Catalan independence 'no threat' to foreign investment

German companies are confident about Catalonia’s economic viability, says the Catalan government representative to Germany, Marie Kapretz. Last year, for example, Volkswagen made a commitment to invest €3 billion euros in the Seat plant in Martorell over the next five years. “This is good news, because it guarantees jobs, prosperity and sustainability,” Kapretz told CNA. According to the delegate, it shows that the unionist fear campaign against Catalan independence - “Don’t invest in Catalonia” - is not working abroad. Yet, Kapretz, who is originally from Berlin, also insists there will be no official reaction from any state government in Europe until there are some tangible results in Catalonia. “No state will speak up for Catalonia,” she said, although she did say that increasingly more Germans see Spain as a different kind of democracy.

“In my opinion, Catalonia’s behavior has to be perfect. There is no room for shows of strength and the rules of democracy have to be followed at all costs, which is what Catalonia is doing,” Kapretz said. At the same time, she maintained that there is uncertainty about Europe as a club of states, and this has always been a difficulty for the Catalan process. Kapretz pointed out that Spanish president Mariano Rajoy has received support from German chancellor Angela Merkel on a number of occasions: “All the states are allies and faithful to their political families. Nobody will make a positive gesture towards Catalonia. It will not become an urgent issue until things start to happen”,she added. Yet, Kapretz thinks the fact that the heads of many states have not taken any position on the matter is in itself positive.

Meanwhile, the lack of proposals for a political solution from the Spanish executive has come as a surprise in Germany, where debate and compromise are well-established. With respect to some comments by Spanish experts who have compared Spain to Germany, Kapretz said that German academics clearly consider Spain to have a different territorial model. “For example, in Spain the central government representative is sent to the Autonomous Region, while in Germany the federated states send their representatives to the federal capital in order to defend their interests. Besides this, these representatives are members of the Bundesrat (Federal Council) that works with the Bundestag (national parliament) and have a say in questions concerning the federated states, providing them with direct central control. “The approach to the question is different – it’s bottom up and not the other way round,” she pointed out.