Miguel Ángel Blanco
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Miguel Ángel Blanco | |
|---|---|
 Miguel Angel Blanco bust in the gardens bearing his name in Madrid | |
| Councillor in Ermua | |
| In office 28 May 1995 – 13 July 1997 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Miguel Ángel Blanco Garrido 13 May 1968 Ermua, Basque Country, Spain |
| Died | 13 July 1997 (aged 29) Lasarte-Oria, Basque Country, Spain |
| Manner of death | Assassination by firearm |
| Resting place | A Merca cemetery |
| Political party | People's Party |
| Domestic partner | María del Mar Díaz |
| Relations | María del Mar Blanco (sister) |
| Alma mater | University of the Basque Country |
Miguel Ángel Blanco Garrido (13 May 1968 – 13 July 1997) was a Spanish economist and municipal politician and a member of the People's Party, in Ermua, the Basque Country. He was kidnapped and murdered by the Basque separatist group ETA.
Biography
Early life
Miguel Ángel Blanco was born on 13 May 1968 in Ermua (Biscay) into a humble family. He had a sister, María del Mar. His father, Miguel Blanco, was a construction worker and his mother, Consuelo Garrido, was a housewife. They were Galician immigrants from Xunqueira de Espadanedo (Ourense, Galicia). Consuelo died on 1 April 2020 from coronavirus,[1] three weeks after her husband's death.[2]
Miguel Ángel Blanco graduated in economics at the Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea in Sarriko. For a long time he worked with his father in construction, but he found work at Eman Consulting, in Eibar, where he commuted to every day by train. He also played the drums in the bands Póker and Cañaveral. He was a sports fan and his dream was to walk to Madrid to protest against the possible closure of the Ermua' sports centre. He joined the youth-wing of the People's Party, Nuevas Generaciones, in 1995 and, due to it being a relatively small party in the area where the national parties compete against the PNV, he was the third candidate for the municipal elections in that year. Nevertheless, under the proportional system, he won enough votes to become a member of the town's council.
Kidnapping and death
On 10 July 1997, Blanco was kidnapped by ETA on his way to see a client. They threatened to assassinate him unless the Spanish Government started transferring all ETA prisoners to prisons in the Basque Country within 48 hours. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in demonstrations throughout Spain, demanding his release, but 50 minutes after the deadline expired, at 16:50 on 12 July, he was shot in the back of the head.[3] Shortly thereafter, he was found on the outskirts of San Sebastián, with his hands tied, dying.[4] He died in the hospital at 4:30 a.m. on 13 July. He is interred in Faramontaos, A Merca, with his parents.[5]
Repercussions
Blanco's kidnapping and death had a deep social impact throughout Spain, including the Basque country, and, in an unprecedented move, even some of ETA's own supporters publicly condemned the killing.[6] The "Spirit of Ermua" was born at this time as was the anti-terrorist organization Foro de Ermua and the Fundación Miguel Ángel Blanco.
2006 saw the beginning of the trial of his kidnappers and murderers, Francisco Javier García Gaztelu ("Txapote") and his girlfriend, Irantzu Gallastegi ("Amaia"). Another kidnapper, José Luis Geresta Mujika, committed suicide two years after Blanco's murder.[3]
See also
References
- ^ "Muere Consuelo Garrido, la madre de Miguel Ángel Blanco, a causa del coronavirus". ABC (in Spanish). Vocento. 1 April 2020. Archived from the original on 17 February 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
- ^ Europa Press (12 March 2020). "Muere el padre de Miguel Ángel Blanco, asesinado por ETA en 1997". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). Europa Press. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
- ^ a b Viana, Israel (2010). "Todos los atentados de la banda terrorista: Miguel Ángel Blanco". ETA, medio siglo de terror (in Spanish). ABC. Archived from the original on 24 May 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
- ^ Marín, Maribel (13 July 1997). "ETA abandona a Blanco con dos tiros en la cabeza tras desoír el clamor de los ciudadanos". El País (in Spanish). San Sebastián. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
- ^ Lozano, Andros (17 June 2020). "Miguel y Chelo, los padres de Miguel Ángel Blanco, descansarán por fin junto a su hijo tras 23 años". El Español (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 5 July 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
- ^ "What is Eta?". BBC News. BBC. 5 September 2010. Archived from the original on 13 January 2011. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
- General
- This article makes use of material translated from the corresponding article in the Spanish-language Wikipedia.
- (in Spanish) Biography of Miguel Ángel Blanco in the Fundación Miguel Ángel Blanco webpage
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
- 1968 births
- 1997 deaths
- 1997 murders in Spain
- People from Ermua
- People's Party (Spain) politicians
- Politicians from the Basque Country (autonomous community)
- Assassinated Spanish politicians
- People killed by ETA (separatist group)
- Deaths by firearm in Spain
- People murdered in Spain
- University of the Basque Country alumni
- Spanish terrorism victims
- Kidnapped Spanish people
- Politicians assassinated in 1997