Basque Info

Bildu obtains impressive results in the elections

Bildu supporters celebrate the results

The Sao Paulo Forum adopts a resolution in favour of the democratic process

In Brief

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Bildu obtains impressive results in the elections

The electoral coalition of Bildu –formed by EA, Alternatiba and independent socialists and pro-independists– has gained excellent results on Sunday in the municipal and provincial elections in Euskal Herria (the Basque Country).
Bildu’s results can be seen as a huge step taken towards a new political scenario in Euskal Herrio. The coalition received 313,000 votes across Euskal Herria and it is now the party with the largest number of councillors across the nation. Those results are of a historic significance exceeding all those previously won by the pro-independence Left to date.

Bildu supporters celebrate the results

With regard to territory, Bildu obtained its best results in Guipúzcoa province, coming first far ahead of the second. Also notable are the results obtained in the provinces of Bizkaia (Biscay) and Araba, where the coalition came in second and third respectively. The coalition also surged ahead in Nafarroa (Navarre) province, where it won control of a number of town councils and seven representatives in the provincial council, a better result than was predicted in many of the pre-election polls.

The results in these elections indicate a substantial tipping in the Basque political panorama. They have shoown that, given a level playing field, pro-independence is the majority sentiment in the country and that the picture of the country emerging over the past few years has been completely manipulated by use of the Political Parties Law and by the apartheid imposed upon one important section of Basque society.

But the results have not been equally positive for all the parties. While the PNV (nationalist Christian democrats) and the PP (Right-wing Spanish) have survived fairly well, the PSOE (Spanish social-democratic) has suffered a hard reverse. Other smaller parties such as Aralar or EB have received varied results. Yesterday, nearly all the parties were carrying out a first evaluation of the results.

It is worth noting, as many have commented, that the Spanish courts wished to ban a poltical option to which the people of Euskal Herria, its citizens in the polling booths, have given their majority support. Also to remember that those same courts banned Sortu and that more than 4,000 Basque citizens have been forbidden from being candidates’ en these elections because those same courts prevent it. Therefore the Abertzale Left notes that although an important step has been taken towards a democratic setting there is still some road to travel before all the citizens of Euskal Herria are treated as full citizens.

The Sao Paulo Forum adopts a resolution in favour of the democratic process

In its most recent session the Sao Paulo Forum considered a resolution of support for the democratic process which has opened in Euskal Herria. The resolution was moved by the FSLN of Nicaragua and the FMLN of Salvador, with the support of the PT of Brazil, the Revolutionary Party of Mexico and the European political parties present at the event.

It is worth noting that in this 17th meeting of the Sao Paulo Forum more than 740 activists of the Left have taken part: delegates of 48 parties of Latin America and the Caribbean, belonging to 21 countries; as well as 33 parties invited from 15 countries of Asia, Africa and Europe, among which for the first time the Abertzale Left was officially invited. The Abertzale Left’s delegation was led by Tasio Erkizia and was warmly welcomed.

It is important to underline that this resolution had been agreed beforehand and was unanimously approved. Representatives of

many parties understood that a big leap forward was achieved when many parties in government undoubtedly supported the political process, and congratulated Abertzale Left accordingly. Special mention has to be given to the fact that political parties in government such as those from Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Salvador, Cuba, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay y Santo Domingo have approved the proposal.

In Brief

Sortu appeals its “preventive ban” to the Constitutional Court: The pro-independence group maintains that the ban preventing it from registration for the elections was made on the basis of “suspicions” that were not proven, thereby violating fundamental rights and the jurisprudence of the Spanish Constitutional Court and of the European Court of Human Rights.

The Supreme Court upholds the “not guilty” finding in the cases of Otegi, Permach and Álvarez with regard to Anoeta: The Spanish Supreme Court confirmed the finding yesterday in the cases of the three men with regard to the charge of “glorification of terrorism” arising out of their participation in a rally in Anoeta’s velodrome in November 2004, in which the Abertzale Left publicly launched its proposal “Orain herria, orain bakea” (People Now, Peace Now) in order to end the conflict.

LAB (Abertzale Trade Union) became the first force in the administration of Navarre: In a first assessment the trade union felt that this victory is a boost to the work done by LAB’s activists against privatization, the bureaucracy and cuts in public services.

German Die Linke supports legalisation: The parliamentary group of Die Linke in the Bundestag issued a note in which they defend "the right of the Basque “Abertzale” Left to create a legal framework for its political activities and to participate in the elections on 22 May this year."