The continuity of Basque political violence: A geographical perspective on the legitimisation of violence

Abstract

After twenty years of parliamentary democracy in Spain the Basque liberation movement ETA is still using violent methods. Considerable support for ETA has persisted in the Spanish Basque Country. Based on voting patterns in Euskadi the persistent support for ETA is studied. ETA support through voting for its political wing Herri Batasuna is concentrated in specific areas. Through ecological analysis the relative weight of cultural, socio-economic, demographic and locational factors in voting patterns is determined. At a local level particular cultural contexts reproduce support for violent separatism. The continuity of violence legitimisation is a Spanish Basque phenomenon as it is confined to the Basque-speaking parts of Spain. The small-size settlements of the Basque Country offer a context of social control which enables mass legitimisation of political violence.