The general coordinator of EH Bildu, Arnaldo Otegi, has apologized for a video that went viral on social networks in which the Abertzale coalition defined itself as “anti-fascist protection” to combat those it placed on the opposite side, it is understood that ” fascist”, and which in this case were PP, Vox and PNV. The spot provoked a very critical reaction from Aitor Esteban, number one of the PNV for Bizkaia on 23-J, who considered it “an insult to the Basque people”.
In the Egun on Euskadi program of ETB-1, Otegi has considered that it was an “error” and has apologized for it, “even if it is in a personal capacity”. “For me it is a mistake to compare Aitor Esteban and the PNV with the PP and Vox. The PNV participated in the war on the anti-fascist side and in that sense I think it is a mistake. And I think we have to tell people that the PNV is not our enemy, but rather our political rival. In addition, we have continuously said that we want a high-level political debate. The PNV is not the same as the PP and Vox, even if it allies with them to take power away from us, ”he indicated.
The spot is a brief audiovisual of barely 30 seconds in which an anti-fascist protection is fictitiously promoted “against a heat wave from the south and the extreme right”, which “intends to ruin our vacations”. From there, it offers a “solution” with “triple action” against “mosquitoes, drones and lame flies”. At that point, the video shows images of Santiago Abascal, Alberto Núñez Feijóo and Aitor Esteban, spokesman for the PNV in Congress during the last legislature.
The video ends by pointing out that the coalition repels those who “face the sun” and that it “protects the most disadvantaged”, underlining this option as “the anti-fascist vote”. The audiovisual has had more than 680,000 views on Twitter alone and has generated endless reactions.
Aitor Esteban responded that it is an “insult to the Basque people”. “Placing the PNV on the side of fascism is an insult to our People and, above all, to generations of Basque men and women who have identified with a party that has always, at all times in history, been in defense of human rights. , freedom and democracy,” he said.
In a radio interview, he added that his training “always” has been in the defense of human rights: “Marking the PNV together with Vox, a party that wants to outlaw us, is an insult to the intelligence of this people and to generations of Basques and Basques who have identified with the Basque Nationalist Party. The PNV has always, and I say always, been in defense of human rights, freedom and democracy, not everyone can say the same”.
