BASQUE BLACKMAIL Kepa Aulestia from "The Guardian" It is by no means easy to explain why, in a corner of Europe which today enjoys a similar level of freedom to the rest of the continent and a far higher degree of autonomy than any other region of the EU, terrorism persists. But it is even more difficult to understand why, over the past 23 years, a section of Basque society has voted for a political party in the full knowledge that it connives with terrorism. From 1979 - first as Herri Batasuna, then as Euskal Herritarrok, and finally as Batasuna - the so-called "nationalist left" has counted on the fluctuating support of between 100,000 and 200,000 voters in a population of little more than two million. At the same time, Eta - the product of the last years of the Franco regime - has not only continued with its violent attacks during democracy but actually increased by a hundredfold the number of murders it had committed during the dictatorship. This fact - as shocking as it is paradoxical - disturbs Basque society as much as it does Spain's democracy. One of the explanations is that in the final years of Francoism and the beginning of the democratic transition, Eta's violence started to create around it a "society within a society". Batasuna, which was this week subjected to a dual attack (political and judicial), is no less than the political and legal expression of this "society". Since the restoration of democracy, political parties and institutions have tried various methods of solving the problem of Basque terrorism, producing mixed and even counter-productive results. The debate over whether to open a dialogue with the terrorists or to freeze them out until Eta has abandoned violence has raged throughout the period. That debate ended when José Maria Aznar became prime minister in 1996. His strategy was to focus state power on destroying Eta. The anti-terror agreement signed by the governing party and the opposition at the end of 2000 bore fruit last June with a so-called "law of political parties" which punishes alleged complicity in terrorism and broadens the definition of what constitutes links with terrorism. The Basque Nationalist party and the Basque autonomous government have always been critical of Aznar's strategy. They defend dialogue with the radical nationalists and have declared themselves against banning Batasuna. This clash emphasises the gap between the Basque country and the rest of Spain. From 1998, the mainstream political parties in Spain and the nationalists in power in the Basque government have been heading in opposite directions. For the constitutionalists, the devolution of power to the regions had reached its apogee and at the very most might need some minor extra reform to keep it coherent. At the other extreme, Basque nationalists had drawn up a "sovereignist" strategy which tried to turn the Basque country into a self-governing area with the aim of creating a new type of entity within the European Union. The nationalist strategy could only be viable if it counted on the direct or indirect support of radicals who follow Eta's line. The fact that Basque politicians have allied themselves with the aims of Eta has heightened the confrontation between the central government and the autonomous Basque government, between the constitutionalists and the nationalists. The crackdown on terrorism within the Basque country has generated a state of anxiety which has made the situation worse. This fear demonstrates how terrorism has in effect blackmailed Basque society into allowing it a degree of impunity. The double process to make Batasuna illegal has no precedent and it is difficult to forecast its effects. But it is unlikely to make the present situation worse. From June 27, when the law of political parties came into force with the clear and immediate aim of banning Batasuna, the Basque country has had one of its quietest summers in years. This is because Batasuna has isolated itself. The fact that the polls in the Basque country show a majority against the ban - the opposite from the rest of Spain - does not mean that the people are prepared actively to demonstrate in favour of a party which most Basques reject. However, this "society within a society" which Batasuna represents is not a marginal social group which is ready to go underground. One of the most peculiar and surprising aspects of the core support from which Basque terrorism emerges is that it is in every way a socially integrated group, with levels of employment, education and welfare well above average for the region. Banning Batasuna will not make the "nationalist left" disappear. For that reason we are probably at the beginning of what will be the umpteenth reincarnation of radical nationalism - which under one name or another will certainly compete in the local elections in May next year - rather than at the beginning of an escalation in social and political tension in the Basque country or in Spain.