A week after the Spanish government denounced the Basque separatist group ETA’s ‘permanent’ and ‘verifiable’ cease-fire announcement, media and experts are cautious about the declaration, with mixed views regarding the group’s political and military strategies. ‘The cease-fire should be taken cautiously, but it is without doubt a very positive development,’ a Basque politician says
 Thousands of pro-independence supporters march on the street as they call for the return of the more than 800 prisoners from the Basque armed group ETA in Bilbao. AP photo |
Last week’s cease-fire declaration by Basque separatist group ETA has provoked mixed responses regarding the group’s determination toward ending Europe’s last regional militant struggle for autonomy.
Published Jan. 10 in Gara, a Basque regional newspaper, the declaration stated that ETA has decided to enter a permanent and general cease-fire which would be internationally verifiable. While Spanish authorities denounced the declaration as insufficient, Basque politicians, academics and security specialists have remained more positive regarding the nature of the declaration.
“The cease-fire should be taken cautiously, but it is without doubt a very positive development,” said Luke-Uribe Etxebarria, member of parliament for the moderate Basque National Party.
“The Basque population has spoken and wishes to pursue a political process without arms and ETA will simply not dare to turn away from this request,” Etxebarria told the Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review.
The fifty-year armed struggle has been responsible for over 800 killings, incarcerations and innumerable peace initiatives, all of which have so far failed.
During the past decade, the conflict has seen a string of positive developments, ranging from a decline in popular support for the paramilitary group, increased political negotiation and concrete steps towards Spanish regional devolution.
ETA announced a "permanent cease-fire" in March 2006 within the framework of negotiations with Madrid, however nine months later it set off a bomb in the car park of Madrid-Barajas airport, killing two.
Spanish authorities were quick to denounce the recent declaration as insufficient, while asserting that ETA should put an irreversible end to its actions and allow Spanish state security forces to verify the cease-fire.
“This kind of statement cannot be considered satisfactory, seeing that ETA is not disbanding or showing a real desire to disappear," said Rogelio Alonso, political science professor at Rey Juan Carlos I University in Madrid.
The current Socialist government fundamentally fears losing political support as a result of yet another failed peace negotiation with ETA, said Javier Argomaniz, a terrorism expert at the University of St. Andrews. “The Zapatero government were very frustrated with the 2006 outcome and are not willing to burn their fingers again.”
Positive reactions
Although serious doubts persist regarding ETA’s commitments toward peace, several governmental and academic voices have expressed positive views about the current situation.
This view is largely based on the fact that Basque support for Batasuna, the political wing of ETA, has waned in recent years, while pro-negotiation parties like the Basque Nationalists have gained support.
This, in turn, has pushed the organization toward adopting new methods and accepting political negotiations to avoid losing more political control in the region, Argomaniz said. “Batasuna leaders are very concerned that more moderate pro-independence Basque political parties that work within the institutions and are against ETA violence could absorb their electoral base.”
“They could end up standing completely outside the political process if they don’t act quickly,” he said.
“Batasuna can see the developments which have been made through the peaceful process of parties like Basque Nationalists and are eager to reproduce similar results without violent methods,” Uribe-Exterbarria said.
Another factor appears to be that ETA and Batasuna have both undergone major internal reforms and reevaluations recently. “Previously, ETA controlled the political rhetoric, while during the past years this has been transferred to the politician wing of Batasuna, which is hoping to enter elections soon,” Uribe-Exterbarria said.
The organizations are still fundamentally integrated, but it remains clear that an older generation of ETA members is becoming increasingly aware of the need for political processes and negotiation.
According to Martxelo Otamendi, a Basque journalist and editor of the now-closed Basque newspaper Egunkaria, the new situation is completely different from all previous attempts because of the internal dynamics of the organization.
“I think that we will probably never see another attack from ETA after this,” Otamendi said. “After two years of very long internal discussions, left nationalists are ready to change their political and military strategy into uniquely a political one,” he said.
Published Jan. 10 in Gara, a Basque regional newspaper, the declaration stated that ETA has decided to enter a permanent and general cease-fire which would be internationally verifiable. While Spanish authorities denounced the declaration as insufficient, Basque politicians, academics and security specialists have remained more positive regarding the nature of the declaration.
“The cease-fire should be taken cautiously, but it is without doubt a very positive development,” said Luke-Uribe Etxebarria, member of parliament for the moderate Basque National Party.
“The Basque population has spoken and wishes to pursue a political process without arms and ETA will simply not dare to turn away from this request,” Etxebarria told the Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review.
The fifty-year armed struggle has been responsible for over 800 killings, incarcerations and innumerable peace initiatives, all of which have so far failed.
During the past decade, the conflict has seen a string of positive developments, ranging from a decline in popular support for the paramilitary group, increased political negotiation and concrete steps towards Spanish regional devolution.
ETA announced a "permanent cease-fire" in March 2006 within the framework of negotiations with Madrid, however nine months later it set off a bomb in the car park of Madrid-Barajas airport, killing two.
Spanish authorities were quick to denounce the recent declaration as insufficient, while asserting that ETA should put an irreversible end to its actions and allow Spanish state security forces to verify the cease-fire.
“This kind of statement cannot be considered satisfactory, seeing that ETA is not disbanding or showing a real desire to disappear," said Rogelio Alonso, political science professor at Rey Juan Carlos I University in Madrid.
The current Socialist government fundamentally fears losing political support as a result of yet another failed peace negotiation with ETA, said Javier Argomaniz, a terrorism expert at the University of St. Andrews. “The Zapatero government were very frustrated with the 2006 outcome and are not willing to burn their fingers again.”
Positive reactions
Although serious doubts persist regarding ETA’s commitments toward peace, several governmental and academic voices have expressed positive views about the current situation.
This view is largely based on the fact that Basque support for Batasuna, the political wing of ETA, has waned in recent years, while pro-negotiation parties like the Basque Nationalists have gained support.
This, in turn, has pushed the organization toward adopting new methods and accepting political negotiations to avoid losing more political control in the region, Argomaniz said. “Batasuna leaders are very concerned that more moderate pro-independence Basque political parties that work within the institutions and are against ETA violence could absorb their electoral base.”
“They could end up standing completely outside the political process if they don’t act quickly,” he said.
“Batasuna can see the developments which have been made through the peaceful process of parties like Basque Nationalists and are eager to reproduce similar results without violent methods,” Uribe-Exterbarria said.
Another factor appears to be that ETA and Batasuna have both undergone major internal reforms and reevaluations recently. “Previously, ETA controlled the political rhetoric, while during the past years this has been transferred to the politician wing of Batasuna, which is hoping to enter elections soon,” Uribe-Exterbarria said.
The organizations are still fundamentally integrated, but it remains clear that an older generation of ETA members is becoming increasingly aware of the need for political processes and negotiation.
According to Martxelo Otamendi, a Basque journalist and editor of the now-closed Basque newspaper Egunkaria, the new situation is completely different from all previous attempts because of the internal dynamics of the organization.
“I think that we will probably never see another attack from ETA after this,” Otamendi said. “After two years of very long internal discussions, left nationalists are ready to change their political and military strategy into uniquely a political one,” he said.
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