Last Sunday, the Association of Basque schools of Araba/Álava
province, one of the three provinces that make up the Basque
Autonomous Community, held its annual fund-raising festival Araba
Euskaraz in the enclave County of Treviño, which administratively
belongs to Burgos province, Castile and Leon region. The political
impact of a Basque language event outside of the Basque Autonomous
Community didn't go unnoticed. Attempts to transfer the County of
Treviño from C&L to the Basque Autonomous Community are regularly
making headlines in the Basque press. It is a clear example of the
fact that also enclaves of the second (not international) order can
create problems!

I translated two articles from yesterday's Euskaldunon Egunkaria:

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Euskaldunon Egunkaria, June 19, 2001

Huge success in the heart of Araba/Álava

PARTICIPATION. 70,000 people gathered Sunday in La Puebla de Arganzón
(Treviño), the biggest Araba Euskaraz gathering ever

Edurne Begiristain/La Puebla de Arganzón

The Araba Euskaraz that was held last Sunday in La Puebla de Arganzón
has been a historic one. Firstly, it was the first time the Basque
school festival was held in the county of Treviño, and secondly, it
was the Araba Euskaraz that attracted the most people; 70,000 were in
La Puebla de Arganzón, according to the organisers. They hoped to
gather 40,000 to 50,000 lovers of the Basque language, but this
figure was easily surpassed, and more people than ever were promoting
the Basque language and enjoyed a festive atmosphere in the heart of
Araba/Álava. It is going to be difficult to top this figure at next
years Araba Euskaraz in Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Araba Euskaraz co-ordinator Marta Martinez valued Sundays
meeting "very positively", and thanked all organisations and Basque
language lovers that had come to Argantzun. The Araba/Álava Basque
School Association secretary Joseba Aginagalde also valued the event
very well, underlining the fact that all forecasts were surpassed.

According to the organisers of Araba Euskaraz, approximately 200
coaches and 11,000 cars came to La Puebla de Arganzón, and the Renfe
services that were offered during all of the day were absolutely
packed.

On the bridge across the Zadorra, the start of the circuit

Araba Euskaraz of 2001 started at ten in the morning on the bridge
across the river Zadorra. Acting lehendakari [=PM] of the Basque
Autonomous Community Juan Jose Ibarretxe inaugurated the five
kilometres walk.

The lehendakari succeeded in getting passed the gathered journalists
somehow, and cut the ribbon at the start, thus opening the walk. At
that time, however, the Basque language lovers from all over the
Basque Country already filled the fields near the bridge and had
started the circuit. As a matter of fact, the three areas of the
circuit saw the most people during the whole day, because that was
where the bars and the performances were. The weather was not letting
them down either, and made things pleasant for the Basque language
lovers that had come to La Puebla de Arganzón.

Without a doubt, it were the children that were the main protagonists
this Sunday, most of the performances in the first and second area
being organised especially for them. The performances for the
children started early in the morning, as soon as the circuit was
opened. The teenagers, for their part, mostly enjoyed the music
performances in the third area.

At midday, a commemoration for the late teacher Patxi Zabaleta was
held by the Araba/Álava Basque School Association. This commemoration
was held in gratitude for his work for the Basque language. In fact,
the money that was gathered at the festival last Sunday is going to
be spent at the set up of a Basque language nursery school; the basis
of these children's schools has been laid by Zabaleta.

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Araba/Álava deputies were absent because they "didn't want to insult
Castile-Leon"

Deputy of Culture Pedro Sancristoval decided at the last moment not
to go, arguing it would be "better for Araba/Álava"

E.B./Vitoria-Gasteiz

The celebration of Araba Euskaraz in Treviño has given a lot of
hassle these last days in the Castile and Leon Government. All the
more when it was announced that acting lehendakari of the Basque
Autonomous Community Juan Jose Ibarretxe was going to visit the
festival.

If the scandal that broke out at the Castile and Leon Government was
played down, it was, although Araba/Álava deputy of Culture Pedro
Sancristoval also announced that he would go to Araba Euskaraz, in
the end no Deputies showed up at Sundays festival. Sancristobal gave
yesterday the reasons for his decision. As he told it, the Deputation
would look better if its members wouldn't go to La Puebla de
Arganzón, because the Castile and Leon officials "were particularly
sensible in this matter, and it was better not to hurt their
feelings".

In the words of Sancristoval, the relations of the Deputation with
the Government of Castile and Leon "are very broad and we have made
so many agreements, that it was judged by the Deputation to be better
not to go". According to the Culture deputy, the decision that was
made was better for Araba/Álava, and that he "very gladly" took the
responsibility for this decision. In this vein, he underlined that
the position of Araba/Álava was "not to make more problems than
necessary and to protect the things that really need to be protected".

The Deputation's decision was criticised by the leaders of other
parties. Euskal Herritarrok leadership member Anjel Mari Elkano
accused the Deputation of "putting the interests of the PP before
those of the province". According to EAJ-PNV leader Joseba Egibar, it
is a "contradiction" that the PP says it defends and respects the
Basque language, but that its actions subsequently are very different.

The taking part of Ibarretxe attracted much criticism

The facts that Araba Euskaraz was held in Treviño and that acting
lehendakari Juan Jose Ibarretxe was at the Basque school festival
have attracted disapprovement from the parties PP, PSOE, and UA.
Also, the Castile and Leon Government chairman Juan Vicente Herrera
criticised the fact that the Araba/Álava Basque schools "have crossed
the border of the Basque Autonomous Community to hold their
festival". In the same vein the accusation was made that the
declaration in favour of the Basque language was an excuse to attain
a "territorial goal", and this is why the taking part of Ibarretxe
was criticised.

On the other hand it was thought that, as the Spanish Minister for
the Interior Mariano Raxoi said yesterday, the decision of the
lehendakari was "unbalanced and absurd". Raxoi declared that he
understood the disapprovement by the inhabitants of Castile and Leon
and the chairman of its Government of the taking part of Ibarretxe.
According to Raxoi, "things just aren't done like this".

PSOE secretary to the organisers Fernando Benito also criticised the
lehendakari, saying his words were "institutional crudeness".

PNV-EAJ's Joseba Egibar talked without paying a lot attention to the
criticisms. In his view, the true meaning of Sundays festival was the
promotion of the Basque language. Also, according to EA's general
secretary Gorka Knörr, the PP "is still submerged in the election
campaign" and "is still in a pre-democratic stage". EH spokesman
Anjel Maria Elkano, on the other hand, called the Castile and Leon
criticism "inadmissible".

Ibarretxe didn't make a political change

Juan Jose Ibarretxe didn't want to make whatever political change
with the attending of Araba Euskaraz in Treviño. Ibarretxe said at
the ceremony at the beginning of the festival that he hadn't come to
Treviño to bring about political change, but to "promote the Basque
language". "I have come to this place to give protection to the
Basque that is spoken here, which is the inheritance of the people",
he said. The lehendakari praised the efforts of the Treviñans
to "revive" the Basque language.

"Treviño will always remain what the Treviñans want it to be, and
this is not political change, but a democratic right", he said. At
the same time he declared that politicians of Castile and Leon should
have been at the festival.

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Peter S.