European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). After a long legal inquiry, in July 2009 the ECHR backed the Spanish rulings banning Batasuna and its proxies. The ECHR said that disbanding the parties was a response "to a pressing social need" given their ties to ETA. "Given the situation in Spain for several years regarding terrorist attacks, these ties can be considered objectively as a threat to democracy," the court said, also adding that these parties "contradicted the concept of a 'democratic society' and presented a major danger to Spain's democracy". Similarly, when the outlawed Batasuna tried to use Acción Nacionalista Vasca as a proxy to re-organize its ranks, in a different case the ECHR also upheld in 2011 the previous Spanish court rulings which had outlawed ANV, noting that this party had not run by itself in elections since 1977 and that it basically conformed a "fraud" to circumvent the outlawing of Batasuna. Status in France Batasuna has a minor presence in the Basque French country, where it runs elections as a civic organization, not like a political party. In France it used to get a few hundred votes and did not reach any kind of representation at either local or regional level so far. In September 2008, 14 people were detained by the French police, 10 of whom were from the French-wing of the party (including their spokesman Xabi Larralde), and charged with links to ETA. They were released four days later; it remained unclear whether the ongoing investigation would lead to an illegalization process similar to that in Spain. In January 2013, Batasuna in France announced its self-dissolution, citing a process of "political reflection". See also Herri Batasuna Julen Madariaga References Bibliography Fernández Soldevilla, Gaizka, "El nacionalismo vasco radical ante la transición española", Historia contemporánea, , vol 35, 2007, pp. 817–844 Casquete Badallo, Jesús María, "Abertzale sí pero, ¿quién dijo que de izquierda?", en El Viejo topo, , vol 268, 2010, pp. 14–19. Fernández Soldevilla, Gaizka, ""El compañero ausente y los aprendices de brujo: orígenes de Herri Batasuna(1974-1980)", Revista de estudios políticos'', , vol 148, 2010, pp. 71–103 External links BBC news story regarding call to stop armed conflict 14 November 2004 Ezker Abertzalea (Left Independentist) official website 2001 establishments in Spain 2013 disestablishments in Spain Banned secessionist parties Banned socialist parties Basque conflict Basque history Basque nationalism Defunct socialist parties in the Basque Country (autonomous community) ETA