Since it became known that “Don’t Call Me Ternera” was going to be screened at the San Sebastián Festival and the controversy arose, all eyes have been on the former ETA leader José Antonio Urrutikoetxea. This Saturday, in the public presentation of the documentary, the space and attention were given to the other protagonist, his victim.
Francisco Ruiz knew, when Jordi Évole and Màrius Sánchez They were preparing their film, which during the long interview they had recorded with Urrutikoetxea (Josu Ternera), the former head of ETA had acknowledged his participation in the attack that in 1976 cost the life of the mayor of Galdakao and that he, who was a municipal police officer, , left him badly injured after having received more than a dozen bullets.
Of that crime, which remained dismissed when the Amnesty Law was approved, Ruiz knew little until now, and when Évole and Sánchez contacted him, he agreed to speak for their film. His intervention opens and closes the film, which Netflix will release in December.
This afternoon-night, when the first screening to the public has ended, we have heard several minutes of applause at the Kursaal in San Sebastian, addressed to the authors of the documentary and Francisco Ruiz, who was accompanied by family and whom Évole encouraged to address the public.
He has said that the directors of “Don’t Call Me Veal” They have done “a phenomenal job”, He remembered the victims of ETA and how for more than 50 years the terrorist group “terrorized” not only members of the Civil Guard and the Police.