The "rural and polygonal" Basque Country of the 90s is resurrected in Pleibac, the second novel by Miren Amuriza (Berriz, 1990) which Pau Joan Hernàndez has translated into Catalan for Club Editor with grace and skill, to which he has added the transgressive linguistic vocation of the original. The book tells the story of friendship and betrayal between two adolescents, Jone and Polly, who grow up in the same Biscayan municipality where the author followed the family tradition of singing improvised verses in Basque. Years after establishing herself as a bertsolari and publishing several poetry collections, Amuriza tried her hand at prose in Basa (Elkar, 2019; in Spanish by Consonni), and now repeats the experience with a novel that flows down like a fresh beer after a party with friends.

The writer Eider Rodríguez (Errenteria, 1977) burst onto the Catalan bookstores scene in 2019 with A heart too big (Periscope / Random House), a collection of short stories that served as the gateway, for many readers in our country, to one of the most important contemporary literary voices in the Basque Country. Seven years later and an autofictional novel in between— Building materials (Periscope / Random House, 2023)—, Rodríguez returns to short stories with It was all the same hole (Periscope / Random House), six seemingly everyday stories that gradually move toward increasingly uncomfortable situations, reflecting the collective unease of the present. All three books have been translated from Basque into Catalan by Pau Joan Hernàndez.

The Basque Country became the first region in Spain to assume responsibility for unemployment benefits this Friday. This is the result of an agreement reached... in extremis This Thursday, the Basque and Spanish governments signed an agreement granting the Basque Country, through the resources of the Economic Agreement, five new powers previously held by the central government. Beyond unemployment benefits, the Basque Country will also manage non-contributory family benefits from Social Security, Maritime Rescue, School Insurance, and the Machinery Verification Center in Barakaldo.

The traditional pastry shop Casa Otaegui will soon be 140 years old. It is one of the traditional places in San Sebastián where you must stop if you visit the capital of Gipuzkoa and try the cake that Emiliana Malcorra invented here as a result of the shortage of ingredients caused by the Civil War: the panchineta. In fact, the panchineta is the most beloved cake by the people of San Sebastián and has been reproduced by all the great Basque chefs, from Juan Mari Arzak to Pedro Subijana, including Karlos Arguiñano. The fact is that despite the fact that this cake made of puff pastry, almonds, and custard is the emblem of the city, all the tourists—in San Sebastián they are crowded—arrive in the city with the fixed idea of tasting what they believe to be the most traditional: the La Viña cheesecake.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the baskitis was quite widespread in Catalonia. The Convergent social base envied the degree of self-government achieved by the Basques in the Transition pacts, especially the economic agreement, and was already beginning to feel that we Catalans had been taken for a ride. The feeling was so widespread that Jordi Pujol—always attentive to these things—took care to create a narrative to avoid comparison and reinforce self-esteem: the project and personality of Catalonia were not based on tax control but on the language and educational competencies. "They may have the agreement, but the country is broken by violence and they've lost the language." Social cohesion and the progress of Catalan, the mantra went, were proof that the right bet had been made.

Former Socialist minister Juan Manuel Eguiagaray died this Thursday at the age of 79. Born in Bilbao in 1945, he had a long career in Spanish politics after serving as one of the negotiators for Felipe González's government in the talks with ETA in Algiers in the late 1980s. In the early 1990s, Eguiagaray served as the Spanish government's delegate in the Basque Country and later served as Minister of Industry and Energy, as well as Minister of Public Administration.

The CEO's first barometer of the year confirmed that indicators related to the territorial debate in Catalonia are returning to levels prior to 2012. Support for Catalan independence has fallen below 40% for the first time in a poll, reaching its worst figure since 2011, the year before the start of the Process. Thus, 54% of Catalans would vote against breaking away from Spain today, the same percentage as in the November barometer, while 38% would vote in favor, two points less than four months ago.

This Saturday the actress Carolina Yuste took the Goya for best actress for The infiltrator, where she plays a National Police agent who infiltrated the circles of the Basque left during the 90s. The real name of the young woman who inspired the film is Elena Tejada and the film, which was also made into a film, the 'ex aequo' award for Best Film with an unprecedented tie with The 47, tells how Tejada lived with ETA and dismantled the Donosti commando, one of the most symbolic of the armed group. The award has not been free of controversy due to the film's treatment of the Basque conflict.

Wednesday will mark 10 years since ETA laid down its arms. The nightmare of terrorist violence came to an end after 864 deaths and more than 3,000 attacks. Five decades of pain, most of it in democracy. Five decades of harsh social and ideological fracture in the Basque Country. The process of deactivating the terrorist group was slow, with many ups and downs, including the State's dirty war through death squads. It took a long time, but finally the nationalist left took the step, with Arnaldo Otegi, from prison, as a key figure in giving up violence and adopting the peaceful and democratic way. This Monday, Otegi, coinciding with this tenth anniversary, wanted to solemnise the anniversary with a new gesture of recognition towards the victims, which is also a self-criticism of historical importance: "We feel their pain: it should never have taken place". With these words, the historic Basque leader deepens the pro-independence Basque left mea culpa.