BASQUE COUNTRY (AUTONOMOUS COMMUNITY)

'Basque Country' (Basque ''Euskadi'', Spanish ''País Vasco'') is an autonomous community with the status of historical region within Spain since 1978. The capital is Vitoria-Gasteiz (''Vitoria'' is the Spanish name, ''Gasteiz'' the Basque).
The Basque Country is part of the larger Basque speaking lands, which are also called the Basque Country (Basque: "Euskal Herria").
The following provinces make up the Autonomous Community:

★ Araba (Spanish ''Álava''), capital Vitoria-Gasteiz

★ Biscay (Basque ''Bizkaia'',Spanish ''Vizcaya''), capital Bilbao

★ Gipuzkoa (Spanish ''Guipúzcoa''), capital Donostia (Spanish ''San Sebastián'')
Before the Spanish Constitution of 1978 and its system of autonomous communities, these three provinces were known in Spanish as the ''Provincias Vascongadas''. The political structure of the autonomous communities is defined in the Gernika Statute, which was approved by the majority in a controversial—and substantially boycotted—referendum on October 25, 1979. In 2003, the governing Basque Nationalist Party proposed to alter this statute through the Ibarretxe Plan. The project, though approved by majority in the Basque chamber, was rejected in the Spanish Cortes.

Contents

Government

Languages

Territorial claims

Economy

Major communities

See also

References

External links

Government

The current laws configure the autonomous community as a federation of the three constituent provinces, which had been ruled locally since their incorporation to Castile in 1200 by their own laws and institutions in what is known as the Foral System. These autonomyous regimes, similar to the one for Navarre, were curtailed in the 19th century, largely suspended under Franco, but restored by the Spanish Constitution of 1978.
The post-Franco Spanish Constitution of 1978 acknowledges "historical rights" and attempts compromise in the old conflict between centralism and federalism by the establishment of autonomous communities (e.g. Castile and Leon, Catalonia, Valencia, etc).
The provincial governments (''diputación foral'') were restored only in the Basque Country and Navarre, but many of their powers were transferred to the new government of the Basque Country and Navarra autonomous communities; however, the provinces still perform tax collection in their respective territories, coordinating with the Basque, Spanish and European governments.
Under this system the ''Diputaciones Forales'' (Basque: ''Foru Aldundiak'') administer most of each of the provinces but are coordinated and centralized by the autonomous Basque Government (Basque: ''Eusko Jaurlaritza'', Spanish ''Gobierno Vasco'').
The seats of the Basque Parliament and Government are in Vitoria-Gasteiz, but the Statute of Autonomy of the Basque Country provides for their transference to Pamplona if Navarre ever decides to join the Basque Autonomous Community. The Parliament is composed of 25 representatives from each of the three provinces. The Basque Parliament elects the Lehendakari (President) who forms a government following regular parliamentary procedures. So far all ''Lehendakaris'' (even those in 1937 and during the exile) have been members of the Basque Nationalist Party (Eusko Alderdi Jeltzalea) (moderate and Christian-Democrat) since 1978. Despite their continued leadership role, they have not always enjoyed majorities for their party and have needed to form coalitions with either Spain wide parties or left-leaning Basque nationalist parties, often governing in a difficult minority position.
The current government, led by Juan José Ibarretxe (Eusko Alderdi Jeltzalea) is supported also by left-leaning nationalists of Eusko Alkartasuna (Basque Solidarity) and Communist-dominated Ezker Batua (United Left). Both non-regional parties, Partido Socialista de Euskadi (federated to the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) and Partido Popular (People's Party) are again in the opposition as are the radical nationalists of the Basque National Liberation Movement. The radical nationalists ran this time under the umbrella of a new formation that included the Euskal Herrialdeetako Alderdi Komunista (Communist Party of the Basque Homelands).
The autonomous community has its own police force (the Ertzaintza), controls the education and health systems, and has a Basque radio/TV station. These and other powers under the Gernika Statute have recently transferred by the Cortes Generales.

Languages

Basque and Spanish are co-official in all territories of the Community, though in many instances, especially those that depend on the central Spanish Government, like tribunals, it is difficult to carry on bureaucracy or judicial processes in any language other than Spanish.
A 1984 language census showed that of the 2.1 million people in the Autonomous Region, 23 percent could understand Basque, 21 percent could speak it, but only 13 percent could read the language and only 10 percent could write it.^[1]

Territorial claims

The Statute provides for mechanisms for neighbour Navarre, which also has a Basque ethnic background and is claimed as the core of the nation by Basque nationalists, to join the three western provinces if it wishes to do so. In such a case, the seat of the common administration would be moved to Pamplona.
The Basque Government used the "Laurak Bat", which included the arms of Navarre, as its symbol for many years. Navarre protested, and tribunals ruled in their favour. The Basque Government replaced it with an empty red field.
Navarre is just one of the territories that the community's nationalist government claim as Basque territory; there are also two enclaves Treviño (Basque: ''Trebiñu'') and Valle de Villaverde (Basque: ''Villaverde-Turtzioz''), which are completely surrounded by Basque territory but belong to the neighbour communities of Castile-Leon and Cantabria respectively.

Economy

The Basque Autonomous Community is one of the wealthiest regions in the Spanish state, with gross domestic product (GDP) per capita being 20.6% higher than that of the European Union average in 2004, at $30,680 USD.^[2]

Major communities

★ Barakaldo

★ Basauri

★ Bilbao

★ Donostia-San Sebastián

★ Errenteria

★ Getxo

★ Irun

★ Portugalete

★ Santurtzi

★ Vitoria-Gasteiz

See also

★ Basque Country (historical territory)

★ Basque language

★ Basque people

★ Kingdom of Navarre

References

1. http://www.photius.com/countries/spain/society/spain_society_the_basques.html
2. http://www.lehendakaritza.ejgv.euskadi.net/r48-7872/en/contenidos/informacion/ec_vasca/en_3216/indice_i.html

External links

★ Basque Government