1936-2006
Time does not fade Hisrory’s Injustices
70 years ago, The 18th of july 1936, the uprising of Franco.. October the 7th 1936, creation of the basque governement of Aguirre in Gernika(1)... April 26th 1937, the bombing by the Legion Condor of Hitler annihilates Gernika... August of the same year the Franquist troups with the support of Mussolini’s troups and the Nazi aviation beats the basque resistance: 50,000 Dead, 150,000 refugies. Before and after the intervention of the totalitary regimes the european democraties haven’t intervened, whereas major personnalities have taken the basque people’s defense:
Writers and philosophers: François Mauriac, Jacques Maritain, Emmanuel Mounier.
Council Presidents: Edouard Herriot, Georges Bidault.
Ecclesiastics: Cardinal Verdier; Cardinal Bishop of Paris; Lordbishop Feltin, cardinal bishop of bordeaux ; Lorbishop Mathieu, Bishop of Dax.
Journalits: Pierre Dumas, Ernest Pezet, Claude Bourdet.
Union Officials: Paul Vignaux, founder of SGEN; Marcel Paimboeuf, president of th CFTC.
In 1945, besides the substantial support provided by the basque people and the republicans of spain to the french resistance and the allies (information, network for Pyrenees’ by passing, maquis, Gernika Battalion...); they have left the dictatorship of Franco continue for more than 30 years, until 1975. 40 dark year as a total.
The basque people is traped like most of the iberique peninsula.In the beginning of the 60’s, The basque youth enters armed resistance: 40 years of blood shed, along with death, prison sentences, exiles, and hundreds of victims. The fight continues besides the post-franquiste Democratie because it has never complied to the right of apeople to democraticaly decide of its future.
Today, the basque issue is on the agenda, it is right that the European Democraties should succeed where they have failed in the past. Europe should dispense the basque people justice in order to make peace possible, Europe should reconciliate the basque Country with History.
