INSTITUTIONAL DECLARATION
a) We find ourselves in a very special political moment. It has been six years
since the creation of Udalbiltza, and although Euskal Herria is not sovereign
yet, there is a window of hope wide open to us. This is the time to seize our
opportunities; a time in which the political parties, the social and union
representatives, the Basque Diaspora community, the citizens and the
institutions, all together, must try to channel each and all our efforts. In
this understanding, and above all the restrictions imposed for all these
centuries in the form of arbitrary borders, Udalbiltza constitutes de only
institution in Euskal Herria with roots in all of the seven historic
territories, and has begun to regain the political place that it deserves. The
objective is to advance in its rebuilding process and also to maximize its work
in favor of Euskal Herria; just as Euskal Herria needs Udalbiltza, Udalbiltza is
willing to continue to facilitate its contribution towards Euskal Herria. As a
matter of fact, we wish to undergo certain changes in the way we conduct our
efforts, with the aim of reaching out to all the Basque citizens.
b) This is a moment to make politics with capital letters; Udalbiltza pretends
to become the national space for the 6756 municipal charges, elected by the
three millions citizens that live in the 685 municipalities that conform Euskal
Herria. We have the capability to unify, multiply and channel each and all of
their strengths; we can be a democratic space of cooperation, an active agent in
the process that just got started. Although each one of the municipal elected
charges has local representation, as a whole they represent Euskal Herria,
meaning, they are the direct expression of the will of the people, the
instrument to strengthen the process and the endorsement for the right of the
people to be consulted.
Actually, the process that our people have started will have to be developed
province after province, municipality after municipality, community after
community, without a single exception, in the whole of Euskal Herria. This
process will have a reason and a meaning only when all of Euskal Herria is taken
into consideration and with the participation of all the agents involved in it.
This is the road chosen by Udalbiltza up until today, and we do not need to
mention that this is the way it will continue to be: the future of our people
can not be construed from a partisan and partial perspective. What took place
for the last few decades proved this point time and again, which tells us that
we must build Euskal Herria understanding it in its entirety.
For that, we arrived to a moment in time in whish we must work towards
rebuilding Udalblitza, taking into consideration the conditions proposed by the
National Debate Forum: the five principles established in the Euskalduna Palace
(demand the political recognition of Euskal Herria as a nation, build its
political structure with up most respect to its territoriality, propel its
nation building process, contribute to the work in common between municipalities
and to advance the knowledge of what Euskal Herria is within Europe and the
international landscape), the Charter of Rights and the respect to the votes
casted by the Basque citizens. We are aware that, just like until today, what is
ahead won’t be easy, but we are also acknowledging that the municipal elected
charges are willing to contribute. We are willing to take every step necessary
to overcome the partisan divisions and to reorganize the area of influence of
all the municipal elected charges.
c) Udalbiltza makes its own the responsibility that was bestowed upon us, with a
firm compromise to all of the rights of the Basque citizens, and invites all of
the other institutions and political, social and union agents to add their own
means and capabilities to this process. We call on all the agents to take
advantage of the present political moment.
Finally, strongly convinced that the time for a real compromise has come to all
of us, we want to conclude this institutional declaration with a call directed
to all of you:
1. - We call upon the Basque citizens to, within the frame of great importance
that we live in, and above all obstacles, involve yourselves in the construction
of Euskal Herria, and also in the process that is starting just now, that is so
necessary for the democratic solution to the conflict that we endure.
2. - We call on all the social, political and union agents, and also on that
plural community that conforms the Basque Diaspora present all over the world,
and on all of you that collaborate with the institutions of Euskal Herria to
assume your own responsibilities that this crossroad presents to all of us, to
leave the partisan perspectives aside, and to act as a nation and in behalf of
Euskal Herria as a whole.
3. - We call upon the two states that violate the rights that belong to us as
Basque citizens and as a nation, to recognize and respect Euskal Herria as an
entity with its own rights.
4. - We call on all the other nations and states in the world and specially the
European ones, to contribute and also to advance the political
process of Euskal Herria, enshrining the recognition and the guarantee of the
Basque citizens to the rights protected by the international treaties on the
subject of rights.
Euskal Herria, April 16th of 2006