The Political Statute of the Community of the Basque Country, better known as the Ibarretxe Plan was a proposal by former ''

lehendakari The President of the Basque Government (, ), usually known in the Basque language as the Lehendakari (, ), is the head of government of the Basque Autonomous Community. The lehendakari leads the executive branch of the regional government. T ...

'' Juan Jose Ibarretxe to totally reform the

Statute of Autonomy of the Basque Country The Statute of Autonomy of the Basque Country of 1979 (; ), widely known as the Statute of Gernika (; {{langx, es, Estatuto de Guernica), is the legal document organizing the political system of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country' ( ...

by proposing a free association of the Basque Country with

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

on an equal footing, including a right to self-determination. Inspired by

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

's status with the United States, as well as the

sovereignty-association The Quebec sovereignty movement (French: ''mouvement souverainiste du Québec'', ) is a political movement advocating for Quebec's independence from Canada. Proponents argue that Quebecers form a distinct nation with a unique culture, language, ...

of the

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (PQ; , ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishi ...

with Canada has been cited as a reference. A debate on the plan was rejected by the

Spanish Parliament The (; ) are the bicameral legislative chambers of Spain, consisting of the Congress of Deputies (the lower house) and the Senate (the upper house). The Congress of Deputies meets in the Palacio de las Cortes. The Senate meets in the Palac ...

and subsequently replaced by Ibarretxe's proposed Basque referendum, 2008.

Forging and demise

The plan was announced by the former ''

'' (the President of the Basque region) Juan Jose Ibarretxe in September 2001 in a plenary of the Basque parliament but the actual contents of the proposal were not made public until July 2003, when leaked to the press. It was officially presented on October 25, 2003. The Basque Parliament' plenary approved it on 30 December 2004 by 39 votes with 35 against. The plan would have affected the

Spanish Constitution The Spanish Constitution () is the supreme law of the Kingdom of Spain. It was enacted after its approval in 1978 in a constitutional referendum; it represents the culmination of the Spanish transition to democracy. The current version was a ...

, so the proposal was sent to the

in January 2005 for debate ahead of a vote. The two main Spanish parties, the

Socialists Socialism is an economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes the economic, political, and socia ...

and the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilizati ...

, attempted to block the Basque parliament's decision by challenging it in the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ru ...

, which approved the draft project for Spanish parliamentary consideration by a narrow margin. Despite its majority support within the Region, the Ibarretxe Plan was not allowed to be considered for discussion in Congress on February 1, 2005, with 313 voting against debating it (

PSOE The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources: * * * * List of political parties in Spain, political party ...

, PP, IU,

Canarian Coalition The Canarian Coalition (, CC or CCa) is a regionalist and Canarian nationalist political party in Spain operating in the Canary Islands. The party's aim is for greater autonomy for the islands but not independence. Its position has been labeled a ...

and CHA), while 29 voted for it ( PNV, ERC, CiU, EA, Na-Bai and BNG), and 2 abstentions ( IC-V). Basque nationalist parties, as a whole, do not accept the legitimacy of the 1978 Spanish Constitution regarding the

Basque Autonomous Community Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous com ...

and

Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

(

Southern Basque Country The Southern Basque Country (; ) refers to the Basque territories southside of the Pyrenees, within the Iberian Peninsula. Name In Basque language, known as '' Euskera'', natives have referred to the Basque districts as ''Euskal Herria(k)''. ...

), which received no input from the Basques. Despite numerically winning the poll, abstention and spoiled ballots outnumbered the "Yes" ballots in the territory.

Content

Under the plan, the two million people in this northern region would remain Spanish citizens but divided into two overlapping categories of Basques, defined as "citizens" and "nationals". The plan provided for the Basque regional government's right to call referendums, opening the door to a possible future vote on independence, while removing a Spanish government right to suspend the regional government's powers.

Alleged objections

The Spanish Government, led by the

Spanish Socialist Workers' Party The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources: * * * * List of political parties in Spain, political party ...

premier

José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (; born 4 August 1960) is a Spanish politician and member of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE). He was the Prime Minister of Spain being elected for two terms, in the 2004 and 2008 general elections. O ...

, and leading Spanish academics viewed the Ibarretxe Plan as contrary to the Spanish Constitution, this view being shared by the main opposition party Partido Popular. The European Parliament refused to have anything to do with the plan, saying that it was a Spanish internal issue.

Subsequent proposals

Two years after the proposal was discarded, Ibarretxe proposed a similar initiative under a referendum-like vote.

References

* * http://www.wharton.universia.net/index.cfm?fa=viewfeature&id=686&language=English {{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724120015/http://www.wharton.universia.net/index.cfm?fa=viewfeature&id=686&language=English , date=2011-07-24 Basque Government Basque politics 2001 documents

Forging and demise

Content

Alleged objections

Subsequent proposals

See also

References