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Demand freedom & democracy for Basques

By Shelley Ettinger, Workers World, 20 December 1997

Dec. 10 was an international day of solidarity with the people of the Basque country--Euskal Herria--in their struggle for national liberation and to resist heightened repression from the government of Spain.

In New York, supporters of the Basque struggle gathered outside the Spanish Consulate. On a wet, windy evening, they set up banners and held placards condemning Madrid for its war against the Basque people's right to self-determination.

On Dec. 5, the Spanish government had imprisoned 23 members of the National Board of the Basque political party Herri Batasuna (People's Unity). Each received a seven-year jail sentence.

According to a statement issued for the day of solidarity, "their alleged crime was to disseminate for public debate a video which discussed the Basque resistance organization ETA's (Basque Homeland and Freedom) peace proposal for a democratic end to the existing conflict."

The Basque statement points out that the political leaders were jailed under "Gen. Francisco Franco's Penal Code." Franco was the fascist leader of Spain for nearly 50 years.

--Shelley Ettinger

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