Pro Ibarretxe Campaign

As I reported a few days back, Zapatero is using a shady internet network set in place by Aznar and the Spanish extreme right to try and torpedo a presentation by the Basque Autonomous Community's prime minister Ibarretxe at California's Stanford University.

So far Provost Etchemendy was the only one fending off the savage hordes of fascist minded Spaniards. Well, EITB released a note today of a Basque initiative to come to his aid.

Here it is:

Politics

Manifest

Signatures to support Basque premier’s visit to Stanford

02/02/2008

After two people began an Internet campaign against Basque Premier’s visit to Stanford’s university, now here comes the answer.

“In defense of our institutions” is the initiative released online to garner signatures in favor of the report named “The wind of freedom blows”. It is a report to defend the Basque premier, the person who represents all the Basque citizens. “The wind of freedom blows”, “we want to express our support for the freedom of speech of the maximum representative of the Basques throughout the world”, it is written on the report.

This manifest has been done as a counterpoint to the campaign that two youngsters began online against an academic act which will take place at Stanford University on the 14th February 2008 and to which the Basque premier, Juan Jose Ibarretxe, has been invited.

Those who protest against Ibarretxe’s visit say on their web page that the Basque premier sympathizes with the Basque armed group ETA and for that reason he should not attend the conference.

Now, the driving forces of the report “The wind of freedom blows” request Stanford University “to disregard the petitions of groups that pretend to obstruct freedom of speech”. “We do this in the name of one of the sacred principles which have inspired this prestigious institution, namely: "love and reverence for the great principles of government as derived from the inalienable rights of man to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness", they add.

Those who have signed defend “everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

Now lets see how many signatures will be gathered, the Spaniards got 3000 in a two week period.

Here you have the link to the page where you can sign if you wish to support Ibarretxe (the Basque politician), Etchemendy (the Stanford provost of Basque descent), Arrillaga (the Basque millionaire who donated a whole Football field to Stanford) and Garamendi (the Californian politician of Basque descent):

Gure Erakundeen Alde

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