Herri Batasuna: for independence and socialism
Green Left Weekly's CHOW WEI CHENG spoke to MIRIAN CAMPOS, from the international department of the left-wing Basque nationalist party Herri Batasuna, about recent developments in the Basque country (Euskadi). The interview was conducted on June 29, in Bilbao, Basque country.
Question: What are Herri Batasuna's (HB) key immediate demands for the Basque country?
The Basque country is among the oldest countries in Europe. The Basque language is one of the oldest and is unique, with no links to other European languages. Yet, the Basque language still is not officially recognised by the Spanish government.
The Basque people are divided into different communities under different administrations, although we are a single people. In the south, the Basque country is divided into two different areas under Spanish administration: the Basque Autonomous Region (or Bascongadas, which groups together three Basque provinces) and Navarre. In the north, there are another three regions under French administration.
Our central demand to the Spanish government is for the right to self-determination. This is the common platform among the Basque political parties, trade unions and social movements. It has been a long struggle to reunify the Basque country, and we do not want to wait for a ruler from outside, like France or Spain to do it.
The Lizarra agreement is a step towards territorial jurisdiction and sovereignty for Basque country. [On September 12, 23 political parties, trade unions and grassroots groups issued the Lizarra agreement calling for multilateral talks with armed liberation group ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna — Basque Country and Freedom) without conditions. The meeting that produced the declaration was initiated by Herri Batasuna. The agreement was signed by the main Basque nationalist parties — including the largest party in Bascongadas, the conservative Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) — the Basque trade union federation, the Basque branch of the Communist Party-led United Left and the Basque far-left organisation, Zutik.]
The Spanish government has organised illegal paramilitary groups, in collaboration with the French state, to carry out operations in the northern Basque country, where exile Basque communities are located. Madrid wanted to disperse the community and create fear.
Political activists were arrested and deported to Algeria, Venezuela and Panama. There were also assassinations of political activists. Currently, there are more than 600 political prisoners in France and Spain. There are more police in the Basque country proportionally than in any place in Europe.
Spain denies that our struggle is a political struggle. It considers ETA militants and political prisoners as common criminals. However, HB sees the Basque struggle as a political conflict that needs a political solution.
Question: Could you describe the state of nationalist consciousness?
The struggle is more developed in the south. Nationalist parties in the north are campaigning around language rights. The French-administered Basque country is part of a larger department or province. Basques are campaigning for their own department within the French political system. Mass consciousness is supportive of a Basque department, and even right-wing parties support the campaign.
There is a strong movement against conscription in Spain. Basques do not want to defend a nation that is not theirs. There have been many people arrested over this, and the level of protest is high. The Basque country has the highest number of people arrested because of conscription. As result of opposition to conscription, Madrid is considering a change in the law to implement a professional army.
With the Lizarra declaration and ETA's truce, the struggle has gathered pace in the south. There is a commitment to a democratic process in which the Basque people can decide what links they want with their neighbours and between the Basque provinces without interference from Madrid. This process could provide the basis for forming one Basque country.
HB defends a socialist and independent Euskadi. Not everyone agrees with that, but we are creating a framework where all the possibilities for Euskadi can be raised. This is the most important thing we are working on. HB is the left wing and the PNV is the right wing of the process. We do not support the same politics, but we are working towards a new political framework to unify the seven Basque provinces.
We have a parliament in the Basque autonomous region but this is only for part of our country. It is not a full parliament; it represents the partition of our country, and we want institutions that span our whole land.
Question: What about the consciousness of the youth?
Young people are very active in the struggle. You may have heard of Kale Barroka. It is the street protests in which the youth mobilise. Its like the Palestinian intifada. Whenever there is an arrest, an ETA militant is killed or there is a state attack, young people mobilise in militant protests that involve the throwing of Molotov cocktails and breaking windows. These protests are spontaneous.
The police are always trying to pin Kale Barroka on Jarrai [the radical Basque youth organisation]. Street protest has always been a big part of the Basque struggle. In the last few years, it has been more important than before.
The youth are very active in many areas, like campaigning for better labour conditions for youth, fighting unemployment and opposing the institutionalisation of part-time work.
Question: Could you explain the formation and role of Euskal Herritarrok (EH — Basque Citizens)?
EH is a big left nationalist umbrella group for building a broad movement and campaigning in elections. There is still debate on its future. It was created from the common dynamics of working together.
HB is the largest force in the left nationalist movement. Following increased attacks on HB from Madrid last year, there were rumours that HB would be made illegal before the provincial elections last October. This created the impetus for HB to broaden out and create broader alliances.
In the last period, there has been a convergence within different Basque organisations. Significantly, the trade unions began demanding that labour relations should not be related to Spain or France but within the Basque country. The left nationalist union federation LAB and the PNV-associated ELA, despite different political backgrounds, began to work towards such a common framework.
There have been increased efforts from the relatives of political prisoners. Many are not linked to the left, because you cannot choose to be a relative of a prisoner. The political spectrum among relatives is therefore broad. Relatives started a campaign against prisoners' living conditions.
Prisoners are often isolated for 23 hours a day, are not allowed to study or speak their language; sanitary conditions are poor; their correspondence is censored and lots of other things. Political prisoners are dispersed through 100 jails in France and Spain, outside the Basque country.
They are part of the Basque country and they should be in that country, to be close to home and relatives. There is a campaign to relocate the prisoners back to Basque country.
Question: How Does HB differentiate itself within broader movements?
We are working with many forces, including the PNV, EA [the moderate nationalist party, Eusko Alkartasuna], United Left and the northern Basque parties. Within this common work, class conflict is reflected.
In the Basque parliament, the PNV and EA need the support of EH to rule and for legislation to pass. We agreed to support them to build a new Euskadi, not just further autonomy. All our support is in that direction.
We also campaign from outside the parliament. We are conscious that contradictions develop between us on the left and PNV on the right. We do not support the PNV's political line but the democratic process it has undertaken.
There are certain areas of confrontation as we are trying to implement a left program. For example, last year there was a general strike for a 35-hour week. The PNV and EA did not support that demand, but we supported the strike and our parliamentarians actively campaigned for it.
The common work is important. There are increased attacks from Spain, despite ETA's truce. There are still many arrests and ETA militants killed. There is no peace process, as this requires movement from both sides. There is no movement from Spain.
Spain is trying to break the process of cooperation between HB/EH and the PNV, who have been collaborators with Spain for decades, but are now working with HB/EH.
Question: HB describes itself as socialist. Could you explain how you see the interrelationship between socialism and nationalism?
The left nationalist movement has always had two aims: independence and socialism. At the moment we are working more deeply on the nationalist line as we are trying to work together with other forces to create a legal framework where Euskadi can be created in the future.
HB is not forgetting about socialism. We are making a step in that direction too, with things like the general strike for the 35-hour week. Campaigns like that are crucial steps to achieve a more just society. To build socialism we need to build solidarity with other workers, and these struggles can be waged immediately.
It is a wrong strategy to think that the Basque country has to first achieve independence before it can implement a socialist society. We believe we have to start the struggle now. Otherwise, the struggle for independence would be seen as one step, and the struggle for socialism another. They have to be parallel struggles all the time.