No to the outlawing of Batasuna! No to the curtailment of democratic rights!

On Monday, August 26 an extraordinary session of the Spanish Parliament was called with the aim of promoting the outlawing of Batasuna. This decision was taken with 295 votes in favour from the Popular Party, the Socialist Party [PSOE], Coalición Canaria and Partido Andalucista. There were 10 votes against from the Basque Nationalist Party [PNV], Catalan Republican Left [ERC], Eusko Alkartasuna [EA] and Iniciativa per Catalunya and 29 abstentions from United Left [IU], Galician Nationalist Block [BNG], the [Catalan bourgeois nationalist] CiU and Chunta Aragonesista.

On the same day judge Baltasar Garzón declared a three year suspension of all activities of Batasuna, which could be extended to five years, de facto outlawing the organisation. This suspension means "the closing of all headquarters, offices or other premises that it might directly or indirectly own or use regardless of the place where they might be located", "the suspension of all organic, public, private and institutional activities in all and every one of the spheres and public bodies, registers, banks, foundations, associations, societies, etc."

A few hours later, this resolution started to be implemented, something which would have been unthinkable ten years ago in Euskadi [Basque Country]. In Navarra, the Civil Guard and national police closed down a whole series of Batasuna offices in the same way that the Basque Police [Ertzaintza] did soon afterwards in the Basque Autonomous Community. In four days 25 offices have been closed down, amongst them the offices of cultural associations, bars, restaurants and Batasuna offices, despite the resistance of hundreds of abertzale [radical nationalist] members who were occupying them. The Ertzaintza participated fully in the operation, using plenty of anti-riot equipment, reaching even the ridiculous position of surrounding the Intxaurre Kultur Elkartea society in Durango to prevent a meeting which finally turned out to be that of a cultural association.

The reactionary policies of the PP

The main force behind the outlawing of Batasuna is the Popular Party, whose main sources of inspiration are the policies of Thatcher in Britain in the 1980s and the current model of Bush and Berlusconi. This move is part of a wider strategy of attacking all those who are fighting against the policies of the PP. Their strategy is directed against the working class, accusing the unemployed of being lazy, against the youth, accusing the students of being drunken yobs. They attack the trade unions and all those who participate in strikes, like the general strike on June 20. They attack all democratic rights, including the right to strike when they organise a massive police presence to repress striking workers in the name of the "right to work". And obviously they use strong arm tactics against the historical nationalities and against elementary democratic rights like the freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate.

At the same time, after the defeat they suffered in the Basque autonomous elections, the PP wants to use the struggle against terrorism as a vote winning card. Every bomb planted by ETA increases the support for the PP. In this sense President Aznar and those who surround him think that the banning of Batasuna will make them win votes - it temporarily distracts from the effects of the June 20 general strike by concentrating people's attention on the question of terrorism and therefore will lead to better election results in the forthcoming council and autonomic elections.

Another important factor we cannot forget is the reactionary nature of the state apparatus in our country. Military, police and judicial structures have been directly inherited from the Franco dictatorship which in the last 30 years have been actively involved in the repression of the democratic rights of the population in general and of the historical nationalities in particular. These elements have put strong pressure to promote the [recently passed] law on political parties and the outlawing of Batasuna. Anyone can understand that this sets a precedent to attack all those organisations which might threaten the interests and privileges of those who defend the capitalist system.

The Popular Party has not vacillated in using insult and blackmail against its opponents, declaring that on August 26 it would be clear who was a democrat [those who vote in favour of their proposal] and who was siding with the terrorists [those voting against]. But these kind of arguments have not helped them and have meant a break with even some of their former allies like CiU [Catalan bourgeois nationalists], PNV, and other political groups that finally voted against or abstained, probably fearing the long-term effects of this policy and the negative effects amongst their own electoral base of support.

During the debate United Left asked the PP leaders what historical or personal record they had to be able to measure the "democratic will" of other organisations. This was a very good question. Many seem to have forgotten that the PP leaders who now present themselves as the "guarantors of democracy, life and human dignity" are the inheritors of the old Franco regime, and that in their ranks they still harbour elements from the extreme right terrorists and the fascist gangs that have already caused too many deaths in this country. The same Popular Party has passed the Foreigners Law against immigrants and gives unconditional support to the criminal actions of imperialism. The PP is no guarantor of democracy, nor of the right to live, the right to work, the right to a decent house and a decent education - as is shown by the increasing number of workers who die in work-related accidents, the casualisation of labour, the increased prices of housing and the reactionary reforms of the education system that they have introduced.

The responsibility of the PSOE leaders

The PP would not have been able to go this far if the leadership of the Socialist Party had not capitulated to their policies, against the wishes of many rank and file members, particularly in Euskadi, who see that the outlawing of Batasuna will only lead to a further worsening of the problems we are suffering. The only differences that [the PSOE leaders] Zapatero and Patxi López have expressed on this question with the PP are differences of style, not of content. They are fundamentally supportive of the repressive policy of the Popular Party, they deny that the Basque question is a political problem and they oppose the democratic aspirations of the majority in Euskadi who demand the defence of the right of self-determination despite the fact that they are completely against the individual terrorist methods of ETA.

The leadership of the PSOE today shouts for the defence of "freedom" in supporting the law of political parties and the banning of Batasuna. They have not drawn the conclusion that they are not going to put an end to ETA and even less to the social base of support for Batasuna with repression and curtailing democratic rights. When the leaders of the PSOE were in government they used all sorts of repressive methods, starting with the Corcuera Law [which gave the police special powers] and ending with their shameful implication in state terrorism through the GAL [extreme right-wing terrorist organisation set up by the state]. Current leaders of the party like Rodriguez Ibarra and others do not hesitate in supporting individuals like General Galindo, Vera and Barrionuevo [involved in the GAL scandal] and no judge takes action against them and they are not expelled from the PSOE. It is precisely the continuation of this political line which we see now when the PSOE supports the PP proposals. In their parliamentary cretinism they think that supporting these reactionary measures will put them in a better position to challenge the PP in the elections. But in reality the real reason for the loss of social support for the PSOE must be found in the fact that its leaders have abandoned a socialist, class-based policy and have fully accepted the logic of the capitalist system and pursue unity of action with the PP on all important matters. The opinion polls which show a certain recovery of the PSOE in the voting intentions reflect earlier events, particularly the general strike, when the PSOE had a stronger stance against the government's policies.

Democracy cannot be defended by curtailing democratic rights. The bourgeois press, with El País at its head, has launched a campaign, publishing whole extracts from judge Garzón's decision, trying to prove that ETA and the abertzale [radical nationalist] left, the so-called "Batasuna network", are one and the same thing, and therefore that their banning is completely justified since they are "part of ETA itself".

If one were to take this argument to its conclusion they would not only have to close down their offices but also arrest and jail thousands of members and sympathisers for "belonging or collaborating with an armed gang"!

The political case for the banning of Batasuna has no grounds whatsoever, but the legal arguments are even more groundless. Even some prominent law experts have declared publicly that the policy being applied is one of "everything is justified against Batasuna".

The question of why ETA, despite the brutality of its actions, has managed to have authority amongst an important section of the society in Euskal Herria [the Basque Country] is a political one. If the leaders of the PSOE want to put an end to individual terrorism they should look for the reasons that have allowed ETA to have this basis of social support, which still exists although it is obviously decreasing as the working class has expressed its opposition to its methods and also as the working class struggle increases in Spain and throughout the world. Will the outlawing of Batasuna decrease this support? Nothing could be further from the truth. What will happen is that ETA will find more support amongst sections of the abertzale left for its methods and the criticism that exists within the abertzale left against these methods will be marginalised at least in the short term.

When the PNV and the organisers of the anti-terrorist struggle of the Basque police oppose the banning of the abertzale left, arguing that this will give a respite to ETA when its level of support is at its lowest, they show more understanding than the PP and the leaders of the PSOE. It is clear that the PNV-EA have not opposed the banning of Batasuna because it means a curtailment of the democratic rights of the masses, but because they consider it as counterproductive.

A genuine socialist policy of fighting against capitalism and all its plagues, like unemployment, cuts in social spending and corruption, while at the same time defending the democratic rights of the oppressed nationalities like the right of self-determination, would be able to attract the youth and would represent an end to the current nightmare. On the other hand, the banning of organisations through which more than two hundred thousand people express themselves and which have proven once and again that are able to mobilise tens of thousands in the streets can only have dramatic consequences for the whole of the labour movement and the youth.

From now on democratic rights have been drastically curtailed, as shown by the banning of the demonstration [against the outlawing of Batasuna] on September 7 by the Department of Interior of the Basque Government. In fact, as part of this offensive, judge Garzón has even gone further and banned all demonstrations opposing the outlawing of Batasuna. In reality this means a de facto state of siege, in which hundreds of thousands of people are prevented from publicly expressing their views. There are many who want to demonstrate against the banning of Batasuna and the attack on democratic rights that this represents. From now on, any militant organisation opposing the policies of the PP will end up being accused of being infiltrated by "batasunos" and will be targeted for repression. In the long term, as the crisis of capitalism deepens and frustration against the system grows, the problem far from diminishing will increase, particularly if there is not a genuine socialist pole of reference for the workers and youth.

United Left's abstention

United Left [IU], which correctly opposed the political parties law, and the [Galician left nationalist party] BNG should not have abstained in such a crucial vote as this. To present, as the leaders of IU did, abstention as an alternative position appealing to other "democratic forces" like the PNV and CiU, only serves to sow confusion. In fact the socialist leaders have congratulated IU for its position saying that their "abstention draws them closer to the majority" [that is the PP]. A vote against the banning of Batasuna would have been a vote to defend democratic rights. There are no third ways. To say, as they did, that it is better for judge Garzón to outlaw Batasuna without the need to involve Parliament is to adopt the same position as the Catalan bourgeoisie. Outlawing Batasuna is as bad if it is done by the PP as if it is done by Garzón, as we can now see clearly.

The attempt to look for a shortcut with the abstention, allegedly not to damage election prospects, is an opportunist manoeuvre which will have no positive effects. Furthermore, this is an attempt to pre-empt the internal debate and clarification regarding this question which has been demanded by sections of IU's membership for years. With its behaviour, the leadership of IU is not only not defending a class position regarding the Basque national question, but also is indirectly helping the reactionary ideas of the PP find a wider echo amongst the workers.

The hypocrisy of the Basque bourgeoisie

Particularly after September 11 a whole number of countries are using the excuse of terrorism to take a series of measures to strengthen the repressive apparatus of the state and curtail the democratic rights of workers and youth.

In the case of Spain, ETA, with brutal attacks like that of Santa Pola [this summer in which a 6 year old girl died and bombs were planted in a beach and in a burger joint], gives the PP the perfect excuse to carry out these measures with social support. The Law of Political Parties and the outlawing of Batasuna set a very serious precedent and represent an attack on the working class and the youth as a whole.

We do not agree at all with [Batasuna leader] Arnaldo Otegui when he says that this is an attack on Euskal Herria - as if in Euskal Herria there were no social classes and this measure affected us all equally. It is not true. The PNV has spent the last few months screaming so that the voice of those directly affected by repression is not heard. We have always said that in all this there is a division of labour between the PP and the PNV - that of the "good cop" and the "bad cop". In this case, while the bad cop was hitting, the good one was making noise. A critical situation like this puts everyone in his place. It is ridiculous [on the part of Batasuna] to keep making appeals to the Basque bourgeoisie to defend the democratic rights of Euskal Herria. The fatherland of any bourgeois starts and ends with the defence of his class interests. The Basque bourgeoisie will never sacrifice its interests in defence of a so-called "national dignity". Some sections of the abertzale left understand that the policy of supporting and allying with the Basque bourgeoisie is having disastrous results and are looking for a revolutionary Marxist alternative. The PNV has not hesitated in closing down the Batasuna headquarters using as much repression as was needed [although reading some Basque papers one would get the impression that this was done by Spaniards infiltrated in the Ertzaintza]. The PNV has created a police suited to its class interests. The spokesman of the Basque government has already made it clear that they will not promote any break [with the Spanish state], that this option they already ruled out 25 years ago and that the ultimatum they issued before the summer regarding the question of transfers [of power from Madrid to the Basque Autonomous Community] was not a serious one. Why [should Batasuna] make any more appeals to the PNV-EA?

Once again it is clear that only the working class in the whole of the Spanish State, which in the past has advanced the social and national democratic rights, can really defend democracy in a consistent manner.

It is obvious that ETA bombs have pushed a wide section of the workers away from defending these demands, and this is reflected in support for the PP-PSOE measures. But they are not going to solve anything and sooner of later will became their opposite. The only way forward is to follow Lenin's advice and "patiently convince" the majority of the working class and the youth. This might seem like a slower way but it is the only sure way to win.

The outlawing of Batasuna has been prepared for years, as it was shown by the arrest of the whole of its national leadership because of an election broadcast, the closing down of [the abertzale left daily paper] EGIN, and the progressive outlawing of different organisations of the abertzale left like Jarrai, Ekin, and so on.

[Batasuna leader] Arnaldo Otegui in a long interview in [the abertzale left daily paper] Gara on September 1 declared that the reason why the PP is pushing for the outlawing of Batasuna now is that "there is an acceleration of the process of national emancipation, of which the State is losing control, and the State wants to smash the motor force of this process. According to Otegui's analysis the advances of this so-called "nation building process" would have forced the State to propose the outlawing. It would be because of the strength of the Basque National Liberation Movement and not because of its weakness. However it is precisely its past rather than its current strength that prevented its earlier outlawing. All that might seem to have changed is the attitude of the PNV. But, has it really changed? This is only the case in words, and words are cheap. A mass movement cannot be destroyed by repression, but by its own mistakes and it is clear that neither the methods, nor the alliance policy, nor the aims of the Batasuna leadership are correct.

No to individual terrorism

The methods of individual terrorism of ETA will never be able to put an end to the oppression of the Spanish and French States - on the contrary they increase it and in the particular context of the so-called "international alliance against terror" promoted by the USA, it is clear that they are doomed to fail.

On the contrary the conscious and organised mass action of the working class and the youth is an almighty force as we have seen in Argentina, Venezuela, Ecuador, etc. The general strike in Italy and the general strike in the Spanish State on June 19-20 mark the beginning of working class struggle which will increase as the crisis of capitalism deepens. The alliance [of Batasuna] with the Basque bourgeoisie has had disastrous results. We cannot see that any advances have been made. The bourgeoisie will only put itself at the head of a democratic movement which is going forward in order to put a brake on it and destroy it as it will end up calling into question its class interests. We have seen it many times. The national democratic and social rights of the Basque people will only be fulfilled through the unity of the working class throughout the Spanish State and internationally, a unity which must be organic. In this respect, the defence of the right of self-determination goes hand in hand with the defence of the organic unity of the working class regardless of national barriers in the struggle for socialism. Just to a give a negative example of this, the division caused during the general strike on June 19 and 20 only benefited the Basque and Spanish bourgeoisie and damaged the labour movement.

Working class mass action the only way forward

Individual terrorism always achieves the opposite of what it is supposed to fight for. Far from being a factor in achieving democratic rights, it is precisely the opposite, an excuse for reaction.

The Argentinean working class and youth which are nowadays a pole of reference, have a bitter experience of this. It is not by chance that the most advanced layers today are fighting against individual terrorism, which in the past, with the Montoneros and other organisations, was used as an excuse by the military to win a base of support in society for their criminal plans. Only the conscious and organised action of the working class and the youth, united above national barriers and organised towards the taking of power, can ensure the advancement of the struggle for democratic rights and for social rights, which are one and the same struggle for a socialist classless society, free of exploitation and oppression.

A society where the main means of production, the banks, the big monopolies and the landed estates are expropriated, with compensation only in cases of proven need, and put under the democratic control of the working class, planned to satisfy social needs instead of the benefits of the few.

A socialist federation of Iberian nationalities would recognise the right of self-determination of those historical nationalities like Euskal Herria, Galiza and Catalunya so that they can freely and democratically decide their own fate. In order to go forward, now more than ever, we must be united and organised with the revolutionary Marxists. The ideas defended by Ezker Marxista in Euskal Herria and El Militante in the whole of the Spanish State are the ideas of proletarian internationalism, the only ones that can satisfy the social and democratic aspirations in the current situation.