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| Europe |
| Spain Prefers to Negotiate With ETA Terrorist |
| 2005-05-29 |
| MADRID, May 28 - The Basque militant group ETA may be weakening, but any discussion over its possible demise is dividing Spain to a degree that its attacks rarely have. Two weeks ago, Prime Minister José Luis RodrÃÂguez Zapatero won parliamentary backing for a proposal to negotiate with the group if it would renounce violence. Zapatero only got in on the reaction to March 11; it seemed unlikely that he would have won otherwise. He's a strong leftist. But now Spain must reap what they have sown. The government said the future of ETA was bleak enough that it might be persuaded to disband if offered a chance to negotiate small concessions from Madrid, like the return of imprisoned ETA members to Basque jails. But the proposal has drawn sharp criticism from the families of victims of ETA bombings, as well as from scholars and editorial writers, and has driven a wedge between the major parties on an issue once considered exempt from partisan politics: the fight against ETA. not to mention how it will embolden other terrorists Members of the main opposition group in Parliament, the Popular Party, have attacked Mr. Zapatero's proposal as tantamount to appeasing terrorists. peace in our time!! huzzah! The only way to defeat ETA, the opposition party says, is to crush it using all the powers available to Spain's law enforcement agencies. but...but...that would make us no better than the Americans! But members of Mr. Zapatero's Socialist Party say an offer of dialogue contingent on the renunciation of violence may bring a quicker and more peaceful solution. They also contend that Spanish law enforcement agencies could be reaching the limits of their success against ETA, and that persuasion may be the only way to strike the final blow. yes. if they say they're against terrorism, what more can we ask for! we can learn a lot from that great statesman, yasser arafat (ptui) The government says the proposal is its own initiative, but there has been speculation on editorial pages here that it is rather a response to an overture from ETA, an assertion government officials deny. "There is no type of contact, nor any messenger from the government to contact anyone," the deputy prime minister, MarÃÂa Teresa Fernändez de la Vega, said Friday at her weekly news conference. ETA, which are the initials for Homeland and Liberty in the Basque language, has killed more than 800 people since 1968 in its campaign to establish an independent Basque state encompassing sections of northern Spain and southern France. Although the group continues to carry out bombings, including four in the past two weeks that wounded several people, it has not carried out a fatal attack in two years. nobody died in the bombing. isn't that the muzzie definition of renouncing violence? A long-term effort by the police to infiltrate ETA has been successful, officials said, weakening the group psychologically and organizationally. In addition, the scar of the March 11, 2004, Madrid train bombings, for which the previous government at first blamed ETA, has added to public revulsion at terrorist attacks of any origin. Mr. Zapatero would not be the first Spanish prime minister to try negotiating with the group. The government of his predecessor, José MarÃÂa Aznar of the Popular Party, met with the group in 1998 and 1999 after ETA called a cease-fire. In 1989, Prime Minister Felipe Gonzälez, a Socialist, also authorized talks. None of those meetings produced an agreement. heh. those guys just didn't do it right. watch me! I'm smarter! Despite these failures, some scholars say that Mr. Zapatero is right to offer dialogue once again. night school scholars, I'll bet Some scholars contend that Mr. Zapatero has fallen into a trap set by ETA, which they say has been giving false signals that it is willing to disband in order to set off political divisions over how to manage the peace. our scholars are smarter than your scholars Even if that was not ETA's intention, it appears to have been the result. Several groups that represent victims of terrorist violence are planning a march in Madrid on June 4 to protest the government's offer. |
| Posted by:PlanetDan |
| #6 Mrs D - so we should NEVER deal with a sane Iranian regime due to past mistakes? How's your marriage? Apply same before discussing further. No response necessary. I was married too |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-05-29 22:03 |
| #5 After Irangate, that's going to be hard to do with a straight face. That's as may be, Mrs. D., but it isn't nearly so hard after 9/11... and Bali... and 3/11... |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-05-29 21:51 |
| #4 I never negotiated with any Iranians or supported doing so for any reason. That was then and this is now. (post 9/11) Spain has shown a proclivity towards perfidy and it's current government is one that appeases first and asks questions later. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet 0’ Doom 2005-05-29 15:57 |
| #3 After Irangate, that's going to be hard to do with a straight face. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-05-29 12:47 |
| #2 As a matter of poicy the United States should refuse to trade or maintain diplomatic relations with any nation that negotiates with terrorists organizations for anything other than cease fire or surrender. Rewarding terrorists is not possible if we want to maintain a modern and peaceful world. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet 0’ Doom 2005-05-29 12:37 |
| #1 New and Improved Tide |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-05-29 09:54 |