Around 100 people involved in the "Dialogue between Victims and Society" as part of the Remembrance Square initiative in Bilbao

On the fourth day of Remembrance Square, nearly 100 people discussed the different aspects of constructing memory. It was a structured listening and dialogue dynamics entitled “Constructing Memory: Dialogue between Victims and Society”, which took place at 6.00 p.m. this evening in the marquee erected in Bilbao’s El Arenal. Remembrance Square is a citizen participation project that seeks to compile and showcase accounts of what happened in the Basque Country in recent decades in order to construct a shared and pluralistic memory.

Thirteen groups of seven people, including a victim, along with the moderator, were formed. The aim of the session was to gather the opinion of each group member on four points: events that they recall related to terrorism in the last 80 years, positive facts they recall, what they believe is the purpose of remembering and the message that society must get across to the new generations.

Nearly 90 people attended the session on their own behalf, along with victims of different types of violence. The Mayor of Bilbao, Juan Mari Aburto, was also there this evening and contributed what he recalled about remembrance and coexistence.

Forthcoming events

The Remembrance Square initiative will be in Bilbao until 12 February. Students from different local schools are visiting the exhibition in the morning and sessions for the general public are being organised over several days. Specifically, the "Aldana: Explosión de silencio” [Aldana: Explosion of Silence] film forum considering GAE terrorism will take place at 7.00 p.m. next Tuesday.. “The Value of Self-Criticism” will be screened at 7.00 p.m. on Thursday and contains reflections by former ETA members.