Pernando Barrena, spokesman for banned Basque pro-independence party Batasuna, drinks water during a news conference in Pamplona January 16, 2007. Barrena said that the ruling Spanish Socialist Party were proud that they had done nothing during armed separatists ETA's 10-month old ceasefire. REUTERS/Vincent West (SPAIN)I agree with Barrena, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero did absolutely nothing in behalf of the Peace Process.
Why?
The easy explanation is that he was too afraid to confront the members of the Francoist Partido Popular, too afraid to bring upon themselves the ire of the ultra conservatives that poison the political landscape in Spain, too careful about not losing too many votes in 2008.
The truth is, Rodríguez Zapatero and his correligionaries at the PSOE did not do anything to streghnten the Peace Process for their own dark motivations. Let us not forget which party created the GAL, a state sponsored terrorist group that kidnapped, tortured and murdered scores of Basque citizens during the government of Felipe González.
Rodríguez Zapatero wasted a great opportunity to break up with that past, instead, like a madman he tried to outdo what his predecessors did. From the moment ETA issued the ceasfire, Rodríguez stepped up the repression against the Basques. The Peace Process never ever started because the PSOE was unwilling to make its first move.
Spanish politicians have all the same weakness, they all cling to Spain glory days, back when the country was a colonialist power. Euskal Herria, Catalunya, Galiza and the Canary Islands along with Ceuta and Melilla are the last remnants of that allegedly great past, it is hard for them to let go of them.
Too bad this colonialist minded Spanish politicians count with the trecherous support of many others like them in Europe and around the world.
~ ~ ~
No comments:
Post a Comment