The Hon Mr José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
President of the National Government
Complejo La Moncloa
28071 – Madrid
Bilbao.  3 May 2005

Dear Mr. President:

Now that a year has passed since you took office as leader of the Spanish Government, we would be very grateful for the opportunity to speak with you to give you first-hand information of our vision of the current situation in the Basque Country and the activities we plan to undertake to deal with it.

As you know, Mr. President, we have been trying, to no avail, to meet with you since October 2003 when you were head of the opposition.  At this point in time, following the Basque election of 17 April, we are keener than ever to schedule this meeting.

The members of the Foro Ermua, representing a wide array of constitutionalist ideologies, some of whom are affiliated with political parties while others are not, hold the opinion that the current situation in our land is extraordinarily delicate.  As a group committed to fighting for freedom and equality for all in this corner of Spain, we would like express our opinion in respect of a series of issues that we summarise below and that will be made public.

            At this meeting the FORO ERMUA would like to explain in greater detail our stand on the following points:

            1)  Sincere thanks to the Government and the State’s Security Forces [1] for their continued efficiency and determination in the dismemberment of ETA commandos over the past twelve months and likewise for upholding a penitentiary policy which, for a number of years now, has proven to be efficient in combating terrorism while scrupulously adhering to the law.

            2) Congratulations to the Government are also in order for maintaining close collaboration with the French police forces and justice system which are having very positive results in the fight against terrorism.

            3) Reiterate the idea that, regardless of the political scenario in Euskadi in the more or less immediate future, the Government should persevere, without any interruption whatsoever, with police action against ETA and its network of satellite organisations just as the preceding Government did during ETA’s truce in 1998 and 1999. These last few years have shown us that this is the only method by which ETA will be defeated.

            4) Highlight past experience in respect of the counterproductive effects that negotiation processes between former governments and ETA have invariably had on the fight against terrorism and the security of the Spanish people. This has even been the case during declared ETA truces which, in practice, have only served to give the terrorist group time to rearm and regain its political clout. It should suffice to recall that subsequent to the last of such truces (September 1998 to November 1999), ETA assassinated 23 people in the year 2000 in the Basque Country, Catalonia, Seville, Granada, Malaga, Madrid, Huesca and Navarre. The disastrous political consequences are due to the national and international legitimisation that the organisation gains when it negotiates directly with the Government of Spain. History has taught us that negotiations and truces are an understandable but ephemeral break for the Basque and Spanish societies, but also are a prelude to and pretext for a drawn out and bloody campaign of "military actions" following the inevitable breakdown in negotiations due to ETA’s unacceptable political demands. As President of the Spanish Government, you should not again take us  down a path which experience has shown is always a dead end.

5) Notwithstanding the above, if at any time you decide to make contact with the terrorists, it should be exclusively to discuss the conditions for ETA’s surrender. Nothing more. There should be no political compensation whatsoever, not even considered in hypothetical terms, at the meetings. During the last truce, ETA demanded that the Government under José María Aznar put a priority on constitutional reform to envisage the right to self-determination of the Basque people. The response received from the former President was unequivocal and that spelled the end of the truce. ETA also called for the removal of the Civil Guard police from Euskadi along with other similar demands. Not even the smallest political price should be paid for the disbanding of the terrorist group. As regards this issue, the demands tabled by the associations of the victims of terrorism when they call for justice should be respected to the letter. Experience of earlier occasions has taught us that more sooner than later ETA will reveal what it would have discussed and agreed to with the Government.

            6) Express our total disagreement with the decision taken by your Government not to file a Supreme Court petition to illegalize ETA’s new political wing PCTV-EHAK (the Communist Party of the Basque Lands) which would have precluded nine candidates from the party list presented at the recent elections held on 17 April from being named as Members of Parliament. We know that there was more than enough evidence that would have justified taking action prior to election day.

            7) Despite the fact that it is no longer possible to prevent these nine political intermediaries of ETA from being present at the regional Parliament, giving an enormous boost to the most radical sort of nationalism and an affront to the victims of terrorism, we call on your Government to urgently take the necessary steps to illegalise the PCTV.

            8) It is with genuine interest that we call on your party, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and likewise the PSE (Socialist Party of Euskadi), to work in favour of true political alternation in the Basque Country which entails displacing PNV and EA from the regional government as soon as possible. As the history of our region has shown, any governmental coalition (of  PSE) with PNV (Basque Nationalist Party) would primarily serve to consolidate nationalist control of our society impeding political change which must focus, first and foremost, on restoring freedom rooted in respect for Rule of Law. The strategy that we propose requires loyal collaboration with the People’s Party as the only alternative (to PNV).

Trusting that you will interpret this letter as a sign of trust and an offer of loyal collaboration, please be assured of our highest regards,

                                                                       Mikel Buesa

                                                                       Vice-president

                                                                       Foro Ermua