Thu, 24 Mar 2005

More on Basque Country

I felt deeply disappointed after reading the article Spain's 'Aceh' boasts many gems in last Sunday (March 20) issue of The Jakarta Post. The author, Jim Read, did not portray accurately the political situation in the Basque Country and made an unfortunate comparison with Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam.

But what did actually arouse my frustration was to read, at the beginning of the article, a totally unnecessary mention of ETA as a Basque nationalist movement founded in 1960 to oppose brutal oppression. This is to ignore ETA is a terrorist organization. This is to ignore that ETA has consistently behaved as an enemy of democracy in Spain and, specifically, in the Basque Country.

Taking all that into consideration, I would like to make the following points: - The Basque Country (Euskadi) is an Autonomous Community of Spain, whose level of self-government is regulated by both the Spanish Constitution of 1978 and the Self-Governing Statute of 1979. It is made up of three provinces, each with a long and distinct history of self-rule. This the first time they have ever shared power in a regional government. - Euskadi has been granted the right to elect a Parliament, out of which an Executive (the Basque government) is elected for a period of four years. The Autonomous Community is entitled to pass legislation in many different matters of its wide competencies, to collect revenues (citizens in the Basque Country do not pay taxes to the National Land Revenue, but to the Provincial one which, after deducting the relevant regional expenses, transfer the balance to the National Land Revenue), to have a public TV system, a flag and an anthem. - Both Spanish and Basque languages are co-official in the territory of the Autonomous Community. Education (a regional competence) is imparted in any of the languages, or a combination of both, depending on parents' choice. - Elections in the Basque Country have consistently returned to Parliament representatives from both local Basque nationalist forces and non-nationalist forces, whose combined strength is approximately equal. The current Government in the Basque Country is a coalition of a conservative Basque nationalist political party, a leftist Basque nationalist party, and a non-nationalist leftist one. New elections are scheduled for April 17. - ETA is a terrorist group, which has killed some 1,000 people since its foundation. The overwhelming majority of its victims fell while Spain enjoyed a truly democratic political system. ETA, and its several branches, is outlawed, and it is currently included, as a terrorist group, on the official list of the United Nations, the European Union and other relevant international bodies.

FRANCISCO AQUILERA, Press Attache and Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Spain, Jakarta

Note: Thank you for your clarification.

-- Editor