Today, the 8th of June, thousands of citizens from the Basque Country have demanded the right to decide their future by creating a human chain of 123 kilometres between the town of Durango and the city of Iruñea (Pamplona).
Anjel Oiarbide a leader of the social movement behind this initiative “Gure esku dago” (It´s up to us) has declared his joy for the success of the initiative while assuring that further initiatives will follow: “This finishing line assures the beginning for achieving our aim.”
Breaking all expectations
Today's initiative was proposed a year ago by a movement created in 2007 in the district of Goierri (Gipuzkoa) in support of the right of self-determination. They were following the steps taken by the Scottish people regarding Scotland's independence. 50.000 people were required to create a human chain in order to cover the 123 kilometres between Durango and Iruñea but in these last weeks the event has gone beyond all expectations; just a week ago up to a 100.000 people had shown their support in order to participate in the event. Finally, more than 150.000 people have joined the initiative, according to the organizers.
The volunteers grouped behind the initiative “Gure esku dago” have achieved a double objective. On the one hand they have been capable of bringing together people from different political backgrounds under the same flag. The support shown during the last weeks to the human chain by different political leaders of a variety of political parties and trade unions is but a reflexion of it. And the support shown to the initiative by the political movement “Podemos” (We can), that shines like a new star in Spanish politics since the last European elections is a fact that should be taken into account.
The second test that the organisers of “Gure esku dago” have had to face with has been that of the infrastructure and the organisation. Thousands of people have been taken in around a thousand buses to the place in which they had to cover their kilometre within the human chain and different parking spaces and other services had to be assured for the security of the event. Without a doubt, this giant mobilization that has been going on in the last months will leave its own mark in the Basque Country.
The echo of “The march for freedom”
Searching into history, this giant human chain of 2014 has a precedent. In 1977 during the political transition that followed after Franco’s death “The march for freedom” flowed though Basque towns until its arrival to a field in Ororbia, near Iruñea (Pamplona). It was in this field that the march proposed by the historic separatist leader Telesforo Monzon ended after a massive political meeting. That gigantic popular movement ran in parallel with the first Spanish elections and with the political negotiation that went on among certain politicians in order to facilitate the process of transition and the Spanish constitution itself. This time it has been the turn of “Gure esku dago”, at a time in which Spain is again going through a major crisis or a transition in which it has to deal with the anger spread in society due to the consequences that the major crisis of the 21st century has generated. A time in which the Spanish monarchy, one of the essential parts of the Spanish political system is up to its neck due to a variety of scandals. A time in which the Spanish State’s unity is cracking due to Catalonia’s wish to become separated from Spain.
Anjel Oiarbide of “Gure esku dago” has already announced that other events will follow during autumn. It will be interesting to observe how this popular demand for the right of self-determination matches with the negotiations that supposedly are going on between the major political parties in this new period of political transition for Spain.
The Basque media united
Most of the citizens interviewed by the media have stated that today´s major success has been to complete the human chain itself and that its consequences will be noticeable since tomorrow on. As for the media the success has arrived a day earlier. Several news agencies, including ARGIA, have worked as a network in order to inform about today´s event, realizing thus the message that “Gure esku dago” has been spreading in the last months within society. Our common needs, wishes and interest must prevail over our differences.
More information:
The following video has been made by the political news website Ahotsa.info and shows some of the best images of the historic human chain.
ARGIA is a news media funded in 1919 in Pamplona and published in Basque language. At first religious – called Zeruko Argia, "light of heaven” –, forbidden during the fascist dictatorship in Spain from 1936 on, in the 1950s and 1960s it had managed to come... [+]
In this series of articles, it should now have become clear that venture capital has created a system in which two types of companies become global giants: companies with bad business models but good marketing, or good business models and horrible impacts on society. This... [+]
One of the confusing aspects of the tech industry is that from a distance all the companies can seem the same. They use apps, have similar design styles, are based in hip urban centers, and strangely have millions of dollars without making any money. In part, this series is... [+]
After publishing Glovolizacion, a three-month undercover investigation into the working conditions of Glovo riders, I received almost entirely positive feedback from the general public and riders alike. Most riders felt ignored and exploited, and most readers were interested in... [+]
This is the third in a four-part investigative series examining Glovo’s business model and its relationship with the world it operates. Based on public statements by Glovo’s founders, this article will contextualize their world-view and the changes they hope to... [+]
Almost all of the negative public attention that has recently been plaguing Glovo has been focused on the exploitation of their riders. This a welcome change of perspective but it also leaves out a significant part of the story: the restaurants that “collaborate”... [+]
This is the first in a four-part series that will examine Glovo’s business model and its relationships with the world in which it operates. Based in extensive research into the company’s public image and dozens of interviews with Glovo “riders” in my... [+]
If anyone is likely to have a gun at any time, society and daily life feel the consequences. Police shot first and ask questions later, and the possibility of being shot for absolutely no reason becomes a practical reality of going to work, going out with friends, and simply... [+]
In my Larrun article Glovalization, I attempted to call attention to the way that Glovo tries to pit its employees – oops, contract laborers – against each other in a zero-sum competion and a game-like application, and I predicted that this type of ingrained... [+]
Back when Glovo was a small company that no one had heard of in a few major Spanish cities, one of its first riders, Isaac Cuende, was hit by a car during a delivery. According to his account of the incident, the first question the company asked him was “are you carrying... [+]
Two major events have rocked the USA in recent weeks. First, the arrest in London of Julian Assange for allegedly helping Chelsea Manning in an effort to crack a government password . Second is the final, albeit redacted, Muller report, a long-awaited legal reckoning of... [+]
The other day, standing in a bar looking at a photo of the Notre Dame cathedral in flames on the front page of the newspaper, I had to stop myself from laughing with joy. Unlike most, I see the cathedral as a monument to the many crimes of the Catholic Church: organized sexual... [+]
Since its founding in 2015, Glovo has been expanding across the Iberian Peninsula and the world so quickly that we have not had the time to appropriately react and evaluate its impacts on our lives. The company uses a business model and marketing strategy that were first... [+]
Environmentalist Gladys Del Estal was killed by a member of the Civil Guard at an anti-nuclear festival in 1979. The officer was sentenced to 18 months in prison, but shortly afterwards before serving his sentence he was awarded a medal. Del Estal has become a symbol of... [+]
Errigora has started its annual campaign in favour of producing food and consuming it in the Basque Country under the slogan "Five years feeding what we love". Five years have gone by since they started the initiative. They use part of the profits which they make from... [+]
