party

Party Review – Solidaritat (SI), the radical Catalan independence party

November 16, 2012 11:32 PM | CNA / Gaspar Pericay Coll

Solidaritat per la Indepedència (SI) started in 2010, defending a fast track towards independence and profiting from the crisis of the Left-Wing Catalan Independence Party (ERC). SI grew around the magnetic Joan Laporta, former President of FC Barcelona. In 2010, they obtained 3.29% of the votes and 4 MPs in the Catalan Parliament. Laporta quit the party and Alfons López Tena is the current candidate for Catalan President. With a demagogical speech, they have exclusively focused on asking for a unilateral independence declaration. Now, SI faces the challenge of remaining in the Parliament, when the traditional Catalan nationalist parties are also supporting independence. According to the polls, SI is not likely to have enough votes to stay in the Parliament.

Party Review – Ciutadans (C’s), the anti-Catalan nationalism and left-wing party

November 15, 2012 11:01 PM | CNA / Gaspar Pericay Coll

With 3.39% of the votes in the last elections and 3 MPs in the Catalan Parliament, polls indicate that the number of Ciutadans’s MPs could double in the next elections, resulting in between 6 and 8 MPs, and forming its own parliamentary group for the first time. In its 6 years of existence, it has mainly focused on attacking the policies defending the Catalan language. Now, clearly opposed to Catalan independence and organising a self-determination referendum, C’s is lifting the banner of Spanish unity to attract voters. Ciutadans is seen by many as a populist party, with a conflict-driven speech criticising Catalonia’s political class and offering easy solutions to complex social problems.

Pirate parties meet in Catalonia for their first Congress aiming to create a future European party

September 3, 2012 11:40 PM | CNA / David Tuxworth

The first Congress of the different Pirate parties of Europe aims to create a Pirate Party at a European level. The Congress made clear the movement’s recipe to tackle the crisis: freedom of information, more transparency, and greater public participation. Forty representatives from throughout Europe met in Catalonia to discuss the future of the political group.

Gràcia Street Festival in Barcelona displays its creativity and community spirit

August 17, 2012 11:29 PM | David Tuxworth

Barcelona’s neighbourhood of Gràcia has started its annual street festival on Wednesday, a week long festival famous for its street decorations and community spirit. Every year residents form committees to chose a theme and decorate their streets in competition with each other with ornaments made by the residents themselves. The festival is popular with tourists and Barcelonans alike and starts on the 15th August every year.

The main Catalan nationalist party points towards Catalonia’s independence

March 27, 2012 12:35 AM | CNA / Gaspar Pericay Coll

‘Convergència Democràtica de Catalunya’ (CDC), the Liberal force within the two-party Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition ‘Convergència i Unió’ (CiU), held its party congress over the weekend. For the first time in its history, CDC has claimed for Catalonia to have its “own state” in order “to avoid being erased off the map of cultures, languages, and world nations” as “Spain threatens Catalonia” and is no longer a “project that can be shared”. The current President of the Catalan Government and until last weekend the CDC Secretary General, Artur Mas, has now become the party Chairman. Oriol Pujol, son of the former Catalan president Jordi Pujol and Mas' close collaborator, has been elected the new Secretary General with 97.8% of the votes.

‘Carnestoltes’, an old but always eagerly awaited tradition

February 16, 2012 09:18 PM | CNA / Joëlle Philippe

Carnival celebrations in small towns around Girona remain a huge social event and a great occasion for having fun with friends. Throughout this whole week small villages in the province of Girona celebrate the ‘Carnestoltes’, a whole set of celebrations based on the Carnival theme. Despite the economic crisis and many budget cutbacks, the festivity remains a hugely strong tradition and offers a mix of fun and excess before Lent begins.

New talents and world renowned designers in the 9th edition of the 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

January 24, 2012 08:32 PM | CNA/ Joan Serra Mingot

Barcelona’s independent fashion fair kicks off this week, running from Wednesday 25th to Saturday 28th. The fall-winter 2012/2013 collections of prestigious brands and designers such as Desigual, Pierre Cardin or Mango will be presented in the centre of Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter in the Plaça del Rei (King’s Square) and the Saló del Tinell, inside the former King’s Palace.

The Catalan Socialists decide their future in the party congress

December 16, 2011 10:33 PM | CNA / Gaspar Pericay Coll

The Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) is holding its 12th congress to renew its leadership and discuss its entire political project. After having lost the last elections, the Catalan Government and many town halls throughout Catalonia, the PSC feels detached from the majority of voters with many believing that it has lost its way regards it political project. Its attachment to social-democratic values, its connection with the Catalan municipalities, its defence of Catalan interests in Madrid, and the relationship with the Spanish Socialists are the main issues. Three mayors announced their candidacy to lead the party, which means that a synthesis looks more likely than a full renovation.

No major incidents on the opening night of ‘Saloufest’

April 12, 2011 01:59 AM | CNA / Marc Griso / Ignacio Portela Giráldez

The arrival of 5,000 UK students for a five-day festival has put the Catalan coastal town of Salou back in the spotlight. Last year, ‘Saloufest’ had several episodes of drunken behaviour and wild parties on the streets, which caused major disturbances. An ongoing debate has taken place over the past year over how best to combine the five-day festival with Salou’s reputation of a family tourist resort.

Party review – CiU, the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition

November 26, 2010 06:55 PM | CNA / Gaspar Pericay Coll

Convergència i Unió (CiU) will very likely win the elections and rule the Catalan Government. It is already the first party in the Catalan Parliament, with 48 seats (out of 135), and polls predict it could get a result just below the absolute majority, with a range from 59 to 65 seats. CiU is a coalition of 2 parties: a Liberal and a Christian-Democratic. In the last years, CiU has openly defended Catalonia’s right to self-determination and, in this campaign, CiU’s main proposal is to negotiate a special economic agreement for fiscal redistribution with the Spanish Government, in line with the Basque Country’s.