The Batera platform welcomes the vote on the new governance pact by the Single Commonwealth of Iparralde, although it regrets that it has been done in a campaign atmosphere and at the end of its mandate. The platform has taken stock of the work and organisation of this new institution created three years ago: You can say it's a bittersweet valuation.

Among the elements to strongly regret, Batera only sees that elected officials can accumulate. “Nothing has been established to limit the accumulation of responsibilities. For example, a member of the Executive Commission may continue to apply for election in the department, district or Parliament.” In addition, the structure underlines the need for close monitoring of some points, although not denounced harshly. These include parity. Currently, only 23.6 per cent of the people who have seats in the Basque School are women and in the centres of power the rate of rise is decreasing (for example, in the Executive Council there are four women and twenty-one men). However, the platform underlines the need for the College to adopt in 2018 the European Charter for the Equality of Women and Men in Local Life.

The imbalance between the coast and the interior has been criticised over and over again. Batasuna itself calls for greater decentralisation and more balanced territorial management. In this regard, it finds positive elements in the new governance pact: "It wants to make more room for peoples and territories. In addition, these poles will have other special capacities (grants, selection of local projects…)".

Need for connection with society

The Union also sees the links between this new institutional framework and society as interesting: “The functions of the Territorial Commissions will allow the territories and civil society actors to have a place when deciding.” The platform will follow the steps needed to carry out this desire, as it considers it to be a "point to watch".

The need for a special status institution is always there

For years, the Batera platform claimed the institutional knowledge of Ipar Euskal Herria. This struggle led to the creation in 2017 of the Single Commonwealth of Iparralde. This institution brings together and brings together 158 villages in Lapurdi, Baja Navarra and Zuberoa.

However, the College is not a special status institution claiming the platform. It appears that the claim they have been claiming for many years is still today and the debate is still trying to keep it in the centre of the square. For example, two years after the creation of the Single Commonwealth of Iparralde, the institution of Iparralde: Where do we want to go? The audit started with the name "citizenship", with the objective of analyzing the relationship of citizenship with the institutions. The platform also organised a citizens' forum in September last year.

The new composition of the College will be decided at the elections to be held on 15 and 22 March.