Yolanda González (activist)

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In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is González and the second or maternal family name is Martín.
Yolanda González
Born(1961-01-20)January 20, 1961
DiedFebruary 1, 1980(1980-02-01) (aged 19)
Cause of deathMurder
NationalityBasque
OccupationStudent
OrganizationWorker's Socialist Party (Spain)

Yolanda González Martín (Bilbao, 20 January 1961 - Madrid, 1 February 1980[1])  was a student and communist murdered by far-right Spanish extremists of New Force.[2]

Biography[edit]

Originally from Deusto, González moved to Madrid to study electronics.[3] To fund her education, she worked as a cleaner.[4] She became the student representative of the vocational training school where she studied. She was also a member of the Workers Socialist Party. In February 1980, she was kidnapped, tortured and murdered by some members of New Force. Her body was found on a roadside near Madrid. The organization Batallón Vasco Español claimed responsibility for her murder.[3] On the same day the organisation also murdered Jesús María Zubikarai Badiola in Eibar.[5]

The perpetrators of González' murder were Emilio Hellín and Ignacio Abad Velázquez, who were arrested and sentenced to prison terms.[3] Hellini was sentenced to 43 years in prison, of which he served only 14. In February 2013, El País reported that Hellin, under a false name, was working in communications technology for the Spanish security forces.[6]

Legacy[edit]

On more than one anniversary of her murder, the relatives and neighbours of González have led calls for further justice and reparation.[7][8] In 2014 Isabel Rodríguez directed the documentary "Yolanda en el País de los estudiantes", which recounts the kidnapping and subsequent murder of González by the Batallón Vasco-Español.[9]

In 2018 Carlos Fonseca wrote No te olvides de mí: Yolanda González, el crimen más brutal de la Transición. This book brought together a range of sources to focus on her murder.[10]

Both a garden and a public square have been named in her honour. In 2015, the garden Jardines de Yolanda González Martín was named after her in Madrid.[11] In 2018 the sign for the gardens was defaced by fascists.[4] In 2016 there a small square in Deustu was named in her honour.[12][13][14]

  • Square in Deustu, Bilbao
    Square in Deustu, Bilbao
  • Deustu sign
    Deustu sign
  • Gardens in Madrid
    Gardens in Madrid

References[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Yolanda González.
  1. ^ "Yolanda González fue asesinada en la carretera de San Martín de Valdeiglesias - Archivo Linz de la Transición española". www.march.es. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  2. ^ "Yolanda González en la memoria, 40 años después de último asesinato del franquismo". www.publico.es. 2020-01-30. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  3. ^ a b c "Canal Historia". amcselekt.es. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  4. ^ a b Mateo, Juan José (2018-12-07). "Killing the memory of Spanish activist Yolanda González". EL PAÍS English. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  5. ^ "Efemeridea: The body of young Yolanda González Martín de Deusto appears in Madrid after the kidnapping, torture and death of paramilitary groups BVE". Argia. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  6. ^ Moreno, Federico (2021-02-01). "Spanish State: The assassination of Yolanda González. No forgetting, no forgiving". International Socialist League. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  7. ^ "Egia, justizia eta erreparazioa eskatu dituzte Yolanda Gonzalez hil zuteneko urteurrenean". Berria (in Basque). 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  8. ^ "Yolanda Gonzalez omendu dute, eskuin muturrak hil eta 35 urtera". Berria (in Basque). 2015-02-02. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  9. ^ "Un documental recoge el secuestro y asesinato de Yolanda González". EITB (in Spanish). 2014-12-18. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  10. ^ "Carlos Fonseca: "Es complicado, por no decir imposible, que se aclaren todos los elementos del asesinato de Yolanda"". www.elsaltodiario.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  11. ^ SL, TAI GABE DIGITALA (2015-06-15). "La deustuarra Yolanda González ya cuenta con plaza propia en Madrid". naiz (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  12. ^ EP (2016-02-26). "Yolanda González ya tiene una plaza con su nombre en Deusto". Deia (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  13. ^ "Recordando a Yolanda González, la activista asesinada que representó la lucha por las libertades y la democracia". www.lasexta.com (in Spanish). 2020-02-02. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  14. ^ "Yolanda Gonzalez zenari plazatxo bat eskaini diote Bilbon". Berria (in Basque). 2016-02-26. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
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