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Basques set for landmark handover Basques set for landmark handover
(about 3 hours later)
The Basque region of Spain is set to swear in its first non-nationalist government in three decades.The Basque region of Spain is set to swear in its first non-nationalist government in three decades.
The Socialist Party (PSE) and the centre-right Popular Party (PP) agreed last week to govern together. The Basque Socialist Party (PSE) and the centre-right Popular Party (PP) agreed last month to govern together.
The deal came after Basque nationalists failed to win an absolute majority in an election in March. The PSE's Patxi Lopez will head the new government. The deal came after the Basque Nationalist Party failed to win a majority in March's election. The PSE's Patxi Lopez will head the coalition.
Security in the Basque capital Vitoria is tight, as Eta separatists have threatened the incoming government.Security in the Basque capital Vitoria is tight, as Eta separatists have threatened the incoming government.
The militant group has described Mr Lopez as a "priority target".The militant group has described Mr Lopez as a "priority target".
The BBC's Steve Kingstone in Madrid says the latest elections were historic. It branded the regional parliament election "undemocratic" after radical separatist parties were excluded.
For three decades following the restoration of democracy in Spain in the 1970s, Basque voters always returned governments led by the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV). An alleged senior Eta member arrested in France last month is said to have been planning a bomb attack to coincide with the handover of power.
But the party's defeat in March enabled the PSE, which came second, and the PP to lay aside their disagreements at national level. 'Real concerns'
Their deal will mean that the Basque region will be run by a government which fully supports it remaining part of Spain for the first time in 30 years. Addressing the Basque parliament on Tuesday, Mr Lopez promised a "new political era" if he was elected lehendakari ("the first one"), or leader of the regional government.
Analysts say the struggle against Eta is a key point in the agreement between the parties. The PSE leader's said his first priority was to "put an end to the terrorism of Eta" and then to address other "real concerns" of voters, notably the economy.
The incoming government has pledged to give more resources to the police to tackle the group, which has been blamed for the deaths of more than 820 people during its 40-year independence campaign. FROM BBC WORLD SERVICE class="" href="http://bbc.co.uk/worldservice/index.shtml">More from BBC World Service
The parties have also said they will put the Spanish and Basque languages on an equal footing to address what some say is discrimination against non-Basque speakers. "We are closer to the end of Eta, but we have not arrived at that point yet," he said in a reference to the recent arrest of Jurdan Martitegi, believed to be the group's latest military leader.
Mr Lopez spoke in Basque as well as Spanish, promising respect for different traditions and cultures.
"I am not going to govern just for some but for all," he said.
But the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), which won the election but fell short of an absolute majority, portray Mr Lopez as a puppet of Spain's Socialist government in Madrid, the BBC's Steve Kingstone in Madrid reports.
They say his policies will erode Basque identity, our correspondent adds.
The new PSE-PP coalition unequivocally supports the Basque region remaining part of Spain, reversing almost 30 years of nationalist tradition.
It has also pledged to give more resources to the police to tackle Eta, which has been blamed for the deaths of more than 820 people during its 40-year independence campaign.
The Spanish and Basque languages are also set to be put on an equal footing to address what some say is discrimination against non-Basque speakers.
Are you in the Basque region? What do you think about the handover? Will the joint government succeed? What challenges do you think it will face? Send us your comments using in the form below.Are you in the Basque region? What do you think about the handover? Will the joint government succeed? What challenges do you think it will face? Send us your comments using in the form below.
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