catalan

Two weeks after the 27-S Catalan elections, the debate on who will be the next President is still bogged down. Pro-independence unitary list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ (‘Together For Yes’), which won the elections but didn’t get an absolute majority, confirmed that Artur Mas was their candidate to run for President. However, radical left CUP have repeatedly stated that they won’t instate Mas as President, as an independent Catalonia needs a leader “who can’t be identified with cuts, corruption and privatisations”. “Now we are extremely focused on the content, the what, when, and how” stated CUP’s leader Antonio Baños, in an interview with 'Catalunya Ràdio'. Simultaneously, in another radio interview, ‘Junts Pel Sí’ lead member Raül Romeva assured that he “agrees with almost everything” regarding CUP’s roadmap towards independence and insisted that choosing a candidate to be President “is now secondary”.

From the 10^th to the 14^th of October, the German city of Cologne will host Anuga, the world’s most important Food and Agriculture Fair which gathered together, in its last edition, nearly 7,000 exhibitors from 100 countries. Catalonia’s food industry will be represented through two main sectors; olive oil and nuts on the one hand, and cold meats on the other. The Catalan Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fishery and Food is aware of the importance of the EU market, as more than 50% of Catalonia’s food and beverage production is exported there. Moreover, the EU is the biggest consumer of food and beverages, ahead of the US and China.

The Catalan Government has created the first certification that “guarantees” the quality of 17 funding systems which aim to be an alternative to traditional banking. The public business innovation agency, ACCIÓ, has accredited the first 17, which are private investors’ networks, crowd-funding platforms, crowd-lending systems an invoice traders. According to the Catalan Business and Occupation department, this certification aims to promote and facilitate Small and Medium-sized Companies (‘PIMES’ in Catalan) and Catalan companies’ access to alternative funding systems, which are considered a key factor for innovation and internationalisation and are a growing trending in Europe.

“Barcelona and Catalan literature will be the main focus” at the Warsaw Book Fair 2016, stated the Director of Institut Ramon Llull (IRL), which is a public institution in charge of promoting Catalan culture and language, Àlex Susanna. Next year it will be time to “set the coveted invitation” to the Bologna Book Fair, he added and declared that IRL is “working hard” on a possible “Catalan landing” in the multidisciplinary Edinburgh Festival in two years’ time. Susanna admitted to be optimistic regarding Catalan culture’s international projection and highlighted that this development coincided with the economic crisis.   

“The EU expects that the Midcat will be built by 2020”, stated EU Commissioner for Energy and Climate Action, Miguel Arias Cañete. He made this statement this Monday during the ‘Natural gas and the energy security of Europe’ seminar, organised by Gas Natural Fenosa. The Midcat pipeline is set to be built through the Catalan Pyrenees, linking the Iberian Peninsula with French and Central European networks and aims to reduce Europe's dependency on Russian gas by 40%. According to Cañete the project has a budget of 470 million euros, from which 170 million will have to be paid by Spain. Catalan Minister for Business and Employment, Felip Puig “lamented” the delay in this strategic infrastructure and attributed it to “the lack of enthusiasm” of the French government.

196,062 Catalans abroad are registered to vote but only 14,781 could effectively do so in the 27-S Catalan elections. Too many agents involved in a complex and long process deprived them of exercising their democratic right. “The Spanish State can’t ignore such a violation of a basic and fundamental right” stated the Catalan Minister for Public Administration, Meritxell Borràs, who lamented that nearly “7,000 votes that were sent on time couldn’t reach their destination”. On Wednesday the ballots that did arrive in Catalonia on time showed 63% of Catalans living abroad voted in support of independence. Although cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ (‘Together for Yes’) was the most voted, with 7,894 votes, it only maintains its 62 seats in the Catalan Parliament and still requires radical left pro-independence CUP in order to instate Mas as President, which the radical party refuses to do. 

Catalan President Artur Mas reacted this Wednesday to his summonsing by Catalonia’s Supreme Court (TSJC). “Legally I didn’t disobey. Politically, there was a democratic rebellion against the State” he stated in a radio interview with Catalunya Radio. The charges are “the reaction of an arrogant, furious, clumsy state, whose pride was hurt, which is incapable of dialogue and which will do everything in its hands to get rid of me” he summarised. On the other hand, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy considers it “false and unfair” to attribute the court’s decision to the Spanish government, as in Spain there is a “separation of powers”.

Pro-independence parties have won an overall majority in the Catalan election. The main pro-independence coalition, ‘Junts pel Sí’ (‘Together for Yes’) obtained 39.6% of vote and won 62, while the far-left pro-independence CUP secured 10 members of parliament. Together, they have an overall majority of 72 MPs in the 135-seats Catalan Parliament. President Mas, who ran fourth on the list, highlighted the plebiscitary nature of the elections and demanded “respect” for “the victory of Catalonia, the victory of yes”. Turnout in the election has hit a record high, with 77.4%.

Current Catalan President Artur Mas has been called to the court on the 15th of October for authorising and co-organising the 9-N symbolic referendum on independence that took place in 2014. Catalonia’s Supreme Court (TSJC), which pends on Spanish Administration of Justice, also confirmed the prosecution of former Vice-President Joana Ortega and Catalan Minister of Education Irene Rigau for the same charges. The official prosecution of Artur Mas and 2 other members of the Executive arrives two days after the 27-S elections and takes the current political conflict a level higher. The Catalan Government considered the TSJC decision a “democratic anomaly” and described it as a “political judgment”.

Catalans “have shown that they are a plural society” in the face of “uniformity”, declared sources from the Spanish Government to CNA. Despite the ‘Junts Pel Sí’ victory in the 27-S elections, Mariano Rajoy’s team considers Artur Mas to have “failed” as he “didn’t achieve in votes nor in seats Catalan society’s support” for his “defiance”. The Conservative People’s Party (PP) didn’t comment on the record participation, which is the highest in the history of the Autonomous Elections. 

Christian-Democrat Unió, the smaller party within the former governing coalition CiU, claims to be the alternative to the extreme positions that “have taken over Catalan politics”. “We regret that this campaign has been based on two extreme positions: the status quo and a breakaway” stated Unió’s Secretary General and now candidate for President in the upcoming 27-S elections, Ramon Espadaler. “We believe there’s a central position and that is reforming Spain’s Constitution” he said at a press conference at CNA headquarters. Unió’s differences with liberal party CDC regarding Catalonia’s push for independence caused the definitive separation of CiU after a 37-year alliance. “Now the party has its own voice” he emphasised. 

The Wine and Cava Fair celebrates its 35^th year at the feast of ‘La Mercè’, in Barcelona. From the 19^th to the 24^th of September, 81 wineries from all 12 of Catalonia’s wine and Cava regions will be represented. The fair is a way of demonstrating that Catalonia produces top-quality wines which successfully compete with other regions. It is also an interesting way of introducing new enthusiasts to wine culture. Wine and Cava will be sold by all the wineries at the fair, and there is a large area reserved for wine tasting. There is also the opportunity to sample other typical Catalan products, including a selection of the best local sausages and cheeses.

The Bank of Spain Govenror, Luis Maria Linde, corrected his previous statement and admitted that “freezing bank accounts” if Catalonia becomes an independent country is a very “improbable, almost impossible” situation. Linde’s clarification comes after his statements last week assuring that Catalonia would face a ‘corralito’ in the event of independence. He added this Wednesday that he wasn’t “that worried” about this possibility nor is “anybody else in Europe”. Following Linde’s warning, a group of six prestigious economists asked for the Governor’s resignation and recalled that Linde’s task should be “promoting financial stability” rather than “influencing thevoters’ decisions”.

Anti-Catalan nationalism Ciutadans (C’s) is the youngest party with representation in the Catalan parliament. Founded in 2006, their support has increased dramatically in every election and most of the polls forecast that they will be the second force in the upcoming 27-S elections. Their position regarding Catalonia’s independence is open opposition and they call for reform of the Spanish Constitution. “I’ll do everything in my hands to avoid Catalonia’s independence” assured C’s candidate Inés Arrimadas at a press conference held this Tuesday at CNA headquarters. “We don’t want to think of the reactions to a hypothetical victory of pro-independence forces. We want to beat them, we want to win the Catalan elections” she stated. According to Arrimadas, Ciutadans is the only party which understands the real problems of the citizens “and independence is not a priority for them”. “We focus on the services, not on the institutions” she added.  

During the second trimester of 2015, foreign investment in Catalonia grew by some 422%, reaching €1,302 million. “We have grown more than ever and we have become a point of reference in Europe” stated Catalan Minister for Business and Employment, Felip Puig. “These results show the world how diversified and solid our economy is” he added. During the first trimester this year, Catalonia was the leading region in Continental Western Europe in terms of investment, both in total amount of investments attracted and in the amount of jobs generated. This growth is much higher than the Spanish average; foreign investment in Spain in the second trimester of 2015 was only 73% higher than that recorded during the same period last year.