[fse-esf] Open letter to the members of the European Parliament

[Askapena (Basque Country)]

*      **_Open letter to the members of the European Parliament_*

*_To the president of the Parliament and the spokespersons of the _*

*                                           _Groups_*

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   _Resolution of the political conflict in the Basque Country_**

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*Batasuna considers very positive the inclusion in the order of the day 
of the European parliament plenary session the debate on the situation 
of the political negotiation in the Basque Country, Euskal Herria, the 
oldest and smallest country in Europe, it does not reach three million 
inhabitants but it has a huge problem to resolve. We believe that the 
European Parliament is an appropriate framework to hold this debate, 
because among other reasons, the resolution of the Basque conflict is 
necessarily frame within the European Union.*

* *

*This is the fist time that all of you, members of the European 
Parliament, will have the opportunity to speak up, to debate this 
European problem and, if you will, to adopt in plenary session a 
resolution in defence of the political resolution process in the Basque 
Country. We hope that this decision will at the same time bring about 
the implication of European institutions in the Basque contentious, as 
happened in the Irish case.*

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*This clear opportunity to advance in the knowledge and active 
participation of European Parliamentarians in the political resolution 
process of the Basque conflict, the national executive of BATASUNA has 
decided to address you through this open letter, with the objective to 
let you know the view of the Basque pro-independence left on the current 
situation of the Basque Country.*

* *

E.T.A's announcement on 24th march 2006, declaring the permanent 
ceasefire, along with the Alternative for the democratic resolution of 
the conflict named "Now the people, now peace" forwarded by Batasuna on 
November 14 2004, have created the base for the launching of the 
conflict resolution process in the Basque Country.

 

Batasuna considers those to decisions to be the main steps, although not 
the only ones, given by the Basque pro-independence left towards the 
creation of the necessary conditions to develop a real peace process in 
our country.

 

Spanish prime minister's, Mr. Zapatero, announcement to the Spanish and 
international public opinion, last 28th June, underlining his intention 
to open a dialogue process with the armed organisation E.T.A. in order 
to seek a political and negotiated resolution to the Basque conflict 
that will respect whatever is decided by the Basque population through 
public consultation, under peaceful and democratic conditions, and 
through legal ways is, without a doubt, is the third element of main 
political magnitude.

 

A detailed analysis of the political evolution of the Basque Country 
will shed light to easily understand the current situation.

 

*_Time for a change, time for a resolution_*

*_ _*

As Batasuna stated in the Anoeta Alternative, the Spanish state's 
articulation model is in crisis. Agreed with the support of the Spanish 
dictatorship at the bagining of the transition and which main exponent 
is the current Spanish constitution of 1978, rejected in the Basque 
Country trough a referendum, and from which derives the Autonomic state 
that separated into two different regions the south of the Basque 
Country: the so called Gernika statute that gathers within the Basque 
autonomous community the provinces of Araba, Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa and 
also the Law of Nafarroa's regional improvement.

 

Needs to be underline that the mentioned crisis is not only forced by 
the long and hard struggle for the self-determination of the Basque 
County, and specially of the Basque pro-independence left, but is also 
due to progressive awareness of other stateless nations under Spanish 
administration such as the Paisos Catalans and Galiza among others.

 

In relation to the French state, is obvious that the decentralisation 
process, as well as many demands and referendums raising among the old 
colonies, have open a debate, although less intense than in the Spanish 
state, on the political framework in the whole of the state. In any 
case, the demand of a political change is now a days a majority in the 
territories under French occupation.

 

*_Methodology and objectives of the democratic process_*

 

Working on the principal that both only both states but also different 
political organizations are aware of the necessity to change the 
political status, BATASUNA forwards the Alternative "Now the people, now 
peace".       

 

Batasuna specifies in the Anoeta Alternative two parallel axis in order 
to advance the political resolution process: one between E.T.A. and the 
Spanish and French governments and the second one between the political, 
social and trade union forces that will form the Basque Country's agents 
board.

 

The objective of this board will be to agree the political transit 
between the current situation towards a new political scenario where the 
Basque Country can decide, under democratic conditions, any political or 
institutional status for our people. This agreement will have to be of 
course supported by the Basque society though a referendum. Being the 
signers of the agreement who will have to constitute the democratic 
interlocution of our country, opening a dialogue and agreement process 
with the Spanish and French states so that the content agreed by the 
Basque population is respected.

 

Regarding the negotiation between E.T.A. and the Spanish and French 
states, it will be them who decide all about the demilitarisation of the 
conflict; prisoners, deported, refugees; and victims.

 

So the result of the political negotiation should there fore overcome 
the current juridical and political frameworks, the autonomous statute 
in the Spanish side and the lack of a juridical framework in the French 
side, and offer of course a transition model to guarantee the right of 
the Basque people to decide its future with out problem.

      

*_Evaluation of the last six months_*

 

Since the armed organization E.T.A. announced its permanent cease-fire, 
the process has faced both positive and negative aspects. A review of 
the situation shows us that the negative accumulated aspects have 
brought this process into a Holt.

 

Among the positive aspects Batasuna would underline on the one hand, the 
clear and massive support of the society towards the process. On the 
other hand, the meetings held the past few months by the different 
political agents corroborating the necessity of political negotiation. 
At the same time, is clear than ever what are the knots of the conflict 
and what should we all do to undo them; self-determination right and 
territoriality. Last but not least, the Spanish prime minister's 
comments that proclaimed would respect the freely expressed will of the 
Basque society; it was a great magnitude event.    

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Between the negative aspects to point out; the Spanish and French states 
continue with their repression policies. The PSOE uses repression to 
condition the process, has paralysed the political debate, has tried to 
control the timings and the concretion of the calendar, blearing the 
bases of the process and avoiding the necessary steps to develop it, 
helped of the PNV.

The French government does not get involved, and as the past few years 
rejects the political character of the conflict, just as if it is only a 
Spanish problem.

 

The actual reality is that now a days there is no political, social and 
trade union's board to undo the main knots -- self-determination and 
territoriality-, so that a democratic solution is found. On the 
contrary, we face nothing but attacks and blackmails from the PSOE.

 

*_To take advantage of this historic opportunity_*

 

In this difficult situation Batasuna pretends to lead the process 
towards a resolution as the Basque people demands.

 

Batasuna and the Basque pro-independence left have worked and will work 
with responsibility, responding to the desires of the majority of our 
country in a positive way, as shown with the Anoeta proposal, E.T.A's 
cease-fire and through out this past six months of process, as well as 
the ones to come.

 

Never the less the responsibility needs to be shared by all involved. In 
this sense we consider that steps must be given by the states towards 
E.T.A., as well as all the political, social and trade union agents 
towards the creation of the earlier mentioned board.

 

Both states and the governments that represent them should not speak 
about resolution and later use repression. It is time to go from 
dialogue into political agreement not backwards, rejecting dialogue and 
imposing permanent conditions that only render the advances.

 

These are the reasons why Batasuna believes that the clear end firm 
positioning of the European Parliament can help this peace process to 
move forward.

 

To end, we would like to thanks publicly the work carried out by the 
Basque friendship created November 30 2005, a group of MEP's willing to 
help the process and that have developed an essential work of 
information and participation in the Basque conflict resolution process.

 

*Neither us nor you or any one else can waste this real opportunity to 
resolve one of the most important conflicts within the European Union. 
If it is possible in Ireland, it will be possible in the Basque Country.*

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*NATIONAL EXECUTIVE OF BATASUNA*

*October 2006*  

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