On Saturday they have concentrated at EITB headquarters, Stop betoa! International films in Basque! under the slogan. They report that ETB has "veto" broadcast international films and series in Basque. The call made by (H)itzartu ETB has been supported by seventeen Basque, cultural, educational and audiovisual agents.

Fermintxo Zabaltza (H), a member of Itzartu, said they want "EITB to return to the initial spirit" so that the main objective is to boost the Basque country. To this end, they ask EITB and the PNV to radically change policies and to complete "an attractive offer in Basque urgently".

Zabaleta complains that in the last ten years ETB has issued all international films in Spanish, except the Bikiak series: "There is a decision to broadcast all international films in Spanish, something unthinkable in the public televisions of Galicia, Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands". In Valencia and the Balearic Islands they began to broadcast series and films in Spanish, but now they broadcast them in their language. "EITB has done the opposite way."

Reason: low hearing

The low audience, according to some EITB members, is the reason why international audiovisual media are not broadcast in Basque. Unai Iparragirre, director of EITB, said at a meeting in Pamplona: "What we've seen over the past few years is that when films hit public television, they've all seen them in Spanish. From the experiments we have done, we believe that this is not the best way to use public money.”

Faced with this, (H)itzartu ETB says it is "unacceptable" that this is why dubbing is rejected in Basque and Basque. "We think the audience can't be measured in a day. It's clear that our socio-linguistic situation will start with a little bit of public, but it needs a long-term strategy: offer good hours and products, open them well -- if not, it's impossible."