of Spain.
This action took place in response to the court
case against two women activists who managed to
stop the illegal building of the Dam for some
time in 1998.

On the night of September 21 1998, these two
women sabotaged 54 machines used for road
building supporting Dam construction. Insisting
on being accountable for their actions, the
women gave themselves up freely to police the
next day. Their court case however, did not take
place until May 8 this year.

The Navarran Government has demanded a three-
year prison sentence plus payment of large fines
for both women. The final outcome of the court's
decision is expected at any moment. The
solidarity action today at the Spanish Embassy
in The Hague was conceived to symbolically
demonstrate what it is like to have an unwanted
dam in front of your house. Two protesters
climbed the balcony and hung a banner with the
text: S.O.S. ITOIZ! The activists demanded that
the Spanish Ambassador publicly disclose the
real reason behind the construction of the Itoiz
Dam, declared illegal by the Spanish courts for
years and to ask why peaceful protest against
illegal projects such as that of the two women,
receive such extreme punishment.

Its construction will flood a 35km long (1.100
hectare) valley in the Basque Country. Not only
is this valley an environmentally sensitive
area, it also contains nine villages that will
all disappear under water. Contrary to
Government statements, the Itoiz Dam will not
produce much extra electricity and no serious
plans for irrigation exist. Geologists also have
doubts about the safety of the Dam due to the
instability of the surrounding slope. The Dam
has become a prestige project of the Navarran
Government and is riddled with corruption,
nepotism and bribery.

Although people have been peacefully protesting
against its construction since 1985, building of
the Itoiz Dam went ahead in 1994. It was then
that the group,  Solidari@s con Itoiz started a
campaign of non-violent direct action to stop
this illegal construction. The best known of
these fully accountable actions took place in
1996 in which eight people sawed through cables
above the Dam used to transport cement and other
building materials. After giving themselves up,
these eight activists were seriously beaten and
have each received prison sentences of five
years. There have been several non-violent
direct actions since this time. The action of
the two women being highlighted today is one of
the most significant.

Today's action in front of the Spanish Embassy takes place on the heels of
the
recent  Solidari@s con Itoiz Tour of Europe in which they drew international
attention to the struggle against the Itoiz Dam and the severity of the
punishments given to their non-violent actions. The most notable action of
this
Tour took place in The Hague during the opening session of the World Water
Forum (March 16 2000), in which they asked all present to focus attention on
the enormous problems inherent in large dam construction projects not only in

the Basque Country, but around the world.

Stop the Dam, Save the Valley!

For more detailed information during and after
the action: 06-23390616 (Spanish and English) or
06-24400453 (Dutch). Background information
about the Itoiz Dam, the group  Solidari@s con
Itoiz and the court case against the two women
who sabotaged machinery may be found at:
. High
quality digital pictures will also be available
on this site immediately following the action
today.