Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Puerto Rico's Freedom Fighters

This is the Editorial at Workers World:

Self-determination! But where?

Published Apr 24, 2008 1:54 AM

In February it was Kosovo. In April, Tibet. Can the ruling classes in the imperialist countries, those world-class oppressors, suddenly be major supporters of self-determination?

Only when it suits their interests.

The French and Spanish rulers repress self-determination in the Basque Country, the British keep their troops in the northern counties of Ireland and—closer to home—Washington sends the FBI into its closest colonial possession, Puerto Rico, to harass, frequently arrest, and sometimes kill independence activists.

In mid-April, Puerto Rican independence activist Miguel Viqueira was about to leave his home for work when FBI agents showed up, armed and with bulletproof vests, insulting and threatening him. That same morning the FBI spread their bad will around, approaching Tania Delgado Soto from Rio Piedras. Both are members of the “Nueva Escuela” or New School in Puerto Rico, not to be confused with the university in New York.

In the case of these two activists, after the FBI harassed them, the agents left without showing any judicial papers or warrants that would allow them to arrest or question the two. There were reports of others being harassed.

The continued efforts of the FBI and other U.S. police agencies to interfere with the rights of Puerto Ricans who believe their country has the right to sovereignty and self-determination should be protested by all in the progressive movement. Some already joined the April 21 protest at Federal Plaza in New York, a worthy target of protest. There will certainly be other opportunities to show solidarity with the Puerto Rican activists, who are freedom fighters really close to home.

When the imperialist ruling class starts to champion some national group demanding autonomy or secession, it’s time to get suspicious. Ask these rulers’ representatives if they are also going to support the self-determination of the oppressed nations in their own sphere of influence. It isn’t hard to predict their answer.


Our solidarity to our Puerto Rican fellow freedom fighters.

Gora Puerto Rico!

PS. Hawaii, is your turn.


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Gernika : The Assembly Chamber

This information comes to us thanks to EITb:

Fiestas & traditions

The "Casa de Juntas"

The Assembly Chamber of Gernika

04/27/2008

It is, without a doubt, the place where the heart of the Old Laws of the Basque Country lies.

This is the very heart of the Assembly House, the Casa de Juntas, where the Plenary Meetings of the General Assemblies of Biscay are held. An ancient institution, the origins of the General Assemblies date back to the Middle Ages, when meetings were held, as tradition demanded, in the open air around the Tree of Gernika.

Originally, a small hermitage (Santa María La Antigua) was to be found nearby, where a religious service was held prior to political events and where the act of swearing to respect the Old Laws (Fueros) also took place. With the passage of time, the General Assemblies moved their meetings into that small ecclesiastical enclosure.

From 1826 onwards, seeking premises more in accordance with the needs of the institution, the initial church was demolished to make way for the construction of the current building, for which the architect Antonio de Etxebarria took responsibility. Maintaining that tradition of close relationship between public life and religion, the Assembly Chamber was designed as a space capable of combining both functions.

We are, therefore, before a Church-Parliament. Although the ecclesiastical aspect has currently been relegated by politics, both the altar and the holy water fonts are still maintained as witnesses of bygone days. The paintings in the Chamber occupy a place of importance in its decoration. On the one hand, we find a gallery of portraits painted by Sebastián de Galbarriartu and the Bustrín brothers in the XVII century, representing the different Lords or Seigniors of Biscay. Above these paintings, ten cartouches remember the dates when some of the Lords of Biscay swore to respect the Old Laws.

All these items refer not only to the existence of the authority of the Lord of Biscay but also his obligation to swear respect and observance to the set of Old Laws (Fueros) that the community had drawn up, based on usage and custom.


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Sunday, April 27, 2008

Gernika : 71st Anniversary

The Spaniards would prefer that the international press would stop including the bombing of the town of Gernik (Guernica) back in April of 1937. They've tried hard to cast a web of lies and misconceptions from day one.

But even if they succeed at convincing the media outlets to stop reminding people about the genocidal crime committed that infamous day, we, the Basques, will continue to commemorate the day in which innocent civilians were murdered by the Fascist powers of the time (Hitler's Germany, Mussolini's Italy and Franco's Spain). And we will continue to remind the international community that Francisco Franco did not end up his career as his mentors did, no, he died in his bed of old age and to this date not one of his henchmen and underlings has ever been tried for the crimes committed by his murderous regime.

This note appeared today at EITb:

Life

Homage

71st anniversary of the Bombing of Gernika

04/26/2008

The prize giving ceremony of the 5th edition of Gernika Awards for Peace and Reconciliation will be celebrated in the morning. The prizes go to Cándido Seseta, and Dekha Ibrahim Abdi.

Gernika commemorates today the 71st anniversary of the Bombing of this Biscayan town in the Basque Country by German air force leaded by general Franco with several events which include the prize giving ceremony of the 5th edition of Gernika Awards for Peace and Reconciliation.

According to the town council in Gernika, the Bombing commemoration events will start with the presentation of the book El Bombardeo de Gernika (The Bombing of Gernika) in Lizeo Antzokia Theater.

Later, there will be a meeting with Michel Janper, representative of Children of War association, and Johan Block, a member of Family of the executed in War collective.

The prize giving ceremony of the 5th edition of Gernika Awards for Peace and Reconciliation will also be celebrated in the morning which go to two people: One of them, the Basque army commander Cándido Seseta Etxebarria, died in February 1937 when he was attacking with his "gudaris" ( Basque soldiers) an enemy position trying to get Oviedo back for the Republic, and second to the Kenyan woman Dekha Ibrahim Abdi, awarded with the Alternative Nobel Prize 2007 after showing that religious and other kind of differences can be reconciled in several ethnic and cultural situations.

The events will continue in the afternoon and at 16:30 (coinciding with the moment when the bombing started over the town) a prayer for the dead and a floral offering for the people who died in the bombing will take place at the mausoleum of the cemetery in Zallo (Gernika). Among other important figures, institutional representatives and Basque politicians will be in this event.

According to the major of this town, José María Gorroño, "It will be a special day today, in which we will remember the hundreds of died and injured people who lived that horror, which marked us forever".


Let us remember that the Spanish government has never apologized for the bombing of innocent Basque civilians in Durango and Gernika (Guernica). More so, they are proud of what they did just like they are proud of what they did in America 500 years ago when they leveled entire civilizations murdering millions of people, this is why even today the Spanish people celebrate their national day on Octobert 12th.

Unable to unshackle their minds, the Spaniards have tried hard to enslave the Basque spirit. They have failed, time and again.

The Basques will prevail.


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Friday, April 25, 2008

Support for Ivan Apaolaza

This information was published at Pacific Free Press:

Ivan Apaolaza Sacho: Still in Jail

by The Freedom for Ivan Committee

In Montreal, Ivan Apaolaza Sancho - a 36 year old Basque refugee claimant and political prisoner - has been in detention for over ten months.

Ivan is accused of having been a member of the ETA (an armed nationalist Basque organization); an accusation that he denies. He has been detained at Rivière des prairies Detention Centre since June 2007 and faces deportation solely on the basis of accusations made by the Spanish state; no actual evidence to support the allegations has been presented.

Moreover, the allegations themselves seem to come from a confession obtained under torture (see below). If the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) Commissioner accepts those allegations, Ivan faces deportation to Spain where he expects further arbitrary detention and possible torture.

Update from the Freedom for Ivan Committee

Ivan is one of hundreds of Basque political prisoners, held at the behest of the Spanish state, often with the complicity of other states like Canada.

For centuries, the Spanish state has inflicted intense and cruel repression on the Basque left-sovereignist movement (which enjoys broad support in Basque society). Today, following in Franco's footsteps, the state continues to use political repression as it attempts to dismantle the Basque movement's base of social support.

Of the 18,721 people arrested in Basque country for political reasons between 1977 and 2002, 9200 people served jail time, 5300 people reported having been tortured, and 9 people were murdered during police interrogations.

On 24 March, the newly formed Freedom for Ivan committee organized a press conference in Montreal to publish evidence indicating that all of the allegations against Ivan originate from the "confession" a Basque woman made under torture while she was held incommunicado by Spanish police.

Ivan's committee and lawyers called on Stockwell Day to immediately release Ivan and cease Canadian complicity in torture.

The following day, Ivan's lawyers argued in an IRB hearing that the case against Ivan should be thrown out for lack of evidence and because there are reasonable grounds to believe that the allegations are based on information obtained under torture, which is inadmissable under Canadian law.

French legal expert Didier Rouget testified that Canada could also be breaking international law if it deported Ivan on that basis. The hearing will resume on 25 April.

In the meantime, Ivan underwent another routine detention review. Just two days before Political Prisoner day, the IRB Commissioner had another opportunity to cease participating in torture and repression - but refused.


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Basque-Style Chicken

This recipe comes to us courtesy of The Philadelphia Enquirer:

Basque-Style Chicken

Makes 2 servings

2 boneless, skinless chicken
breasts, each 7 ounces
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 ounces pancetta, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
2 tablespoons minced shallot 1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 cup dry white wine, such as pinot grigio
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon Espelette pepper (see note)
3 sprigs thyme
1/2 cup diced tomato, cut into 3/4-inch dice
1/4 cup nicoise olives

1. Place each chicken breast between two large pieces of plastic wrap. Using the flat side of a meat mallet or heavy skillet, pound each breast until it is uniformly about one-quarter-inch thick. Season each piece with one-fourth teaspoon salt and a pinch of pepper. Place each breast on top of a large piece of plastic wrap or wax paper.

2. In a large skillet, heat the butter and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add the chicken, one piece at a time, and saute until golden-brown, about 21/2 minutes on the first side and 30 seconds on the other. Remove the chicken to a plate. Set aside in a warm place.

3. Drain the excess fat from the pan and add the remaining tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until browned, about 2 minutes. Add the shallot and saute for 1 minute, until tender, then add the garlic and saute just until aromatic, a few seconds, being careful not to brown. Add the wine, stirring to scrape up the browned bits at the bottom of the pan.

4. Stir in the chicken broth, the Espelette pepper, thyme and tomato. Allow the sauce to come to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes so that the flavors develop. Stir in the olives.

5. Add the chicken back to the pan, spooning the sauce over it. Cook for 1 minute, then remove the chicken to a plate. Spoon the sauce evenly over each piece, and serve immediately.

- From Los Angeles Times test kitchen director Donna Deane.

Note: Espelette pepper is available at specialty food stores. Also, you can substitute canned San Marzano tomatoes for fresh tomatoes.

Per serving: 515 calories; 45 grams protein; 6 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram fiber; 30 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 135 milligrams cholesterol; 1,144 milligrams sodium.


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Sports and Traditions

This article appeared today at EITb:

Fiestas & traditions

Early origins of the Basques

Basque rural sports

04/24/2008

Basque sports derive from the daily chores of farmers and fishermen, and are therefore sports of strength.

Basque rural sports are recreational activities that are closely linked to local traditions, and form an integral part of the country’s customs. Many of these activities are rooted in the early origins of the Basque people and the evolution of their rural world, which revolved mainly around the central figure of the family farmhouse.

Basque sports, which derive from the daily chores of farmers and fishermen, are therefore sports of strength. The main events in rural sports tournaments are idi probak (stone dragging races), aizkolariak (wood chopping), harrijasotzaileak (stone lifting), segalariak (grass cutting), korrikalariak (running), boloak (skittles), sokatira (tug-of-war), trontzalariak (log sawing) and ahari jokoa (ram fights).

Strength and competitiveness are very valued by the Basque people, who for centuries evolved under very harsh conditions imposed by the environment. Another important part of such events is betting, where both participants and spectators bet against the different possible outcomes.

Aizkolariak or log cutting competitions are perhaps the most popular of Basque rural sports. The activity is basically a test of stamina, and has many different varieties and variations.

Harrijasotzaileak or stone lifting is perhaps the oldest example of traditional Basque sports. The size and shape of the stones vary.

Idi probak or stone dragging competitions are one of the most typical rural sports. The stone, which can vary in weight from 1,500 to 4,500 kilos, is dragged around the town square by a pair of oxen for as long as possible.

Soka-tira or tug-of-war is an ancient sport that is played all over the world. Two teams pull from the opposite ends of a rope trying to bring the opposing team to their half of the field.


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Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Another Day, Another Trial

Once again the Spanish government flexes its muscle and puts on trial members of a Basque human rights' organization. Knowing that the entire world is distracted by the Olympic torch and the Tibetan massive demonstrations of support Rodriguez Zapatero continues the oppressive offensive against Basque society in ways that would make Francisco Franco proud.

Here you have this note appeared at EITb:

Politics

Basque left-wing organizations

Trial against pro-amnesty Basque organization starts in Spain

04/21/2008

Twenty-seven members of pro-amnesty Basque organizations are suspected of aiding the armed Basque group ETA through a network of social and political organizations.

A trial against 27 members of pro-amnesty Basque organizations started on Monday in Spain's High Court.

The 27 people, members of the Basque left-wing organizations Gestoras Pro Amnistía, Askatasuna, Behatokia and Senideak, are suspected of aiding the armed Basque group ETA through a network of social and political organizations.

On Monday, all of them refused to answer questions by the Spanish public prosecutor.

The case stemmed from an eight-year inquiry by Baltasar Garzon, Spain's leading anti-terror investigator. Garzon alleged that ETA was not just made up of armed commandos but also had support through political, financial and media organizations. The defendants were accused of belonging to these groups, some of which have been outlawed.

The organizations engaged in activities ranging from giving support to ETA members in prison and helping ETA find new targets to recruiting new members and gathering worthy data from the summaries, Garzon has charged.


And as we all know, for Garzon all Basques are guilty from the start, so the last thing we can expect is a fair trial.

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To The Top 50

This note comes to us courtesy of EITb:

Life

Recognition

Four Basque restaurants among world’s top 50

04/22/2008

They are Mugaritz, Arzak, Martín Berasategi and Etxebarri Grillroom. Ferrán Adriá’s Bulli restaurant got the first place among world’s top 50 for the third time. The awards are given by the magazine Restaurant.

Four Basque restaurants are among world’s top 50, according to the gastronomic magazine Restaurant.

The restaurants are the following: Mugaritz (fourth place), Arzak (eighth place), Martín Berasategi (29th place), and Etxebarri Grillroom (44th place).

Bulli restaurant, which belongs to the Catalan chef Ferran Adriá, has been elected world’s best restaurant for three consecutive years.

The S. Pellegrino prize-giving ceremony took place on Monday, in the gala organized by Restaurant magazine.

This restaurant continues its spell of good luck due to Adriá’s creativity, internationally known as “cookery alchemist”, for his habit to experiment with food.

Chef Heston Blumenthal’s British restaurant The Fat Duck, placed in Berkshire (west of London), got the second place, followed by the Paris’ Pierre Gagnaire restaurant.

The way for election

The prizes, given for seven years, are based on the votes given by a panel of international judges, collectively known as the Nespresso World's 50 Best Restaurants Academy.

Almost 700 chefs and restaurant critics form the Academy. Restaurant magazine’s readers also have the right to vote.


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"Lucky" Lhasa

The article I present to you was published at Counter Punch, here you have it:

Journey of a Double Standard

From Lhasa to Bilbao

By FLOYD RUDMIN

The Basque people are an ancient minority group inhabiting the Pyrenees Mountains in northern Spain. With the mountains as natural defense, and with their strong sense of cultural identity, they survived the Roman Empire, the Arab conquest, and the Christian reconquest. Basques always arranged to have local autonomy. They call their country “Euskada”.

After Franco won the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s, he brutally oppressed the Basques, killed many, and moved Spaniards into the Basque region. Bilbao is the largest Basque city, but only 50,000 of the 350,000 population now speak the Basque language. The current Spanish government has renounced the oppressive policies of Franco and is trying to be conciliatory.

There is a Basque separatist movement, comprised of different groups, the most violent of which is ETA. On April 17, Basque separatists exploded a bomb in Bilbao, targeting the Spanish Socialist Party which had just won re-election in Spain. To show their “peaceful” intentions, the separatists telephoned in a bomb warning so the building could be evacuated. Nevertheless, the building was damaged and seven Spanish police officers were wounded.

The Basque separatists’ attack in Bilbao in April is very similar to the Tibetan separatists’ attack in Lhasa a month earlier:

In both cases a unique, cultural minority has survived for centuries in remote mountains, able to achieve autonomous administration regardless of the government of the larger region. The Tibetans in the Himalayas; the Basques in the Pyrenees.

In both cases, a national civil war resulted in the winner asserting full control over all of its national territory, including the former autonomous regions. The Communist Chinese took control in Tibet; the Franco Fascists took control in Euskada.

In both cases, the minority resists this change, often crossing the mountainous border to find refuge on the other side. Tibetans finding refuge in India; Basques finding refuge in France.

In both cases, their capital city has experienced an influx of settlers. Han Chinese coming to Lhasa; Castillian Spaniards coming to Bilbao.

In both cases, a separatist movement arises, including some groups claiming to be peaceful and some groups openly resorting to violence. Most in the news is the Tibetan Youth Congress for the Tibetans; ETA for the Basques.

This year, merely one month apart, separatists attacked government buildings and police forces in both capital cities. The Tibetan separatists also attacked civilians, killing some, even burning them alive. The Basque separatists gave a forewarning so that civilian casualties would be avoided.

Nevertheless, the world wide response to these two events has been very different. After the attack in Lhasa, the response has been massive, with many street demonstrations denouncing China and supporting the separatists. The French President, the British Prime Minister, and the UN Secretary General have announced they will boycott China. Following the attack in Bilbao, there has been no response. Nothing. Perfectly nothing. No street demonstrations in Paris, London, or San Francisco. No one announcing a boycott of Spain.

There is one difference between these two very similar events that might explain this very great difference in the world wide response: The United States government has been covertly backing the Tibetan separatists for fifty years. No super-power has given such support to the Basque separatists. This is not conspiracy theory, but easily accessible information.

In 1998, on October 2, the New York Times reported that “The Dalai Lama’s administration acknowledged today that it received $1.7 million a year in the 1960’s from the Central Intelligence Agency”. The $180,000 paid annually to the Dalai Lama personally was used to set up lobby offices in Geneva.

In 2002, Kansas University Press published a history of “The CIA’s Secret War in Tibet”. The authors are Kenneth Conboy who is a former analyst with the right-wing Heritage Foundation and James Morrison who is a career US Army veteran whose service included training Tibetan guerrilla forces for the CIA.

In 2003, Asia Times published an obituary of the CIA agent who arranged the Dalai Lama’s escape from Tibet in 1959. Anthony A. Poshepny, also called "Tony Poe", first organized the Tibetan guerrilla forces, training them in Colorado and flying them into Tibet via Dhaka.

People feeling a passionate need to protest China’s treatment of Tibetans should perhaps pause and wonder why.

Floyd Rudmin is Professor of Social & Community Psychology at the University of Tromsø in Norway. He can be reached at frudmin@psyk.uit.no


Now, it is quite a stretch to say that the Spanish government has renounced its oppressive policies against the Basques, let us remember that just yesterday a trial against the members of a Basque human rights' organization was set in motion by the government of Rodriguez Zapatero.

Other than that I just want to point out the the Euskara name for the Basque Country is Euskadi, not Euskada. Also, the capital city of the Basques is Iruñea (also called Pamplona), Bilbao is the capital of one Basque province, Bizkaia.

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Sunday, April 20, 2008

Preserving Basque Heritage in Arizona

Hopefully Patty Lutrell will be able to find one of those rich Basques that she needs in order to preserve this piece of Basque history.

Check this note appeared at Yuma Sun:

Community works to preserve Basque court

Few of their handball arenas remain in the West

April 19, 2008 - 10:55PM

FLAGSTAFF - On a typical Fourth of July at Jesus Garcia's boarding house, young Basque men would compete in fierce handball tournaments at a nearby court, dance to traditional music and munch on Spanish-style omelets.

Olga Esparza, Garcia's niece, often was in the house, washing dishes to help her uncle keep up with the flood of guests.

"I have so many memories, not just for me but for other people," said Esparza, who was born in Phoenix but now lives in Carson, Calif. "Now there aren't many Basques left in Flagstaff or in Arizona."

Today the boarding house, built in 1926, is abandoned and falling apart. The remains of the Basque handball court, one of 14 still standing in the western United States, are three walls of crumbling sandstone rising about 40 feet. Both are reminders of Basques who settled in Flagstaff and elsewhere around the West, working primarily as sheep herders.

Community leaders and the properties' owners agree the site is worth preserving. But they've yet to determine how to move forward, mostly because the question comes down to money.

Flagstaff resident Patty Lutrell, who bought the property with the ball court about four years ago, said she lacks the $1 million needed to rehabilitate and preserve it and hopes to sell to someone who can.

"Now it's up to somebody with money who can see the vision in it," Lutrell said. "We're basically looking for a rich Basque."

The boarding house is on property owned by a Phoenix-based partnership that's looking to sell. Mike Pullen, one of the partners, said he tried to create a restaurant in which each of the eight rooms had a theme but ran into too many zoning roadblocks.

Pullen said he's working with Lutrell to find someone who will purchase and preserve both properties. "I think if someone had the right drive to do it, it'll be quite a successful thing for them."

Handball, called pelota in Spanish, is a passion among Basques, members of an ethnic group native to northcentral Spain and southwestern France.

A handball court, surrounded by either three or four walls, often is a centerpiece of Basque communities. Players use bare hands or paddles to hit a ball off the walls.

James Garrison, Arizona's historic preservation officer, said he'd support any effort to preserve the handball court. He said his office stands ready to help Lutrell find the money needed to preserve it.

"It's an endangered species," Garrison said. "Once it's gone, that's it."

Karl Eberhard, Flagstaff's historic preservation officer, said the two properties need a lot of restoration work. The court is suffering from weather deterioration, and the boarding house has asbestos, he said.

Eberhard, who is also an architect, came up with a plan to turn the remains of the handball court into a 4,000-square-foot restaurant enclosed in glass and steel. The boarding house would be converted into an art gallery or office space.

He said the properties are in danger even though those in the community generally support saving them. The city doesn't have the legal authority to prevent someone from demolishing the structures.

"If the current property owner wasn't as interested in preservation as they are, another property owner could tear it down and build something more easily and less expensively," Eberhard said, crediting owners of both properties for their efforts.

John Bieter, acting director of the Basque Studies Center at Boise State University in Idaho, said it's important to preserve the boarding house because of its historical importance. In Boise, a similar structure was transformed into a museum.

"It's a window into an immigrant group in the American West that has played a significant role," he said.

The first Basques came to the West as part of the 19th-century gold rush. Those who failed to strike it rich often went into sheep herding, part of the Basques' traditional pastoral lifestyle. During the winters, the herders, typically young single men, often stayed at boarding houses.

"They're really a home away from home because these herders … didn't have a home," Bieter said.

The boarding houses slowly vanished in the 20th century as the sheep industry died off and many Basques returned to Spain to take advantage of the improving economy, Bieter said.

Esparza said she'd hate to see Flagstaff lose the boarding house and handball court, which her uncle sold in 1945.

"He always took such good care of that house, but if he was to see it now, he'd roll over in his grave," Esparza said.


I know about one of those rich Basques who built an entire football field for an university, and well, nobody plays that sport in Euskal Herria, his name is John Arrillaga and he donated 100 million dollars to the Stanford University. And then there is María Aramburuzabala, the richest woman in Latin America, of Basque heritage, married to the US ambassador to Mexico.

I wish I was a rich Basque myself Patty, unfortunately, I'm not.

By the way, the first Basques came to Arizona (and adjacent states) almost 300 years ago, it was a Basque (Juan Bautista de Anza) who founded San Francisco in 1776. As a matter of fact, Arizona is a Basque name, from Haritz = oak and Ona = good, meaning, Good Oak.

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Report by EHW

This report comes to us thanks to Euskal Herria Watch:

33/01 Case against Gestoras Pro-Amnistia-Askatasuna

Description of the case

Repression against the Basque People, conducted by the Spanish State and - to a lesser degree- by the French State has been constant in recent years. It is easy to trace a continuous line throughout the last decades that can show us the persistence of torture, massive and arbitrary detentions, a penitentiary policy with terrible consequences, banned associations and organizations, closure of media, outlawing of political parties and total discrimination from public life against a section of the population. To sum up, an exceptional situation that has generated a dangerous scenario of suppression of the most basic political and civil rights, a scenario that can now be seen in all its brutality.

These circumstances have forced hundreds of Basque citizens to create a retaining wall, to confront repression and participate in different civic organisations, human rights organisations, and activist organisations in what has become known as the Amnesty Movement. Without such a movement, the lack of activation of the people and, therefore, of social opposition would have resulted in a total acceptance of the impunity of the structures of the Spanish State. That is why many and varied activities have been channelled through this Movement -conferences, demonstrations, public appeals, contacts with all kinds of political and social agents…- in order to demand a scenario of respect for basic democratic conditions, of enjoyment of basic civil and political rights.

In this context, the organisation Gestoras Pro Amnistía was born three decades ago as the main platform for solidarity with the people that suffered political repression and to campaign against the situation. This association carried out a process in 2002 to converge with the association Koordinaketa, made up of the committees that worked in solidarity with political prisoners in the North of the Basque Country, under French administration. Askatasuna emerged as a result of this process, to carry out these activities in the whole of the Basque Country. In other words: an organization that focuses its activity on the promotion and protection of the human rights of the victims of repression, that fights for the eradication of torture, for the rights of arrested or imprisoned Basque citizens and the overcoming of the causes that are at the origin of State violence.

This task has always been carried out completely within the law and with a continuous public expression of its activities –press conferences, peaceful demonstrations, organisation of debates, conferences, compilation of information and figures of repression, the diffusion of these through reports, publications, public exchange with other social agencies, political parties, trade unions…-. That is why Gestoras Pro Amnistía–Askatasuna have become a reference for the grassroots movement, with a reputation and social recognition and an important capacity for activating Basque society. We could say that this organisation is present in all cities and neighbourhoods throughout the Basque Country, with the participation in its activities of thousands of people.

Police operations

This task and goals mentioned were criminalized and, in fact, suspended after the police operation carried out by the judge at Central Investigation Court nº 5, Baltasar Garzón. On October 31st, 2001, 12 organizers or spokespeople of this organisation were arrested under the accusation of belonging to a terrorist organisation. Juan Mari Olano, its national coordinator was arrested some weeks later in Bayonne –North Basque Country, under French administration- and after a long process, extradited to the Spanish state. All those people were been in pre-trial imprisonment –remand in custody- for the maximum limit allowed by Spanish law in these cases, of four years awaiting trial. The right to be presumed innocent has disappeared; convictions are now served in advance, before any hearing at a trial. They were released under astronomical amounts of money as bail in May and June 2004.

In the context of this operation, a virulent campaign by the media and politicians was implemented against the professional activity of the lawyers that work on cases that can be labelled “political”, under the argument that these lawyers belong to the “prison front” of the armed organisation. Thus, on the morning of October 31st, as the premises and offices of the Gestoras Pro Amnistía were searched, the police entered the offices of lawyers which are registered in the Bar Association of Lawyers in Gipuzkoa and Pamplona respectively. It must be remarked that the judge Baltasar Garzón, who was leading the operation in Bilbao was personally warned of this situation. Nevertheless, the judge took no notice of that information and carried on with the search, with both offices being sealed off and computers and documents belonging to the twelve lawyers that worked there being seized.

The investigation judge later ordered the lifting of the sealing of both offices and the restitution of the confiscated material, after duplicating and copying all the content of the computers and the documents seized during the searches. This is a flagrant violation of the rights of the lawyers to professional secrecy, as well as other guaranties that must be observed in these cases. Lawyer Julen Arzuaga will be subjected to these proceedings because of this illegal action.

On February 5th 2003, in a new raid, five people that worked as spokespersons in the new association Askatasuna were arrested, their homes searched as well as the premises of the association of relatives of political prisoners Etxerat in Bilbao, Hernani and Gasteiz. On February 6th Central Court of Investigation nº 5 took the decision to merge the proceedings into Case 33/01.

These operations have a continuity in the present, as on September 11th 2007 Juan Maria Olano and on October 3rd 2007 Ohiana Agirre, also spokespersons of Askatasuna were been arrested and jailed for “reiteration in their public activity as representatives of Askatasuna”. Olano will be released in early March 2008. Meanwhile, Ohiana Agirre is in prison, under new proceedings opened by judge Baltasar Garzón against Askatasuna.

Charges

With these proceedings, the investigation judge Baltasar Garzón suspended the activity of Gestoras Pro Amnistía and Askatasuna, considering its public activity illegal from the point of view of the criminal law and accused the 17 that were in prison and other 10 of a crime of “belonging to an armed organisation”.

The judge reverts the process of the investigation, contrary to law and logic, as first, a conclusion is given out –that Gestoras belongs to the structure of ETA- and later, through interpretations and speculations they look for the evidence, the factual arguments to support that theory.

The alleged criminal actions of Gestoras would be:

1.- Exercising control over the collective of ETA prisoners, connecting and communicating with the members and representatives through their lawyers.

2. - Guaranteeing internal cohesion and obedience to the discipline imposed by this organization on the collective, avoiding any individual initiative in the course of their prison sentence and cancelling any possibility of dissent or breaking from the collective.

3.-Co-operating with and financing the maintenance of ETA prisoners and refugees.

4.- Co-ordinating and driving forms of struggle that complement those of ETA and support for the demonstrations of the prisoners’ collective.

5. - Gathering important information for ETA’s internal security, taking this from the penal processes that members are involved in, and passed on by some of their lawyers, greatly exceeding the right to defence.

6. - Pointing out who they believe are responsible for the situation and condition of ETA prisoners, turning them into possible targets for that organization; or against persons or institutions that don’t back the demonstrations called in support for and solidarity with ETA prisoners.

7.- Taking advantage of the sensitivity caused by the supposed violation of the rights of ETA prisoners to induce volunteers and regenerate the operational structure of ETA.

8.- The setting up and development of the project named Alde Hemendik .

9.- Co-ordinating and directing the so-called “X and Y struggles” Kale borroka (urban struggle) and “days of struggle” that are carried out in support of ETA members or due the death of a member, or other contingent circumstances.

10. - The initiative and decision on when the ETA prisoners collective begin a hunger strike or cell lock- in and other actions.

11.- Publishing the magazine ZOHARDIA, directed by Mikel Korta Carrión, who was included in the Indictment 18/98 for his membership of ETA-Ekin.

All these activities are carried out by Gestoras, under the control and direction of ETA-KAS and ETA-Ekin, through the corresponding instruments developed by those detained and others accused”.

In the following points of the indictment he goes over each one of the detainees and assigns them greater responsibility in one or another of the activities above, in an attempt to justify their supposed “criminal” activity. Amongst the elements of accusation in the indictment is the fact of having belonged in the past to other student, youth or social organizations, to be connected emotionally with a prisoner or a political refugee, participation in acts of homage to prisoners, campaigning, calling demonstrations, attending meetings, developing projects...

These activities, in any case, were publicly carried out by this organisation and in no way could be understood to constitute a crime, as is proven by the fact that they have never been accused of other minor crimes such as “glorifying terrorism”.

In the case of other activities that have are criminal and are may lead to the charge of belonging to a terrorist organisation, they is no way to prove these charges, as no rational evidence of criminality has been presented, no reference to damage against any juridical good protected by the criminal legislation. Again, the charges are generic, brought against groups of people, collectively, in a clear breach of the individuality and precision that must be the basis of any criminal charges.

Conclusions

In the face of these charges and in these circumstances, the trial against these 27 colleagues from the Amnesty Movement will begin on April 21st, 2008, with a petition from the public prosecutor of 10 years in prison.

In view of all the above, we wwould like to make the point that the participation of these people in different areas and organizations of the broad Amnesty Movement has always been open and transparent and has always been known to the public. The connection of this social activity and the actions committed by ETA is absolutely unacceptable and is based on arguments and interpretations lacking any kind of factual or rational basis.

We are aware, nevertheless, that this extensive application of anti-terrorist definitions to public and transparent actions has a long history in the Spanish justice system, hence the Supreme Court in the case of Haika-Segi and the subsequent Audiencia Nacional verdict in reference to Case 18/98, which only makes the position of our colleagues facing this trial worse.

This process is simply a smoke curtain that attempts to discredit a social organization and tries to criminalize the work of denouncing the vulnerability of the rights of Basque prisoners, refugees and deportees and also tries to avoid the social expressions of solidarity with this collective. The r3emand in custody for four years of 13 of these colleagues, released on millionaire bails, the suspension of the activities of these organizations, have generated a total block of freedom of expression and of the right of association and peaceful petition, because the mobilizations and demonstrations organized by this movement have been consistently forbidden by court, suspended administratively and violently attacked by the State Security Forces.

This trial is a further landmark on the road to criminalize, with no legal basis, solidarity with political prisoners, opposition to repression and to state violence and mobilization in defence of human rights. The states, convinced of their strategy of maintaining the repression against increasingly broader sections of the population, require higher levels of impunity.

The way of doing things of the Audiencia Nacional as an instrument for the application of special antiterrorist laws, a vivid example of the “law for an enemy” shows us the impossibility of receiving a fair trial in front of this exceptional tribunal. Furthermore, keeping in mind the events mentioned above, we believe that the trial will be a mere masquerade designed without content to administer a previously written political verdict. We are not expecting, hence, justice from this court. Nevertheless, we are expecting an opportunity to explain to Basque and international society who we are and what we are seeking.

This type of political-judicial trials moves us further away from the aims we share with Basque society: ending the repression and seeking the definitive resolution of the Basque conflict.


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Art and Tradition in Euskal Herria

We are going to make some comments and notations on this article published at The Daily Herald:

Modern art and ancient traditions come together in northern Spain

Kathy Rodeghier | Daily Herald Travel Editor

Heads turn when passing the sleek, silver curves of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. An audible gasp can be heard in its atrium as arriving visitors crane their necks to gaze up on the play of light on glass, metal and stone.

The art museum, housed in a building that is a work of art itself, has become a symbol for Bilbao and, in some respects, for modern Spain. It seems ironic that it and other examples of cutting-edge art and architecture should be found among one of the oldest civilizations in Europe.

The people of the Basque Country, which covers three provinces of northern Spain plus a small area of southwest France, may stem from Europe's aborigines. Their blood group differs from other Europeans and an abundance of prehistoric remains, tombs and cave drawings leaves no doubt that early man lived on this soil, which remained free of glaciers during Europe's ice age.

Actually, it is four provinces not three. Lets see, we have Nafarroa, Araba, Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa, all of them are known to us as Hegoalde, meaning the portion of the Basque Country south from the Pyrinees. This is a common mistake and the source of it is the very Spanish government that in a clumsy attempt to fool the international community insists on the idea that Nafarroa (known as Navarre in English and Navarra in Spanish) is not part of the Basque Country when in fact Nafarroa is THE true Basque Country.

But just where the Basques came from, no one knows. One popular theory says they lived here before the Celts arrived some 3,500 years ago. Wave after wave of invaders -- Roman, Visigoth and Moor -- might have driven them into the nearby mountains of the Pyrenees, from which they emerged when the coast was clear.

What is known is the Basque language, Euskara, is the oldest living language in Europe and unrelated to any spoken today. Banned following the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s (the Basques were on the losing side), it was spoken in secret by some Basque families, especially in rural areas. Basque native David Elexgaray remembers visiting his aunt and uncle as a child. They hid books of Basque art and language in their home and would discreetly allow him a look as a reward for being a good boy.


Actually, the Basques were on the winning side, while Franco sided with Hitler and Mussolini, the Basque Government in the exile sworn its alliegance to the Allies. For example, on Liberation Day in Paris, the Basque battallion named Gernika paraded along the other nations under its own flag, the Ikurriña. Then the Allies forgot to fullfill their promise about kicking fascism out of Europe and allowed one of Hitler's allies to remain in power for more than 30 years.

After Spain's Basque region was granted limited autonomy in 1979, Euskara was recognized as the region's official language, along with Spanish, and taught in schools. Today, Basque children can speak it, as can their grandparents, but many of their parents' generation lost the language.

Seeds of discontent

Oppression of the Basques by Spanish dictator Francisco Franco spawned the Basque separatist movement, which seeks independence from Spain. The most radical among them form the terrorist group ETA, or Euskadi ta Askatasuna. Though it has been responsible for more than 800 deaths since the 1960s, the Basques insist visitors to their homeland have nothing to fear.


The Basque movement to regain sovereignty was not sparked by Francisco Franco, it was sparked by the conquest of Navarre back in 1522, since then the Basques have waged countless wars of independence against Madrid.

The rest of the article is flawless:

"They don't go for tourists at all. Tourists are respected," says Esther Vazquez Arribas, who lives in the Basque resort town of San Sebastian. The U.S. State Department backs her statement and has no travel alerts or warnings for the region (however, tourists were threatened in 2001 prior to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S.).

The ETA targets political enemies, says Arribas, and when they organize a demonstration they publicize it in advance. Those who support them show up; those who don't -- and tourists -- stay away.

"There are a lot of people who want independence, maybe 60 percent," guesses Arribas, but the movement now is not for a complete break from Spain, but for self-determination, which has been opposed by the central government. It's no coincidence that Spain was one of the few European countries not to support Kosovo's declaration of independence earlier this year.

Traditions survive

Just as the Basques of old maintained their traditions against invaders, Basques today proudly hold on to the culture that sets them apart from the rest of the Europe. This culture, and the modern art blossoming in the region, draws visitors to Spain's Basque Country.

Basque poets who improvise verse, known as bertsolaris, still perform here, as do folkloric dancers and musicians. Some older men still wear the traditional Basque beret. Sports are big in Basque Country, where the locals are said to bet on anything that moves. Traditional rural sports contests, such as stone lifting and tug of war, continue, while almost every Basque town has a fronton (court) where pelota (similar to jai alai) is played.

And then there is the food. Basque cuisine ranks among the best in Europe, with an emphasis on local fish and seafood. San Sebastian alone boasts three Michelin three-star restaurants, the most per square mile on the planet.

About 150 gastronomic societies, many dating back to the 1800s, meet in San Sebastian, mostly in the old quarter. Traditionally men-only clubs, members gather to prepare meals and enjoy camaraderie while they dine. Only recently have a few of these male havens allowed women into the kitchen.

But you don't need to be a member, or have a three-star budget, to walk into a bar and buy a few pintxos. In the rest of Spain, appetizers such as these are known as tapas, but Basque Country bars serve pintxos (PEEN-chos), miniature dishes that can be consumed in two bites while standing up.

Locals gather in bars between 1:30 and 3 in the afternoon, then again from 8 to 9:30 p.m. before going home to dinner. They spend only a few minutes at each establishment, elbowing their way to platters of pintxos placed on the counter. They pay for what they consume and move on to next bar.

This bar-hopping began in the 1950s among men meeting in midday after work for a beer or glass of wine. "It was a way to drink and not get drunk," says Arribas. The custom became more popular in the 1970s among both men and women, locals and visitors.

The first pintxos might have been just an olive and an anchovy on a toothpick (pintxo means pierced), but have evolved into a sophisticated form of miniature cuisine. Each bar has a specialty and competitions between them are fierce. At San Sebastian's Bar Bergara, a frequent winner, a pintxo might be puff pastry stuffed with shrimp and mushrooms. Others might be made from squid and caramelized onion or monkfish with creamed leeks.

In Bilbao, pintxos and bar-hopping is especially popular in the Casa Viejo, the Old Town, which dates back to a walled city from the 1300s. While this long history of the Basque Country's largest city is treasured, Bilbao's modern section stole the limelight after the Guggenheim Museum opened in 1997.

Art sparks rebirth

The Guggenheim, designed by celebrity architect Frank Gehry, drew 1.5 million visitors in its first year. A decade later, it still receives 1 million annually, double what it anticipated, and has set off revitalization in Bilbao. The gleaming structure rose from what had been a gritty industrial site and abandoned shipyards and it drew so much attention that other notable architects submitted designs for city projects.

This so-called "Bilbao Effect" gave birth to a glass footbridge by Santiago Calatrava, who also designed the city's new airport. A sleek subway system became a work of art when Norman Foster designed its dramatic horn-shaped street entrances. Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta's Sheraton Bilbao Hotel stuns viewers with a gaping atrium, Mexican onyx lighting and daring colors: pumpkin, garnet, purple and pink. The wave of innovation also swept over shopping malls, performing arts centers, conference halls and entertainment complexes.

"Culture usually costs money, but in this case it's the other way around," says Elexgaray, who works in Bilbao. Pollution has eased and transportation improved. "Bilbao now is a much cleaner, more efficient city."

With virtually no right angles, the Guggenheim is more sculpture than building, curving along on the banks of the Nervion River and under a bridge that's the main artery into the city. Its 33,000 pieces of titanium, treated with acid to dull the finish, are complemented by limestone blocks and 2,500 pieces of glass. Five gas "fountains" periodically burst into flame along the riverfront as dry ice shoots from the building, bringing together three forces of nature: air, water and fire.

Inside, 11,000 square feet of exhibit space wrap around a central atrium. Most of the exhibits change every three or four months and feature late 20th-century work by internationally known artists as well as lesser-known Spanish and Basque artists. Among the few permanent exhibits are Richard Serra's "Snake" and "The Matter of Time" comprised of huge pieces of bent steel that visitors walk in, through and around.

An exhibit intended to stand only for the museum's opening remains by popular demand. Jeff Koon's playful "Puppy" sculpture of a giant terrier sits near the street-side entrance. The topiary on steel substructure is covered with flowers that change with the season.

The Guggenheim makes such a bold statement that you might believe it overshadows Bilboa's other great museum, but it has not. The Bilboa Fine Arts Museum, founded in 1908, has a collection second only to the Prado in Madrid, but was little known until the Guggenheim brought the art world to Bilbao. The two museums now complement each other, with the Fine Arts Museum offering 7,000 artworks from the 12th century to the present day.

In San Sebastian, the art world focuses its attention on the works of native son Eduardo Chillida. Modern sculptures made of steel, granite, iron or alabaster are displayed in his museum, Chillida-Leku, a short distance from town. Forty of the biggest pieces stand in a grassy field, inviting visitors to walk around and through them. Smaller works can be seen in a 400-year-old Basque farmhouse on the property.

Royal resort

Another Chillida work rises from the rocky coast of the Atlantic. "Wind Comb" consists of three iron "arms" reaching out to the crashing waves. It sits on the far west end of San Sebastian where four beaches beckon visitors. The most popular, La Concha, takes its name from its almost perfect seashell shape.

San Sebastian's status as a popular beach resort can be attributed to Spanish royalty. In the 1800s, Queen Isabella II arrived on doctor's orders to seek relief from a skin ailment in the waters of the Bay of Biscay. The royal family made San Sebastian its summer residence and the aristocracy followed. In the early 1900s Queen Maria Cristina installed the court in Miramar Palace, and San Sebastian entered its belle epoque. Europe's elite flocked to its beaches, casino, luxury hotels and restaurants, making it the Monte Carlo of Spain.

Today the royal family is gone, the palace gardens open to strollers, but San Sebastian remains a popular resort with more of a family feel than the French Riviera. Old women walk arm in arm along the beachfront promenade with its intricate wrought-iron railing. Couples push baby strollers as bicyclists and roller-skaters weave around the foot traffic. From June to September, boats ferry passengers to Santa Clara Island, which resembles a turtle basking in the sun at the entrance to the bay.

The best view of San Sebastian is just a funicular ride up Mount Igeldo where an amusement park offers a roller coaster and pony rides for children. From here the panorama of beaches, bays and mountains unfolds as it has since the days of ancient Basques. It's easy to imagine them here, ever on the lookout for invaders and ready to fiercely defend their way of life.

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Saturday, April 19, 2008

Basque Research on Molecules

This note comes to us thanks to EITb:

Sci/Tech

Important progress


Basque scientists' research work hits the "Science" cover

04/18/2008

Donostia International Physics Center and U.S. scientists have discovered that some organic molecules have similar electronic properties to the atoms.

A joint research work by Basque and U.S. scientists on the electronic properties of organic molecules hit on Friday the cover of the prestigious scientific magazine Science. The discovery proves that organic molecules have conductivity properties similar to those of the metal materials

The discovery is a joint work carried out by scientists of the Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC) of the Basque city of Donostia-San Sebastian and the University of Pittsburgh (U.S.), who coined the term "superatom" to refer to these molecules.

The research team is led by Hrvoje Petek, a Croatian physicist professor at the University of Pittsburgh working at the moment at the Donostia International Physics Center within a Basque Government's scheme to employ top-level scientists.

According to the DIPC, the "superatoms" have conductivity properties similar to those of the metal materials, "which could be very useful in the future for the development of nanometric electrical devices".

According to Petek, the discovery "creates a new perspective on the electronic properties of the materials" as to prove that hollow-shell molecules can have similar conductivity properties to the metal materials paves the way to the creation of new materials with custom-designed chemical and electronic properties".


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Welcome The Crofters

This note comes to us thanks to The Independent:

Crofters fight for rights of indigenous people

By Mark Hughes
Saturday, 19 April 2008

Australia has Aborigines, New Zealand has Maoris and the US has Native Americans. Now Scotland could soon have its own group of indigenous people, in the shape of its crofters.

A report by the Scottish Crofting Foundation (SCF) is calling for the Government to recognise Scotland's 13,000 crofters as indigenous to the country in the same way that Australia, New Zealand and the US does with their ethnic groups. It suggests that, not only should the crofters be recognised as indigenous, but that they should be given the power to govern themselves through their own crofters' parliament.

The report states that the Government must "recognise crofters as indigenous people of the Highlands and Islands, respect the growing body of international law on indigenous peoples, and devolve power and decision-making on indigenous issues to the people who maintain the indigenous cultures of the Highlands and Islands."

The Government has refused to accept that the country has any indigenous people, so, should it act upon the report's recommendations, the crofters – essentially farmers who rear animals on small, rented pieces of land – would become the UK's first group of indigenous people.

Patrick Krause, the chief executive of the SCF, says that his organisation decided to seek the indigenous status after becoming disillusioned and worried by decisions taken on behalf of the crofters by a government in Edinburgh which he says "knows very little about crofting".

And he added that the crofters could even follow the example of the Sami people of Norway, who after decades of cultural repression established their own parliament in 1989.

Mr Krause said: "Indigenous-people status would recognise crofters as a people that has its own unique culture and who deserve a certain amount of autonomy. In the past, central government has called all the shots – but they have always used a central belt benchmark.

"What we are saying is that the Highlands and Islands are different and have a distinct culture which should be recognised as different. Urban people making rules for rural people doesn't work. There is a risk that cultural values can be swept aside in the name of progress."

He added: "Crofters have always had a very strong and unique cultural identity. Many crofters speak a different language [Gaelic] and our whole culture is based upon the land and our livestock. We sing about it in our songs and tell about it in our stories. The Government in Edinburgh knows little about our culture, so why should they be making decisions about our lives? We are capable of making them ourselves. The first step away from that would be to be recognised as indigenous, but the ultimate aim would be to have our own parliament."

The report is due to be presented to the United Nations in April next year, in the hope that it will pave the way for crofters to be given more rights under international law. The UN already has a draft declaration on the rights of indigenous people, which says that indigenous people should be free from discrimination and their rights should be respected and promoted.

The draft goes on to say that the only way this can be done is by those people "exercising control over the developments affecting their lands and resources based on their needs".

A copy of the report has also been sent to the Inverness-based government body, the Crofters Commission – which the report says should be abolished.

Drew Ratter, chairman of the commission, has agreed to respond to the report, but he has already said: "I remain to be convinced that this indigenous people's thesis they are developing is the right one."

Indigenous people of the world

*The Sami people are thought to number about 100,000 and have inhabited parts of Scandinavia for 2,500 years. They were almost wiped out in the 1940s, but now have their own parliament.

*The Aborigines have populated Australia for 40,000 years and their number is said to have topped 750,000. But by the end of the 20th century, after British settlers arrived, there were just 190,000.

*The Native Americans were first encountered by Christopher Columbus in the 1400s but after European colonisation of the US were nearly wiped out by the 16th century. Now there are two million.

*The Maoris settled in New Zealand in the 1300s, but were outnumbered by European settlers in the 1800s. They lost much of their land and went into a cultural decline, until a revival in the 1960s.

*The Basque people are thought to be the earliest inhabitants of western Europe. The region, known as the Basque Country, comprises three Spanish provinces which are self-governed.

*The Guanches were the first known inhabitants of the Canary Islands, arriving there in 500BC. Now though, their culture has all but died out after the island's colonisation in the Middle Ages and their language is virtually obsolete.


Actually, the Basque Country includes seven provinces, four occupied by Spain and three occupied by France. Thus, unable to let go of its genocidal and colonialist past, today Spain occupies Navarre (the Basque Country), the Canary Islands, Catalunya and Galiza.

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Eusko Flickr : Untitled



Originally uploaded by mimentza

Friday, April 18, 2008

Basque Lessons For Wales

This article was published at IC Wales:

Basques may have lessons for Wales

Apr 18 2008 by David James, Western Mail

THE Welsh Affairs Select Committee is to travel to the Spanish cities of Barcelona and Bilbao to learn about globalisation.

According to the committee’s chairman, Aberavon MP Hywel Francis, the proudly autonomous nations of northern Spain, Catalonia and the Basque country, of which the two cities are the capitals, have adapted far better to the modern world than Wales.

Dr Francis said: “We wanted to see another part of the world that is similar to Wales that is responding very well to globalisation.

“Catalonia and the Basque Country have striking similarities to Wales. So we want to see why they are so successful.”

The worker-owned co-operative of Mondragon, which was founded in the 1940s and inspired a series of similar co-operatives in Wales, is on the select committee’s itinerary.

“We are particularly interested in the Basque country,” Dr Francis said.

“We learned 25 years ago about developing co-operatives from Mondragon and we are going out there to see how they are developing and using the co-operatives to support and in order to serve the tide of globalisation.”

Also on the agenda for the trip from Sunday until Thursday are visits to Barcelona University, a project to turn industrial land into an innovative economic district and the Catalunya broadcasting corporation.

The MPs will also visit Vilaweb, a Catalan news website, El Periodico de Catalunya, a daily Barcelona newspaper, Basque TV and Radio Broadcasting Board and the Basque Country Audiovisual Cluster.

Caernarfon MP Hywel Williams, a committee member, said Wales could learn from the independent media of the Basque Country and Catalonia where he said many more people read a daily newspaper in their own language.

He said: “We will certainly be looking at the way the media are dealing with influences from outside.

“Eighty per cent of people in Wales read newspapers from England. Speaking for myself, I am worried that the reality of life in Wales is not being reflected for most Welsh people because they are not reading newspapers which do that job.”

Around half of the MPs on the committee are going.

Dr Williams said the travelling party would be contributing to an inquiry the committee had been carrying out into globalisation and its impact on Wales.


By the way, the capital of the Basque Autonomous Community is Gazteiz, not Bilbao.

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Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Arrasate Fights Back

Seems like the coup d'etat by the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) will not take place in the town of Arrasate.

This note comes to us thanks to EITb:

Politics

Censure will not be passed

ANV will continue governing in Arrasate

04/15/2008

Aralar and EB-Zutik announced they are not going to support the vote of censure proposed against the Basque leftist party. For that reason, the parties that support it will not get the absolute majority needed.

The vote of censure proposed against Arrasate’s leftist mayor Ino Galparsoro (ANV), will not be passed as the leftist parties Aralar and EB-Zutik announced on Tuesday they are not going to support it.

ANV members of the Basque town of Arrasate did not condemn March 7 attack in which the former socialist city councilor Isaias Carrasco was shot dead by ETA. For this reason, some of the parties in Arrasate proposed a vote of censure against the mayor of the town.

The support of any of both parties was necessary to remove Galparsoro from her post as mayor of Arrasate because the parties that support the censure (Basque nationalist parties PNV and EA, Popular Party PP and Basque Socialist Party PSE) have 10 city councilors, while ANV, EB-Zutik and Aralar have 11.

Aralar’s General Coordinator Patxi Zabaleta announced this morning they are not going to support the vote of censure “out of consideration for ANV’s political rights”.

Later, Tuesday evening, members of EB-Zutik said there are no reasons to redefine their position against ANV.


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Paulino Uzcudun

Time for some history, this one about Basques in sports.

The note comes to us thanks to Boxing Insider:

Men of Iron: Paulino Uzcudun

Published by BoxingInsider
Tuesday, April 15th, 2008 at 7:49 am


The “Basque Woodchopper” began fighting professionally in Spanish rings in 1923 and quickly mauled his way into the first division of European heavies with wins over Pail Journee, Marcel Niles, Arthur Townley, Jack Humbeck, Phil Scott and Ermino Spalla. His style was crude but effective, consisting of wrapping his massive arms about his head and rushing his opponent, bulling inside to deliver heavy blows to the belly and head. In 1926 he traveled to the States and took on the best in the heavyweight class, beating Soldier Jones, Homer Smith, Harry Wills, Knute Hansen, and Tom Heeney.

In 1928 he stopped Quiniton Romero Rojas in three and pounded out decisions over Otto Von Porat and Jack Renault, then lost in ten rounds to George Godfrey. Some of the hardest punchers in the game tried their best to knock out the burly Basque but found their best was not enough. The man’s skull was thick as concrete, and defied punishment.

Uzcudun was a game campaigner but he lacked any real boxing skill, and was thus forced to rely more and more on his amazing ability to assimilate the blows of his opponents. This became a strong drawing card and in 1929 he found himself included in a list of four finalists to compete in a tournament for Gene Tunney’s vacated crown. The others were Jack Sharkey, Young Stribling, and Max Schmeling. In February of that year Jack Sharkey outpointed Stribling over 10 rounds in Miami. That left Schmeling for Uzcudun, and a match was arranged for June 27 at Yankee Stadium. This was the brawny European’s big chance. All he had to do was get in there with the Black Uhlan and beat him, and then only Jack Sharkey would bar his path to the heavyweight championship of the world.

But it was not to be. Max Schmeling was at his best that night and fought a brilliant tactical battle with the onrushing Uzcudun, working him with stiff jabs and snapping his head back with thundering rights, avoiding Paulino’s wild swings with a frustrating ease. Uzcudun was heart-broken when the judges’ decisions were announced in favor of the scowling German.

Although he won four times in ‘30 and ‘31 - including points wins over Otto Von Porat and twenty-two year-old Max Baer - he lost three important bouts in those same years, and his stock as a contender plummeted. In 1932 he plodded on, but now he was known as an opponent and this was pointed out in losses to King Levinsky, Mickey Walker, and Ernie Schaaf. Finally, he quit the United States and returned home to Spain. Here he found himself still good enough to lick any of the local heavies, and in October of 1933, wonder of wonders, he found himself in a ring with the new heavyweight king, Primo Carnera. Sadly, ten years in prize rings had left him with little of his old strength, and only his dogged determination carried him through the entire fifteen rounds, at which point it was decided that the Ambling Alp had done enough to retain his crown.

he continued fighting after that and managed a draw with Max Schmeling in 1934, but Der Max lured him to Berlin the following year and won a 12-round decision. A few exhibitions in New York followed, then he was served up for slaughter at the hands of Joe Louis. In 1927 he had ended the career of Harry Wills with a fourth-round KO. On December 13, 1935 Joe Louis did the same for Uzcudun.


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Monday, April 14, 2008

About the German Athletic's Review

Here you have an analysis of the review made by a German newspaper a few days ago appeared at EITb:

Sports

Athletic Bilbao

German newspaper Der Spiegel analyzes Bilbao Athletic

04/13/2008

Walter Mayr has written a long article in which he analyzes the resistance of Bilbao Athletic’s philosophy in the globalized modern football.

Under the title "How a Proud Basque Team Is Resisting Globalization", Walter Mayr journalist analyzes from Germany the philosophy of Bilbao Athletic. History, fans, players, myths… nothing escapes from the particular vision of this newspaper.

The most significant summaries of the text originally written in German are shown below in English:

"Athletic Bilbao is Europe's most exotic football club. For 80 years, the legendary club has managed to keep itself in Spain's top division, fielding players recruited exclusively from the Basque region. But how long can the fiercely independent club continue to resist the trends of globalization?

For the last 80 years -that is, the entire lifespan of the league- the legendary club has played in Spain's Primera División. The only other clubs that have managed the same feat are Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. But the difference between Athletic Bilbao and these two powerhouses of Spanish soccer is that the Basque team only recruits players from the Basque region. More precisely, its players are either Basques or outsiders who came of age playing in Basque clubs.

Ever since the 1995 Bosman ruling by the European Court of Justice, which gave professional football players more freedom to move between clubs within the European Union, Athletic has become somewhat of a dinosaur in terms of its unique hiring policy. The last foreigner left the club in 1912.

Nevertheless, the annals of the club list eight championship titles and 24 cup victories. Athletic can also boast the most unerring goal scorer, the highest score ever in a league victory -its 12-1 win over FC Barcelona in 1931- and the highest number of players invited to join the Spanish national team.

"We cannot and will not change our principles", says Iribar. Even if globalization continues its forward march and survival in the business of professional soccer gets more difficult every year, Athletic insists on abiding by its traditions. "We must keep our feet on the ground and have confidence in the players we have", says Iribar.

Iribar's words carry a lot of weight among the Basques. He has earned that respect because it was he who -in December 1976, a year after the death of the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco- marched onto the field ahead of a match against San Sebastián bearing the Basque flag, which had been outlawed for 40 years.

The crowd in the stands behind Athletic's goalposts is now rhythmically chanting the words "Herri Norte," or "People of the North". Some fans are even waving banners calling for the release of captured members of the Basque terrorist organization, ETA. Others, interspersed among the crowd, are singing "Let's kill a Spaniard" to the tune of "When the Saints Go Marching In".

Nevertheless, radical Basques represent a tiny minority among Athletic fans, who are mostly known for having good manners. But they exist. And despite the fact that it once lost one of its members, Juan Pedro Guzmán, for 11 days when he was abducted by ETA, the club's managing board still favors a hands-off policy in the name of "freedom of opinion".

Whether deliberately or not, Athletic Bilbao is more than just a football club. Athletic is the largest common denominator of the Basques and practically a religion for many of the 2 million people living in the Spanish part of the Basque region. Basque fans refer to the San Mamés Stadium, built in 1913, as their "cathedral", and any self-respecting citizen of this city on the Bay of Biscay has season tickets. The club has 34,000 members, and anyone seeking to join can expect to spend time on a long waiting list.

Athletic's management recognizes that times are changing. But because the overwhelming majority of players, and all of Bilbao's citizens, are opposed to the team's recruiting players other than homegrown ones from Basque "canteras" ("quarries") -as youth soccer academies are known in Spain- it is rather unlikely that transfers will be fielded any time soon.

Athletic's standards are not just a matter of national pride for the Basque people. They also stem from the almost obstinate determination of most Bilbao residents to help preserve what they consider to be the magic of football. Part of that magic means having a stadium in downtown Bilbao, players from the surrounding region and as little commercialism as possible.

Athletic was the last club in Spain's Primera División to allow perimeter advertising boards in its stadium. Athletic's players still wear jerseys with no advertising, and the team continues to adamantly refuse to become a publicly traded company, a standard shared by only three other teams in the Primera División."


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Sunday, April 13, 2008

Homage to Walter Luyten

This note comes to us thanks to EITb:

Politics

Recently died

Homage to Flemish politician Walter Luyten in Basque Country

04/13/2008

Since he was young he worked for the revival of nationalism in his country. He was closely linked to the Basque Country. In 1973, he was arrested in the "Aberri Eguna" in Gernika for weaving the Basque flag "ikurriña".

A homage will be paid to the deceased Flemish politician Walter Luyten today, in the northern Basque Country’s town of Sokoa (Lapurdi). Mass will be offered at 16:00 and afterwards a simple homage will be paid to Luyten, who died last January 27th at the age of 73.

He was a historian and since he was young he was a very important referent in the revival of nationalism in Flanders. He created Volksunie (People's Union, VU) and was an expert in the history and culture of his country.

His first direct contact with the Basque Country was in 1968. Later on, in 1973, Spanish Civil Guard arrested him together with deputy Willy Kuipers, in the "Aberri Eguna" (National Day of the Basque Poeples) in Gernika, for waving the Basque flag "ikurriña".

There was a great bond of friendship between him and both Telésforo Monzón and Piarres Larzabal. He organized for many years a group called "Flandriatik Ikastolentzat" supporting northern Basque countries' "ikastolas" (Basque schools), taking Flemish young children to northern Basque Country.

In 2007 he was in the Aberri Eguna in Gernika again.

His closest friends will be the ones who will take part in the homage today.


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Eusko Flickr : Pintada Pro Amnistía


Pintada pro amnistía
Originally uploaded by Tenebris

Friday, April 11, 2008

Athletic : Fighting Globalization

This article comes to us via Der Spiegel:

Athletic Bilbao

How a Proud Basque Team Is Resisting Globalization

By Walter Mayr

Athletic Bilbao is Europe's most exotic football club. For 80 years, the legendary club has managed to keep itself in Spain's top division, fielding players recruited exclusively from the Basque region. But how long can the fiercely independent club continue to resist the trends of globalization?

Their chants are ear-piercing. They draw out their battle cries, snapping the last syllable of each word like a whip: "Athle-tic. Athle-tic. E-up." The drum roll follows, and then 40,000 fans in the San Mamés Stadium respond in unison: "Athletic, red and white. The people love you because you are a part of the people."

The people have risen from their seats. In seat number 73 in the VIP stands -- where ties are obligatory and cigars optional -- José Ángel Iribar is standing up, too. A member of the 1964 European championship team, Iribar spent almost two decades down on the field as Athletic Bilbao's goalie. He owes his nickname -- "El Chopo" ("the Poplar") -- to his former habit of leaping straight up in the air to pluck balls out of the sky.

These days, Iribar -- the club's honorary president -- has other concerns on his mind. In the last season, Athletic barely escaped relegation, and this year it still lacks the points it needs to remain in the top division.

The Burden of Tradition

For the last 80 years -- that is, the entire lifespan of the league -- the legendary club has played in Spain's Primera División. The only other clubs that have managed the same feat are Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. But the difference between Athletic Bilbao and these two powerhouses of Spanish soccer is that the Basque team only recruits players from the Basque region. More precisely, its players are either Basques or outsiders who came of age playing in Basque clubs.

Ever since the 1995 Bosman ruling by the European Court of Justice, which gave professional football players more freedom to move between clubs within the European Union, Athletic has become somewhat of a dinosaur in terms of its unique hiring policy. The last foreigner left the club in 1912.

Nevertheless, the annals of the club list eight championship titles and 24 cup victories. Athletic can also boast the most unerring goal scorer, the highest score ever in a league victory -- its 12-1 win over FC Barcelona in 1931 -- and the highest number of players invited to join the Spanish national team.

"We cannot and will not change our principles," says Iribar. Even if globalization continues its forward march and survival in the business of professional soccer gets more difficult every year, Athletic insists on abiding by its traditions. "We must keep our feet on the ground and have confidence in the players we have," says Iribar.

Iribar's words carry a lot of weight among the Basques. He has earned that respect because it was he who -- in December 1976, a year after the death of the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco -- marched onto the field ahead of a match against San Sebastián bearing the Basque flag, which had been outlawed for 40 years. He also has it because he manages the unofficial Basque national team, which is fighting for recognition by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the sport's controlling body in Europe.

A Sense of Where They Are

The crowd in the stands behind Athletic's goalposts is now rhythmically chanting the words "Herri Norte," or "People of the North." Some fans are even waving banners calling for the release of captured members of the Basque terrorist organization, ETA. Others, interspersed among the crowd, are singing "Let's kill a Spaniard" to the tune of "When the Saints Go Marching In."

Nevertheless, radical Basques represent a tiny minority among Athletic fans, who are mostly known for having good manners. But they exist. And despite the fact that it once lost one of its members, Juan Pedro Guzmán, for 11 days when he was abducted by ETA, the club's managing board still favors a hands-off policy in the name of "freedom of opinion."

Whether deliberately or not, Athletic Bilbao is more than just a football club. Athletic is the largest common denominator of the Basques and practically a religion for many of the 2 million people living in the Spanish part of the Basque region. Basque fans refer to the San Mamés Stadium, built in 1913, as their "cathedral," and any self-respecting citizen of this city on the Bay of Biscay has season tickets. The club has 34,000 members, and anyone seeking to join can expect to spend time on a long waiting list.

Hardly anyone in the stadium so much as mentions the unthinkable. But you can sense the anxiety all the way from the lowest seats right behind the chalk sideline to those at the very top, where 80 VIP guests discuss the game over glasses of Rioja and pintxos, the Basque version of tapas. It is a fear of having to do what other clubs have done and having their survival depend on fielding mercenaries from all over the world.

Only recently, something happened that would have previously been unimaginable in San Mamés: Catcalls came from the stands against players on the home team, nicknamed the "Leones," or "Lions." Bawdy insults can also be heard now and then, such as: "No son leones, son maricones," which roughly translates as "They're no lions; they're gay."

Part 2: Forced to Compromise

Athletic's management recognizes that times are changing. But because the overwhelming majority of players, and all of Bilbao's citizens, are opposed to the team's recruiting players other than homegrown ones from Basque "canteras" ("quarries") -- as youth soccer academies are known in Spain -- it is rather unlikely that transfers will be fielded any time soon. "We know that we are waging a crusade of sorts," says Fernando García Macua, Athletic's president. But the club's philosophy is sacrosanct, says Macua, "because people here have internalized it."

Athletic's standards are not just a matter of national pride for the Basque people. They also stem from the almost obstinate determination of most Bilbao residents to help preserve what they consider to be the magic of football. Part of that magic means having a stadium in downtown Bilbao, players from the surrounding region and as little commercialism as possible.

Athletic was the last club in Spain's Primera División to allow perimeter advertising boards in its stadium. Athletic's players still wear jerseys with no advertising, and the team continues to adamantly refuse to become a publicly traded company, a standard shared by only three other teams in the Primera División.

The team only risks making tentative compromises when it comes to how it selects potential players. In the past, a dyed-in-the-wool Athletic star had to be from Bilbao or at least from the surrounding province of Biscay. Nowadays, the club has somewhat relaxed its rules to include in its unofficial recruitment profile players from the three Basque provinces in Spain, the adjacent Navarra province and the French part of the Basque region. To date, the only French player to have made it to Bilbao has been Bixenta Lizarazu, but he left after one year to join FC Bayern, Germany's most successful soccer team.

Future Hopes

But now the club is even having trouble finding new talent in the Basque heartland in northern Spain -- and not just because the area has one of Europe's lowest birth rates. Athletic's scouts complain that they are forced to travel to more and more remote villages to find young men -- among the Playstation-wielding, overprotected youth -- from real Basque stock: ambitious, robust and duty-bound.

Someone who fits this description has recently started coming to Athletic's home games, where he stands in the south stand behind the goal. He is tall, strong and has a determined look in his eyes. Over the three months he has played on Athletic's under 12s team, he has scored 14 goals.

His name is Binke Diabate. The talent scouts noticed him in one of the villages in the south of the province of Navarra. Binke had moved there with his parents in 2005 after the family fled to Spain from Bamako, the capital of Mali. Jonás Ramalho, a 14-year-old player who recently had his debut with Athletic's regular team, was the club's first dark-skinned player. Binke promises to spearhead the next revolution by being the first African Muslim to wear the club's fabled jersey.

"Our boys have to be ready earlier and earlier these days," Iribar complains. He feels the clock ticking and knows that two of his team's rivals in the Primera División -- Real Saragossa and CA Osasuna -- were also courting the adolescent hopeful.

Athletic eventually managed to sign Diabate because its youth division is still considered the best in the Basque region. It also had an unbeatable promise to offer the younger Malian immigrant: Nowhere but in Bilbao would it be easier for a young talent to make the jump to the premiere Spanish league as there are no foreigners at Athletic Bilbao to get in the way of its homegrown players.

Binke is still new to Bilbao and doesn't speak the Basque language yet, but he has already mastered the typical Basque football maneuvers consisting of rapid passing paired with aggressive defense.

Resisting Change

To prevent the young players -- and the hope of Basque football -- from hitting upon the idea that there are other clubs in the world, Athletic Bilbao employs Koldo Asua as its youth manager. Asua, a portly, full-blooded Basque, says that he takes his parents' canon of values to heart: "God, family, the Basque country and Athletic -- only in reverse order."

Asua guards over every player as if they were diamonds in the rough. But he also keeps one eye on the lookout for new talent. He has discovered, for example, a goalie with Basque ancestors in the Italian city of Ostia, and two grandsons of a Basque refugee from the 1936-1939 Spanish Civil War will soon arrive from Latin America. Athletic employs 19 scouts who travel throughout the Basque region. In the province of Biscay alone, there are 150 partner clubs that guarantee Athletic a right of first refusal in return for financial support. The club uses a database to search for players with Basque roots, and it is even considering establishing football schools in Latin America for the children of emigrants.

The management at Athletic is fighting against the rapidly turning wheel of time. In the clubhouse, there is still a photo on the wall depicting the heroes of 1984 -- the club's last championship team -- sitting in a boat headed from the ocean toward downtown Bilbao after winning the final game. It is a genre portrait in black and white, showing serious-looking men after a job well done standing against an industrial background lining the riverbank.

'From Sport to Spectacle'

Times have changed and the club has been "banalized," says Andoni Zubizarreta, as he sips a small coffee in the Café Iruna near the Palacio de Justicia. Zubizarreta is one of Spanish football's premiere record-holders: 622 Primera División matches as goalie, 126 international games and four World Cups. He was also the sporting director at Athletic until the end of 2004.

Since leaving Athletic, Zubizarreta has been working for a management consulting firm. He complains that football has degenerated "from sport to spectacle," and from work to entertainment. It is a "distorted image of our society," he says, "and even Bilbao has changed its mentality."

The city, known to tourists worldwide today primarily for its Guggenheim Museum -- a Frank Gehry-designed, titanium-clad colossus covered with silver scales on the southern bank of the Nervión River -- became the center of Basque heavy industry in the late 19th century. There were iron ore mines in the region that played a role in the development of shipyards in Bilbao, which also enjoys easy access to the sea.

It was on the "Campa de los Ingleses" ("English fields") -- near today's site of the Guggenheim Museum -- that skilled immigrants from the southern English port cities of Portsmouth and Southampton showed the Basques how soccer was played. But there are almost no shipyards and no blast furnaces in Bilbao today, and Zubizarreta is convinced that the breeding ground on which the Athletic Bilbao myth thrived has disappeared with them.

Holding on to Pride

Today, anyone who attracts Athletic's attention as a Basque player can quickly rise to fame and fortune. Asier del Horno, for example -- who was traded to Chelsea in 2005 for €12 million ($19 million today) and is now back with Athletic again -- attracts attention primarily for what he does off the field. CA Osasuna collected a whopping €12 million for the transfer of midfield players Javi Martínez and David López to Bilbao. More and more boys in the streets of Bilbao are wearing Chelsea and Manchester jerseys, that is, the jerseys of Champions League clubs. A portrait of David Beckham hangs over Binke's bed. Anger over the worldwide ascendancy of sport-focused corporations and players who are nothing but pop stars in football shorts tends, especially, to unite older fans behind the Athletic brand.

Nevertheless, club president Fernando García Macua speaks of a tangible sense of sympathy throughout the Basque region. "The worse off we are," he says, "the more people there are who sympathize with our values."

This year, the club spent a long time on the edge of a precipice. But then it celebrated highly symbolic victories, such as its win over FC Sevilla, a leading Spanish football team. The visiting club was weakened because its star players were scattered on other continents, playing for their national teams. But the Basques, cheered on by close to 40,000 hometown fans in San Mamés, were all there. Athletic won the match 2:0. The crusaders from Bilbao had won a rearguard action.

Translated from the German by Christopher Sultan


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