Interview with Martina Anderson, Sinn Fein MEP and member of the Basque Friendship Group in the European Parliament.
In the mist of her campaign for reelection, Martina Anderson spoke with Gara about the Basque process as seen from Ireland and what is the current work of the Basque friendship Group, the group in the European Parliament has contributed since 2006 to the resolution of the conflict. Anderson, stresses the need to articulate pressure at all levels to involve the EU, as in the Irish case.
It is already 8 years since the Friendship was created. What is your balance of it? What has the Friendship managed to get so far? And what has the friendship yet not managed to get?
TheBasqueFriendship group has succeeded to a certain extent in raising awareness of the peace process in the Basque Country among MEPs and drawing international attention to particular issues, such as the Spanish prison policy. The Friendship group provided a space to learn about developments in the Basque Country, through dialogue with various social and political actors, and it has allowed us develop strategies in relation to particular aspects of the peace process. Of particular importance has been the important and high-profile events organised by the BasqueFriendship.
Obviously the peace process is not moving as quickly as we would like it to. The Spanish government has not engaged as it should do. So further pressure from abroad, along with continued pressure from within the Basque Country will be needed to move things forward.
The involvement of the EU institutions was much greater on the irish peace process. Why?
The real dynamic for the Irish peace process came from Irish republicans. It took a long time to persuade the British and Irish governments of the need to engage in dialogue and to win the support of the international community for the process. In reality the EU only involved itself seriously at a very late stage, when they saw that the process was strengthening and consolidating. We can only presume that the British and Irish governments gave their consent to EU involvement, something which the Spanish and French governments are very slow to do in relation to the Basque Peace Process.
However, it must be said that the issue of the conflict in Ireland and the first steps towards developing a peace process were recognised at a very early stage. MEPs were calling for the causes of the conflict to be addressed. And even before the IRA announced its cessation of hostilities, the then President of the European Commission, Jacques Delors, had recognised the responsibility of the EU to do something. This fact alone added to the momentum towards a peace process and encouraged the British and Irish governments to talk to Irish republicans.
Unfortunately the same political will does not seem to exist in the European Union institutions today.
Do you think that the next President of the European Commission can have a different approach towards the process in the Basque Country (a more positive attitude)? What is it needed for this to happen?
It obviously depends on whether the next President of the Commission is willing to stand up to the bullying of the Spanish government. The track record of recent Commission Presidents has not been good in terms of standing up to the larger member states on a range of issues. So in order to resist the pressure of the Spanish government a counter-pressure will need to be created on a number of different levels. If other governments publicly call on Madrid to engage with the Basque peace process, if a critical mass can be built up inside the European Parliament, if increasing numbers of Spanish people demand a positive attitude to the process, if the international community engages with the issue….
The more pressure that can be brought to bear on a range of fronts the more likely it is to persuade the EU institutions to respond positively.
Gerry Adams has been recently arrested, Arnaldo Otegi continues to be in prison. What is your analysis of this, and do these cases have importance at european level?
Despite the fact that our own process is further advanced than that in the Basque Country, there are still significant elements of the political and security establishment who are hostile to the peace process and particularly hostile to Irish republicans. There are some who would more comfortable with armed conflict than with the political struggle for Irish unity.
The arrest of Gerry Adams was clearly politically motivated. The dark forces in the system felt that by arresting Gerry Adams they could damage Irish republicans and in particular damage the electoral prospects of Sinn Féin. It remains to be seen whether they were successful, but the support we are getting on the ground would seem to indicate that their plan has failed.
The continued imprisonment of Arnaldo Otegi is an ongoing scandal, and demonstrates that dark forces hold a strong position in the Spanish state. It shows the hostility that many have towards the peace process.
That Arnaldo Otegi, the leader of Sortu, can be held in such a way is an international and European scandal and it is something that should be condemned by democrats of all countries.
There are still almost 500 Basque prisoners in the Spanish and French states, what can Europe do for this to be solved? Is the Court of Human Rights (Strassbourg Court) the only “way”?
As a former prisoner myself, I understand the importance of dealing with the issue. The fact that I was held in Britain, put a lot of pressure on my friends and family.
As the peace process unfolds it will be necessary to release all the prisoners, but in the meanwhile all Basque prisoners should all be moved to the Basque Country in order that their families not be punished. And all seriously ill prisoners should be immediately released to spend their final days with their families and friends.
And the Spanish state should stop its toleration of the ill-treatment and torture of prisoners.
The European Court of Human Rights is an important way forward, but ultimately the resolution of this issue will probably require continued political pressure from the international community.
The pro Independence left might get a seat in the European Parliament, Josu Juaristi from EH Bildu would be their MEP. One MEP only, What can it be usefull for to have a direct and permanent participation in the EU Parliament?
Josu received a very warm welcome at our the Ard Fheis (annual conference) of Sinn Féin in February of this year.
I know how difficult it is to be a lone MEP (and we hope there will be more than one Sinn Féin MEP after the election), but it is possible to make an impact.
Firstly there is a whole movement behind the MEP – Josu will not be sitting alone, but he will be there as spokesperson for a nation.
Secondly there are other MEPs who are friends of the Basque people and supporters of Basque independence and the Basque peace process. By building alliances and by being focussed a single MEP can make a difference. As an MEP Josu will have the same rights as any other MEP, the same rights as any MEP representing the Partido Popular. His presence in the European Parliament will represent a direct challenge to the Spanish political parties to engage with the peace process.