Independence may not be only option in referendum, Catalan president says

Catalan president Pere Aragonès has opened the door to the possibility that independence may not be the only option in a referendum. 

"From my point of view, independence must be an option. Beyond that, if there are other proposals, they are welcome, let citizens decide freely. The characteristics of the referendum must be part of the negotiations," Aragonès said in an interview with Spanish public broadcaster TV1.

Aragonès' party, Esquerra Republicana (ERC), and the other main pro-independence party in Catalonia, Junts, are involved in talks with the Spanish Socialists over the possibility of supporting acting prime minister Pedro Sánchez's bid to remain in power for another term following July's inconclusive general election. 

With regard to a "fundamental" condition for ERC – improving the financing of public services and transferring the control of the Rodalies commuter rail network to Catalonia – Aragonès said the Socialists were "far away" from an agreement.  

"It is not moving," the head of the Catalan executive warned. 

Amnesty 

Asked about the amnesty proposal from Spain's left-wing Sumar that leader Yolanda Díaz will formally present in Barcelona on Tuesday, Aragonès described the proposition as "interesting" but said that it is the Socialists' position that will be "determining." 

Sumar are likely to be the junior partner in a left-wing coalition if Sánchez is reelected, as Unidas Podemos were in the last government. 

The Catalan president told TV1 the amnesty should cover the period from 2013 to the present day and should exclude the police who tried to prevent the 2017 referendum from going ahead. 

This is in contrast to Sumar's proposal, which does include the state's security forces. 

Aragonès, referring to the anti-amnesty demonstration in Barcelona on Sunday, accused the leaders of Spain's conservative People's Party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo and Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and of far-right Vox, Santiago Abascal, of "manipulating" citizens to win votes. 

"Yesterday was a failure not because of the mobilization, but because it leads nowhere. There will be an amnesty," he concluded.