ABSTRACT
This chapter suggests understanding the concept of Basque contention as a multi-facetted longue-duree conflict with, at least, three overlapping, but not identical dimensions. A first essential condition for a settlement of the Basque contention within the new favorable context is precisely the abandonment of the search for a definitive settlement by all the actors involved. A very similar scenario was repeated in the Commission of Memory and Cohabitation of the Basque parliament. More self-interested invention than historical reality is also the narrative of a century-old Spanish aggression against the Basque nation and its right of self-determination as the key element that provoked and fueled Euskadi Ta Askatasuna’s violence over time. The Basque contention has recovered the scenario of the late 19th century, when Sabino Arana and the first generation of Basque nationalists articulated the political claim of self-determination and founded a political party as the core element of an organizational network that sought to gain social majorities for their program.
