Spain to take the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs before the court

Barcelona (CNA).- The Spanish Government approved this Friday the presentation of a conflict of jurisdiction appeal before the Spanish Constitutional Court (TC) regarding the creation of the new Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs, led by former MEP and pro-independence cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sï’ top member Raül Romeva. According to the current Spanish vice president, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, and current Spanish Minister for Justice, Rafael Catalá, the Spanish executive considers the Catalan government to have exceeded the competences in matters of foreign action specified in the Catalan Statute of Autonomy. Català also asked for the suspension of the decree through which the new Catalan Ministry was created, so that its competences and structure would automatically be annulled. For his part, the Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raül Romeva, assured that Catalonia “has done, does and will continue to do foreign action” and defended the “legitimacy” of the new department. In the same vein, the Catalan government’s spokeswoman, Neus Munté, assessed Spain’s announcement as typical of a “decadent” government.

After having presented an appeal against the creation of the committee to study the Constitutive Process in the Parliament, the Spanish executive approved this Friday taking the new Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affair before the TC. Sáenz de Santamaria and Catalá explained before the media that the Spanish executive believes that the new department exceeds the competences in matters of foreign action specified in the Catalan Statute of Autonomy and assured that the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs claims competences which belong “exclusively” to the Spanish State.

During his investiture ceremony, Catalan President Carles Puigdemont assured that the creation of the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs involved “the internationalisation of the Catalan process”. In response, Sáenz de Santamaría wanted to emphasise that Catalonia’s Law on Foreign Action was already taken before the court and ultimately suspended by the TC. All this, according to the Spanish executives, justifies the appeal presented against the new department.

Català explained that the conflict of jurisdiction claimed by the Spanish executive is based on the fact that “international relations are the exclusive realm of the Spanish State”, that “there is jurisprudence on this subject” and that “the Autonomous Communities’ international actions and those directed toward the EU which they aim to carry out have to be coordinated with the Spanish Ministry”.

The Spanish Minister for Justice also wanted to emphasise that the appeal to be presented to the TC will come with a request “to suspend the decree” through which the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs was created. If the TC accepts the appeal and suspends the decree, its competences and structure would automatically be annulled. Then, the Catalan government would have to decide if “they modify the department or abolish it”.

Romeva defends the “legitimacy” of his department

Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs Raül Romeva assured that Catalonia “has done, does and will continue to do foreign action”. In response to the Spanish executive decision, the former MEP and pro-independence cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ leader asked everyone to “keep absolutely calm” and insisted on the democratic “legitimacy” of his department. “What we are doing is absolutely within the Constitution and the Statute of Autonomy” and “we have a legitimate democratic mandate to do all this that we must do and need to do as a country”.

On the same day as Spain decided to take the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs before the court, Romeva met with the US consul in Barcelona, Marcos Mandojana. In January, Mandojana also requested a meeting to get to know the new Parliament’s President, Carme Forcadell. 

Munté: Spanish government “is quite frankly, just decadent”

In the same vein, Catalan government spokeswoman Neus Munté assured that Catalonia will continue to carry out foreign action despite the appeal of the Spanish government, which is “quite frankly, just decadent”. “We will keep our commitment to keep on working as a government on matters of foreign action, since it is a competence stated in our Statute of Autonomy, because we have a solid trajectory and because it is our duty”, stated Munté.