- Title: SOUTH AFRICA: Batasuna still hopes for Spanish peace talks
- Date: 14th June 2007
- Summary: (EU) JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (JUNE 13, 2007) (REUTERS) WIDE OF INTERVIEW WITH JOSEBA ALVAREZ, A PROMINENT MEMBER OF BANNED PARTY BATASUNA (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOSEBA ALVAREZ, A PROMINENT MEMBER OF BANNED PARTY BATASUNA, SAYING: "Above all, it was bad management by the government of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero after 14 months of ceasefire. It has to be said that in March 2006, when the truce started, everyone understood that the Spanish government in regards to the political front, arrived at a consensual process between the political powers. This never occurred because on the one hand, you had the bad management of the government of Zapatero on the subject of demilitarisation. It lacked the will of the political parties to arrive at an agreement. The fact that none of the elements existed is the reason why it ultimately failed." WIDE OF INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOSEBA ALVAREZ, A PROMINENT MEMBER OF BANNED PARTY BATASUNA, SAYING: "Unfortunately, we don't think that Zapatero has carried out a general effort in regards to the date of March 2008. There are still nine months left. And everything indicates that the measures taken by the government, everything indicates that the method of repression is going to get faster in the coming weeks. That's to say, to return to a situation of dialogue, to return to a situation of agreement, the measures which need to be established on the police level, on the judicial level, on the level of legalisation of political power, all this indicates that the method of repression is going to accelerate, and we still maintain that repression is not the solution. It's been 30 years since the government tried the method of repression and repression has never been the solution. Above all, the government of Zapatero needs to try to return to dialogue and all the parties involved, themselves, return to the platform of dialogue and not that of repression." WIDE OF INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOSEBA ALVAREZ, A PROMINENT MEMBER OF BANNED PARTY BATASUNA, SAYING: "It has to be known that all the governments of Spain since Franco, that is from the '75 to '78, have tried to abandon arriving at an agreement with ETA. It was the case with Suarez , it was the case with Felipe Gonzalez, it was the case with Jose Maria Aznar following that, and it's the actual case with Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. Therefore, it's advisable that the government, from March 2008, whether it's the PP (Partido Popular) or the PS (Partido Socialiste), of one way or another, try to have a solution to the political conflict. We think that the attitude of Mr Zapatero, on his arrival in power, already 3 years ago, he had a more palpable demonstration to make a solution. Therefore, the Socialists in Spain, in effect, say that they leave the most serious points until now, it was really a very important test, and we think that Zapatero should continue to try and resolve this conflict and abandon the method of repression. If it's the Popular Party(PP) that is going to win, the PP promotes the war, and war is never the solution. The movement which comes into place should be made independent, try always to have agreement, dialogue, negotiation,. This will be more realisable with Zapatero, in our point of view, than with the Popular Party." WIDE OF INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOSEBA ALVAREZ, A PROMINENT MEMBER OF BANNED PARTY BATASUNA, SAYING: "We are actually in South Africa because we're doing a global tour, and the Basque independent socialist left wants to know the international point of view to continue to work towards a negotiated settlement. That's to say, faced with the attitude of the Spanish government which is going to be valued internationally, the Basques have abandoned the voice of dialogue. We want to make it known to everyone that we will continue to march towards that. It's true that the conditions don't exist at the moment but we need to work to recreate the conditions, to return to a situation of dialogue and an agreement to resolve the conflict." WIDE OF INTERVIEW
- Embargoed: 29th June 2007 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: South Africa
- Country: South Africa
- Topics: International Relations
- Reuters ID: LVA3GVG0Q5J5ZLYJJM9IR1SEGP9Z
- Story Text: A Basque separatist party banned for links to ETA rebels still hopes for a revival of peace talks with the Spanish government despite the end of an ETA ceasefire last week, a leading party member said on Tuesday (June 13).
But Joseba Alvarez, a prominent member of banned party Batasuna, said he feared Spain's Socialist government would take a tough stance against ETA in the lead-up to general elections due by next March.
"Above all, it was bad management by the government of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero after 14 months of ceasefire. It has to be said that in March 2006, when the truce started, everyone understood that the Spanish government in regards to the political front, arrived at a consensual process between the political powers. This never occurred because on the one hand, you had the bad management of the government of Zapatero on the subject of demilitarisation. It lacked the will of the political parties to arrive at an agreement. The fact that none of the elements existed is the reason why it ultimately failed," Alvarez told Reuters by telephone from Pretoria, where he said he was studying South Africa's transition from apartheid.
He recognised it would be difficult to revive peace talks the government started last year with ETA to end four decades of violent conflict in the Basque Country.
Last week the government responded to ETA's announcement that it was abandoning a ceasefire by transferring the best-known rebel prisoner from hospital to jail. Batasuna's leader Arnaldo Otegi was jailed on Friday for praising terrorism.
The government, now braced for possible ETA bombings or assassinations, regards Batasuna as ETA's political wing.
Alvarez said isolating Basque separatists only made an ETA attack more likely.
ETA has killed more than 800 people since starting its fight for independence for ancient Basque territories in northern Spain and southern France during the final stages of the Franco dictatorship, when Basque language and culture were suppressed.
Today, Spain's Basque Country enjoys considerable autonomy and is governed by moderate nationalists. Polls show only a minority of the region's people favour independence.
The last time ETA struck was in December, when a bomb at Madrid airport killed two people. But the rebels said at the time that their ceasefire still held and the attack was just meant as a warning.
Alvarez said Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero had made the most serious attempt yet to negotiate an end to the Basque conflict. But patience was needed, he added. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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