Basque info 23.03.11

Basque Info bulletin:

• Broad demand for the legalization of Sortu (BREAKING NEWS: Sortu not legal)
  
• The European Court for Human Rights condemns the Spanish State again

Each day, more and more voices demand the legalization of Sortu and consider that this political option has to be guaranteed the possibility of taking part in the political sphere on equal terms as every other option.

The majority of the Basque trade unions have demanded its legalization.

In a press conference in which representatives of ELA, LAB, STEE-EILAS, EHNE and Hiru took part it was declared that the Spanish state should proceed to legalizing Sortu without delay. They consider such legalization to be an essential step towards the political normalization of the Basque Country and for the recognition of its citizens’ civil and political rights.

In Brussels, 21 members of the European Parliament signed a document in which they asked the Spanish authorities not to create any additional barriers to Sortu. As it is stated in their document “ they consider that for talks leading to a resolution to happen all parties should be able to participate on equal terms ”.It is for this reason that they demand that Sortu should be allowed to register as a political party. After indicating that they do not necessarily have to agree with this political project, they emphasize the fact that a political party “ has the right to be legal and to take part in the elections like everybody else ”. And so they urge “the Spanish authorities not to create additional obstacles”.

Meanwhile, the judicial litigation regarding the legalization is going on.

In the pleas presented by Sortu to the Spanish Supreme Court, it reiterates that the debate that took place within the Pro-Independence Left leading to the creation of a new political formation involved an “irreversible rupture” with the past, both in strategies and in organizational forms. Its lawyers’ document denounces the fact that police reports lack objectivity and are obviously partial, insofar as they conceal essential elements of the debate. After reviewing the existent jurisprudence they found that there are no reasons not to allow the register of Sortu.

The Supreme Court has accelerated the proceedings and called an oral hearing for Monday the 21rst of March to examine the admittance or non admittance of Sortu in the political parties register.

In this hearing they intended to examine documentary evidence presented, while several witnesses and qualified experts from the spanish Security Forces were summoned. As it happens, witnesses and experts are the same people, members of the Spanish State Police Force.

Sortu’s legal representation considered this hearing to be unnecessary and stated that police reports “ only contain mere inferences and deductions of their authors, tasks that correspond to judges ”. In these police reports, lawyers came across expressions and manipulations that place their impartiality in doubt.

Within the sphere of politics, declarations abouth Sortu’s legalization follow each other. Discourses from Madrid are uniform, both PSOE (social-democratic) in power and PP (conservatives) are trying everything they can to stop Sortu being legalized and it taking part in the coming elections.

Nevertheless, within Basque society many doubt this to be a correct step and consider the Pro-Independence Left has clearly and decisively committed itself to exclusively political channels to reach their aims and to solve the existing political conflict. A sign of this and of the different points of view existing inside political parties’ state leaderships has been the statement made by Jesus Egiguren, president of the Basque branch of the PSOE in which he voiced criticism to central Government policies concerning the steps taken by the Pro-Independence Left. At the same time, the member of his party and Spanish Minister of Interior Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba made an appeal to avoid discrepancies concerning Sortu’s legalization.

The PP keeps putting pressure for Sortu not to be legalized. Their leadership in Madrid and the Basque Country continue their discourse of opposition to any type of resolutive talks. They claim they will not accept the Pro-Independence Left’s participation in May’s elections.

BREAKING NEWS: In the evening of the 23rd March the Spanish Supreme Court decided to veto the registration of Sortu as a legal party. Sortu’s solicitors have appealed to the Constitutional Court which could take the period of time it wants before taking a decision. It means Sortu might not be able to stand for the 22nd May elections.

The European Court for Human Rights condemns the Spanish State again

In the last few weeks the European Court for Human Rights in Strasbourg has condemned the Spanish state for not investigating the complaint about ill-treatment presented by a detainee. Last September they passed a similar sentence in the case of another detainee held by Spanish police. Last week this tribunal pronounced a new sentence against the Spanish state.

This time they consider Arnaldo Otegi’s right to freedom of speech was infringed as he was condemned for a statement he made in which he stated the king of Spain was “ the torturers’ boss ”. The Spanish Supreme Court had condemned him to serve a year in prison, accused of slanderous allegations, and the Constitutional Court refused him an appeal to his sentence.

Now, however, the European Court orders the Spanish state to pay him € 20.000 for pain and suffering and to pay € 3.000 for the costs of the proceedings.

The Pro-Independence Left summoned the Spanish Government to take into account this sentence as well as the various international declarations in regard of the situation created in the Basque Country.

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