Aurore Martin : Basque country targeted

Basque country targeted

The French government has a profound distrust of the Basque country, which is artificially divided between the Spanish state and the French state.
French minister of the Interior, Manuel Valls, rejects the creation of a Basque local authority in France, because he thinks it would be tantamount to endorsing ETA, although a majority of elected officials, whatever their persuasion, favours such a creation.
The Basque activist, Aurore Martin, a French citizen, was arrested by the Gendarmerie and handed over to the Spanish police. Spain had issued a European Arrest Warrant against her for being a member of Batasuna, an illegal movement in Spain but a legal one in France. Besides, this arrest aroused the anger of Basque elected officials.
While ETA gave up violence and elections in the Basque country under Spanish administration took place without violence, French authorities have sent a pretty bad signal to the Basques.
The Spanish government faced with the rise of independentism in the Basque country and in Catalonia is getting edgy and the French government is obviously worried about the possible knock-on effects on its territory.
The Occitan Nation Party favours the creation of a specific local authority in the ‘French’ Basque country and in Northern Catalonia under French administration for the Catalans. Catalonia and the Basque country of the French state will be independent one day and such authorities will then be in a position to ask to be united with them, whether our  sabre-rattling minister of the Interior likes it or not. He fans the fire he claims to fight.
The Occitan Nation Party would also like to join with the voices raised to demand that Aurore Martin who is prosecuted only for her beliefs should return from Spain.
November 3rd, 2012