Highlights

The case against Parliament’s President, Carme Forcadell, for allegedly disobeying and perverting the course of justice by allowing the pro-independence roadmap to be put to vote on the 27th of July will proceed. Catalonia’s Supreme Court (TSJC) refused this Wednesday the appeal presented by the Parliament and emphasised that the crimes Forcadell are accused of are not related to “the public expression of thoughts or ideas” but to “disobeying” a ruling from the Spanish Constitutional Court (TC), which it defined as “a key piece in the architecture of democratic and advanced states”. The document, written by Judge Maria Eugènia Alegret, also urges the Parliament to present documentation to the inquiry in order to “prove that the facts described in the lawsuit constitute a crime” and also to help “the defence of the accused”. 

Autonomous vehicles or a device capable of detecting free parking spaces, intelligent lights that monitor traffic, headphones designed to facilitate the mobility of blind people in cities and charging spaces for mobile phones that take advantage of the structure of the old telephone booths. These are some of the technological innovations that visitors can see at the sixth edition of the Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC), taking place between this Tuesday and next Thursday. The event is the showcase of smart cities and this year celebrates its largest edition yet, with 600 cities participating, 576 exhibitors, 412 speakers and a forecast for 14,000 visitors. Along with this event, the Gran Via Exhibition Centre is hosting three more: the Circular Economy Summit, iWater and European Utility Week, which turns Barcelona into the world capital of sustainable development.

The Catalan Government may sanction the energy company Gas Natural Fenosa over the death of an 81-year-old woman, who died on Sunday night in a fire at her home in Reus. All evidence points to the victim, whose energy supply was cut off two months ago, being affected by energy poverty and illuminating the flat with candles. Indeed, the candles appear to be the cause of the fire that burned the mattress where she slept, according to the investigation carried out by the Catalan police, Mossos d’Esquadra. Municipal sources explained in a press conference this Tuesday that the Social Services of the City Hall were not aware of the woman’s lack of electricity due to a non-payment, as they didn’t receive any request for financial assistance, nor a notification from the supplier. Gas Natural now has a period of five days to respond and prove that it fulfilled the established protocols, otherwise the Catalan Government will fine the company.

Many representatives from the Catalan Government attended on Sunday the demonstration in Barcelona to defend the Catalan institutions from Spain’s legal attacks. “The rally empowers the institutions to continue the process towards independence”, Catalan Government Spokeswoman Neus Munté stated. The politician referred to the demonstration as “the best contrast between the decay of a political system, the Spanish one, which persecutes democracy, and one nation and the Catalan institutions that stand up for it and which will continue to do so”. “Any true democrat should feel challenged by what is happening”, she added. Several Catalan Government representatives are facing court cases sought by the Spanish Government for having staged the 9-N vote in 2014.  Those politicians summonsed include Catalonia's former President, Artur Mas, the Parliament’s President, Carme Forcadell and former Catalan Ministers, Joana Ortega, Francesc Homs and Irene Rigau. All of them attended the protest. 

About 80,000 people gathered together on Sunday to demonstrate against Spain’s use of the courts to stop Catalonia’s pro-independence aspirations and the summonsing of several elected representatives. The rally, organised by civil society associations Catalan National Assembly (ANC), Òmnium Cultural and the Association of Municipalities for Independence (AMI) took place on Barcelona’s Maria Cristina Avenue, which was soon overflowing with people. Under the motto “Let’s support our democratic institutions” demonstrators showed their solidarity with the elected representatives who have been prosecuted by Spain’s justice for complying with the electoral mandate that emerged from the 27-S elections, which led to a majority of 72 pro-independence MPs in the 135-seat Parliament. “Our cause is democracy and we will never let our elected representatives down”, stated Òmnium Cultural’s President, Jordi Cuixart.

The 22nd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP22) on climate change is being held in Marrakech, Morocco, since the 7^th of November and will last until the 18^th. Although only UN member states can vote at the meeting, regional and local entities can participate. A Catalan delegation has travelled to the conference in the Moroccan city, and the Catalan Minister for Planning and Sustainability, Josep Rull, will do so next weekend. The aim of the mission is to demonstrate Catalonia’s commitment to reduce its carbon footprint. “Catalonia wants to lead the fight against climate change, we are doing things reasonably well and we want to be the benchmark in Europe”, Rull stated. Catalonia ratified the Paris agreement last April and the Catalan Parliament currently has as pending the approval of a law to combat global warming. 

The election of Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States will bring “new uncertainties”, according to Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont. He emphasised that this position has “quite unanimity” amongst the Catalan sovereigntist parties, since they are all against populism. Despite admitting that the election of Trump was not good news for him, Puigdemont stated that the American citizens’ decision must be respected. During this Wednesday’s plenary session, Catalan Conservative People’s Party (PPC) leader, Xavier García Albiol, also commented on Trump’s election. “I don’t know if the upcoming President of the US will build a wall, but you have built an invisible barrier between good Catalans, those who support independence, and bad Catalans”, he said, addressing Puigdemont.

Manchester City staged an exhilarating comeback and beat FC Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday at Etihad Stadium (3-1). Pep Guardiola’s team stole the game and the three points to Barça, who had the opportunity to sentence the first half, but started to feel the pressure six minutes before the interval, after an error by Sergi Roberto, leading to a goal and the resurrection of Manchester players. Ilkay Gundogan was undoubtley Manchester City star, scoring twice. The blaugrana, who were chasing a fourth consecutive win on English soil, did not achieve their objective. The home side desperation to get the three points beat Barça’s desire and marked a sense of urgency in their football.

Current Spanish President and Conservative People’s Party (PP) leader, Mariano Rajoy, will be reinvested as President of the Spanish Government next Saturday. Although the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) has announced that it is going to vote ‘no’ in the first round of the debate on investiture, this Wednesday afternoon, the party explained on the 23^rd of October, after its federal committee, that it will abstain and facilitate the PP to form government in the second round. Currently the PSOE has faced tensions with the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC), which on Tuesday approved a resolution to say ‘no’ to Rajoy’s investiture in the second vote. Despite the Catalan Socialists’ opposition and the opposition of some other independent MPs and the former PSOE leader, Pedro Sánchez, Mariano Rajoy is likely to be sworn in on Saturday, putting an end to 10 months of political blockade in Spain.   

Catalonia’s Supreme Court (TSJC) has admitted the complaint for charges of perversion of justice and disobedience filed by Catalonia’s Public Prosecutor, José María Romero de Tejada, against the President of the Catalan Parliament, Carme Forcadell. In the lawsuit presented last Wednesday, de Tejada stated that Forcadell “despised and opposed the Spanish Constitution” by allowing the pro-independence roadmap to be put to vote last July and that she “openly disobeyed the authority” by ignoring the Spanish Constitutional Court (TC) warnings. An official has delivered this Tuesday the notification to Forcadell. The President of the Catalan Parliament has now three days to appeal.

British Member of the European Parliament and leader of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, Syed Kamall, stated that a referendum on independence is “a good way” to resolve the situation in Catalonia. Furthermore, the politician believes that without it “problems will continue and never really be solved". In an interview with the Catalan News Agency, the politician said that “democracy is a good way of resolving these issues" and stressed that the right to decide is “a very good principle”. "I believe in self-determination and I was very proud when David Cameron offered the people of Scotland a referendumto vote on whether they wanted to be an independent nation or remain part of the United Kingdom”, the MEP stressed.  

Theatres, museums and other cultural amenities from all over Catalonia will celebrate the second edition of 'Apropa Cultura' Week from this Monday the 24^th to the 30^th of October. The 63 cultural amenities that are taking part in this initiative will programme a wide range of activities to make people aware of the importance of democratic access to culture. 1,573 social organisations will hold meetings between social groups and artists during more than 200 cultural events throughout the week. 'Apropa Cultura' is a pioneer initiative in Europe aiming at opening culture to citizens at social risk, such as people with intellectual and physical disabilities and people with drug addiction problems, amongst others.

Latvian MEPs from different parties have criticised the Spanish Government’s withdrawal of accreditation from the Honorary Counsellor of Latvia, Xavier Vinyals. “It's not serious (accusing Vinyals of having displayed a pro-independence flag)", "it is a very funny reason to expel a counsellor", remarked the Social Democrat Andrejs Mamikins to the Catalan News Agency. The Conservative Roberts Zile also criticised the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José-Manuel García Margallo, for his "wrong attitude, clearly inadequate for the democratic standards of the 21st century". "It's a horrible decision", lamented the Green Tatjana Ždanoka. The Latvian Government and Latvian MEPs from the European People’s Party (PPE) refused to comment on the decision of Margallo.

“We will disobey and we are willing to face the consequences”, stated this Monday Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) leader, Miquel Iceta. He was referring to the PSC’s will to say ‘no’to the reinvestiture of current Spanish President Mariano Rajoy, in opposition to the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) position, who agreed in its federal committee this Sunday to abstain and facilitate the Conservative People’s Party (PP) to form government. “We will vote the same way as the other Socialists in the first round, but in the second one we will vote ‘no’, regardless of how the othersvote”, he assured in an interview with Catalan radio Rac1. Iceta also referred to the current relationship between PSOE and the Catalan Socialists. Although he believes that keeping the current scenario is “the best”solution, he admitted that PSOE “has the right”to reconsider the relationship with PSC.  

From the 20th to the 27th of October Cambridge will host the 36th edition of its well-known film festival and Catalan cinema will again have its own place in the programme. For the fifth time the event features ‘Camera Catalonia’, the most important fair in the UK focused on Catalan film. This year’s edition includes two of the most successful box office comedies in recent years: ‘Barcelona Summer Night’ and the sequel ‘Barcelona Christmas Night’, by young director Dani de la Orden. There are two other premieres, the documentary about Xavier Cugat, a Catalan musician during the golden years of Hollywood who became one of the originators of the Latin sound, ‘Sex, Maracas & Chihuahuas’and ‘The Virus of Fear’ by renowned Catalan film director Ventura Pons.“Everybody appreciates that cinema is one of best presentation letters to the world and that it is a perfect way of making us known to the world”, ‘Camera Catalonia’s curator, Ramon Lamarca, told the CNA.