ETA ASKS FOR UNITY TO ENTER ERA OF INDEPENDENCE ON ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY

Basque Info 3/02/09

Thousands support Democracy 3 Million platform.
Thousands of people filled the Kursaal conference hall in Donostia/San Sebastian last Saturday during the first public event organised by the electoral platform Democracy 3 Million. The platform was launched less than a month ago and in just two weeks collected 47,000 legal signatures in order to be able to stand in the 1st of March local elections.

On the 23rd of January 8 of the D3M members were arrested by Spanish police and sent to prison. They were accused of trying to organise the platform and trying to take part in the elections. Today another 13 people have been officially called by Spanish judge Garzon to appear in court this coming Friday accused of terrorist organization membership. Their alleged crime is to be the legal representatives of the electoral platform.

Speaking at last Saturday’s event election candidate Itziar Lopategi said they want to achieve a democratic scenario where all citizens' rights will be respected and all different political options will have place.

The most emotional moments of the evening were when the pictures of those arrested and later those of the Israeli slaughter of Palestinians where shown on the screen.


ETA’s statement on its 50th anniversary.
50 years ago the Basque armed organization ETA was created and a new phase of resistance was born. In a long statement released last week ETA reviewed these five decades of struggle and called for unity in efforts and strengths in order to enter the era of independence.

ETA asks to democratically confront two opposing political proposals: that of the current political situation of upholding the status quo on the one hand and the proposal of a Basque State on the other. According to ETA if such democratic confrontation is made without any French and Spanish imposition the Basque people will choose to follow a democratic and peaceful way to independence.

ETA continues to add that in the meantime all means of struggle are needed until the French and Spanish states respect the Basque people’s will.

ETA states that nowadays there are more pro-independence people than 50 or 30 years ago and pay homage to those who gave their lives, prisoners and exiles.


Hundreds of people rally in support of internationalism.
A demonstration against the criminalization of those who develop internationalist work in the Basque Country was organised by Askapena last Saturday in Bilbao. Askapena is the pro-independence movement’s the internationalist organization and has been campaigning to gather solidarity to other liberation struggles around the world in the Basque Country for the last 20 years.

Nowadays Askapena is heavily involved in the boycott to Israel campaign and is taking part at the World’s Social Forum in Brazil. At the same time Askapena works in conjunction with the Basque solidarity committees around the world to raise awareness about the Basque struggle for independence and socialism.

All of that has been enough reason for the Spanish state to target Askapena through a criminalization campaign in the Spanish media.