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Madrid march opposes talks with Eta
Rally backed by Spanish opposition party puts pressure on socialist prime minister.
Last Modified: 03 Feb 2007 20:21 GMT
Protesters bore placards asking Zapatero to
refrain from negotiating with Eta [AFP] 

Thousands of people have protested in Madrid against negotiations between Spain's government and Eta, a Basque separatist group.

 

Organised by the Foro Erm

The crowd shouted slogans calling for the resignation of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, the socialist prime minister.

 

An Eta ceasefire ended last December when a bomb blast in at Madrid

Opposition stand

 

The PP insists that the government has not said clearly enough that peace talks have ended.

 

"This march is a success for the many democrats who believe two things: that you can't negotiate with terrorists and that yes, we have to do away with them," said Angel Acebes, the PP's party chairman.

 

The PP, which groups conservatives as well as far-right factions, last month declined to join a separate anti-Eta protest organised by an Ecuadorian group.

 

The party argued that the organisers of that march, which drew tens of thousands to Madrid, tacitly supported talks with the outlawed group.

 

Eta attacks have claimed hundreds of lives in a four-decade campaign.

 

The group seeks a separate Basque homeland comprising parts of northern Spain and southern France.

Source:
Agencies
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