Basques launch new party but Madrid may veto poll hopes

Published on Monday 7 February 2011 15:55

Basque separatists launched a new political party yesterday, explicitly rejecting terrorism by the armed group ETA and opening the door to a new settlement in the Spanish region.

Veteran politicians from ETA's outlawed Batasuna political wing said their new political party would fully comply with Spanish government requirement for political organisations.

Batasuna was banned in 2003 on grounds it is part of the militant group, and the new - as yet unnamed - party is an effort to try and fill that void ahead of the Basque leg of nationwide municipal elections in May.

"The commitment to this new project with exclusively democratic and political means is firm. For this, there is no return possible," said Rufi Etxeberria, a veteran Batasuna leader.

"As a consequence of this … the nationalist left rejects and opposes the use of violence and or the use of threats to obtain political objectives, these include the violence of ETA, if there were any, in any of its manifestations," Mr Etxeberria said. It was first time that the former political wing of ETA had officially rejected the terror group's violence.

In order to comply with Spanish law, as well as rejecting violence, any new Basque independence party derived from Batasuna has to prove that candidates for forthcoming elections have no link to ETA or former leaders of Batasuna.

"None of former leaders of (Batasuna] will be leaders of the new party, none of any candidates from the new party will have previously presented themselves at elections," Mr Etxeberria told The Scotsman.

Although support for Batasuna slipped prior to its prohibition, the prospect of a new Basque party that rejects violence has prompted concern in Madrid over a potential increase in votes for a pro-independence party.

Marcelino Iglesias, spokesman for the ruling Socialist Party, called the announcement "important news" but he added a note of caution on whether the party should be legalised.

"We think that after 25 years of supporting violence a few statements or the charter of a party will be insufficient."

The centre-right opposition Popular Party claimed the new party would simply be a new version of Batasuna and should be outlawed.

"ETA and Batasuna are the same thing," said spokesman Esteban Gonzalez Pons. "So long as ETA exists, no matter what Batasuna says it is not going to be legalised."

The Spanish government can allow the party to stand or challenge it and ask prosecutors to investigate. Any decision on declaring the party illegal is ultimately up to a special section of the Supreme Court.