Fernando Garcia Jodra, 40, and his girlfriend Nerea Bengoa Zarisolo, 39, are hoping to become parents despite the fact that both have been condemned to minimum jail terms of 30 years after being found guilty in 2004 of four murders.
They are held in separate prisons and are not allowed physical contact, communicating only by letters, which are checked and censored. It is their right, however, under Spanish law, to apply to have IVF treatment in jail.
If the couple conceive a child it will remain with the mother in prison until it is at least 3 years old. Angeles Pedraza, the president of the Victims of Terrorism Association, said the treatment was unacceptable.
“This is a kick in the face for the victims,” she said. “How many families have been destroyed by Eta’s barbarity? The only family unity they can enjoy is to go to the cemetery to remember their dead.”
Media reports in Spain suggested that the treatment could cost as much as $8260. Prison authorities refused to comment.
