SPAIN: PRIME MINISTER AZNAR MEETS BASQUE LEADER ARZALLUZ скачать в хорошем качестве

SPAIN: PRIME MINISTER AZNAR MEETS BASQUE LEADER ARZALLUZ

(29 Sep 1998) Spanish/Nat Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar and the leader of the main Basque nationalist party, Xabier Arzalluz, have met in Madrid, following the announcement of a ceasefire by armed separatists. At the end of the meeting, Arzalluz said differences remain between the two regarding nationalist calls for constitutional reform to allow the Basques to hold a referendum on independence. ETA announced earlier this month an indefinite end to its armed campaign. Since then Aznar has been meeting with leaders of major political parties with whom he wants to form a common front for peace negotiations. The famous Concha seafront of San Sebastian. This is the attractive face Spain's Basque country would wish to show to the world: wealthy, elegant and cosmopolitan. But there is another side to the city that Basques call Donostia. It is a stronghold of ETA which has tried to bomb its way to independence from Spain, killing at least 760 people in a 30-year struggle for outright independence. ETA has called three ceasefires before and broken all of them. The conservative Popular Party government has been decidedly guarded in welcoming this latest pledge. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) "The government would like in the first place to make clear to Basque Society and Spanish society with the regard of this latest initiative from ETA, the need, more than ever to put the emphasis on caution and prudence." SUPER CAPTION: Jaime Mayor Oreja, Interior Minister Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar has spent the weekend meeting with opposition leaders. He's trying to forge an alliance of parties in a bid to lure Basque nationalists away from ETA's political wing, Herri Batasuna, which received 155-thousand votes in the last general election two years ago. The truce was the product of months of talks between the so-called "democratic nationalist parties" and the ETA-allied Herri Batasuna coalition. And it comes before Basques go to the polls to vote in a new regional government and parliament on Oct. 25. Many people in Spain are treating ETA's announcement with open disbelief. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) "Terrible, terrible. It's not credible, it's just a tactical move for the election by ETA and Herri Batasuna (ETA's political wing) with regard to the other nationalist parties" SUPER CAPTION: vox pop The leader of the Basque government was more enthusiastic. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) "I just think simply that ETA has taken a decision they have never taken before: a cease fire, indefinite, unilateral, without any precondition. This has never happened before, and they did it because they became convinced, under pressure from within society and democratic political parties that it was far more efficient in a democracy to use politics than violence to defend their political goals and finally they were convinced of this." SUPER CAPTION: Jose Antonio Ardanza, President of the Basque Autonomous Government A party which could play an important role in ending the bloodletting in the Basque Country is the nationalist- but nonviolent - National Basque Party. At a rally of this conservative party at the weekend in the city of Vitoria, many of those present welcomed ETA's ceasefire as a positive move towards peace. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) "This is amazing news, this is the key to any future, that there should not be a bit of violence." SUPER CAPTION: Jon Goikoxea, PNV supporter Party leader Xavier Arzallus has called on Aznar to make a gesture in response to ETA's ceasefire. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) SUPER CAPTION: Xavier Arzallus, PNV leader Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...