Europe must actively support the Basque peace process

MEP Mark Demesmaeker is asking the European Union to play an active role in the Basque peace process, now that the Basque independence movement ETA is prepared to disarm completely by 8 April. “This is a potentially decisive step in the Basque peace process. It’s no long okay for Europe to just look the other way; it must give sustainable peace in the Basque Country a real chance. For its own credibility and in the interest of the EU itself, the Union must become a partner in the peace talks.”

Mark Demesmaeker points to the successful mediation role that the EU has played in Northern Ireland over the past twenty years: “They brought the warring factions to the negotiation table, went all-out for reconciliation and supported the region in its economic and social reconstruction. Today the EU plays a mediating role worldwide for every possible type of conflict. Now it’s time for Europe to commit itself fully in the Basque Country.”

Spanish government’s absence conspicuous

Despite countless initiatives, the Basque peace process is today deadlocked. “Under pressure from Basque society and the international community, ETA decided several years ago to stop its violent activities. Later it announced a cease-fire. It was a unilateral move, because the Spanish government was unresponsive, it’s absence the elephant at the negotiating table. Madrid has never shouldered its responsibility,” says Mark Demesmaeker with regret. “However, that didn’t stop the Basque people from carrying on. The call for a sustainable peace, democracy and respect for human rights is to be heard today louder than ever.”