Batasuna Speaks Out

Despite the will by many political agents in Euskal Herria, there is some disrupting elements that are trying to boycott the peace process.

Such is the case of Judge-Prosecutor (you read that right, that is the way it is in Spain) Fernando Grande-Marlaska, who each time that Batasuna members get together to work towards the peace process, Grande-Marlaska dispatches police elements to disband the meetings.

Well, the Batasuna leadership are fed up with this ill conceived attitude by the likes of Grande-Marlaska, heir to the previous Inquisidor Baltasar Garzón.

This is what they have to say, via EITb:

Judge Marlaska's Ban

"Batasuna can't be dependent on judge's whims", party speaker

06/08/2006

The banned Batasuna representative, Joseba Álvarez, has affirmed that National Court judge Fernando Grande-Marlaska has not avoided previous Batasuna's press conferences, and he has done so now with yesterday's event as he might be wanting to hinder the peace process. Spanish Police halted a press conference by the leftwing nationalist party yesterday in Pamplona/Iruña.

In his opinion, "these events after the ceasefire, after the verification of the ceasefire, when everybody announces the setting up of the process, are incomprehensible and must be avoided."

Furthermore, he has stated that the meeting between Basque socialists' leader, Patxi López, and Batasuna's Arnaldo Otegi, can't be dependent on the legality of the party, although that is an issue to be solved in the future.

"Batasuna is a speaker that talks with everybody, even with the Socialist Party, throughout all these months and years, but eventually this issue must be also solved, but Batasuna's legalisation can't be used as an excuse to hinder those meetings," he has noted.

Álvarez has pointed out that Batasuna "can't be dependent on a judicial intervention or the whims of a judge who thinks an event was not a crime for five months, and once everything is verified and seems to be kicking off, he takes such a measure as banning a press conference."

Gerry Adams

Álvarez has said that the visit by Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, has contributed "the message" based on the Irish experience, message of not arbitrating a process with an outlawed political force because that has no sense."

Furthermore, he has affirmed that Adams' message for leftwing nationalism was to be patient, because there can be many provocations, like yesterday's in Pamplona/Iruña.

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