Euzkadi 'ta Askatasuna (ETA)'s End?: Developments in Basque Political Violence

• In Event: Poster Session: European Politics and Society & Presidents and Executive Politics
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: European Politics and Society

Abstract

Spain's transition to democracy after Francisco Franco's death in 1975 paved the way for its integration into the institutions of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Community (now European Union). Since the October 1982 national elections, which instituted the new Spanish democracy, the country's path to a stable democracy and free market economy has been consistently troubled by instances of nationalist violence perpetrated on both regional and national scales by the Basque nationalist/Marxist organization Euzkadi 'ta Askatasuna (ETA, or Basque Homeland and Liberty) and other separatist forces (i.e. Catalonia). The perpetuation of this evolving situation of separatist violence in post-Franco Spain is one of the premiere, and as of yet, few examples of Low Intensity Conflict (LIC) in the developed world. And as the conflict entered the 21st century, Spain's struggle with ETA became the only major, ongoing conflict within the boundaries of the European Union. The persistent struggle over legitimacy and self-determination in the Basque case potentially seems to have reached a conclusion in 2017 with ETA's publicized decision to turn over its weapons caches and desire to enter constitutional politics in Spain. The post-conflict situation continues to be in a state of flux and causes persistent tensions within the political fabric of Spanish democracy.

Author

• Erich G. Frankland, Casper College