independence

The Catalan government has decided to recognise Muriel Casals, one of the Catalan pro-independence movement’s central figures, who died last Sunday, with the Gold Medal of the Generalitat. The award is the highest prize given to those individuals or institutions whose work in the political, social, economic, cultural or scientific field has been outstanding. President of the civil society association Òmnium Cultural between 2010 and 2015, Casals was responsible for the massive pro-independence rallies which have taken to the streets of Barcelona for the past six years. In 2015, she joined pro-independence cross-party list 'Junts Pel Sí' and ran for the 27-S Catalan Elections. Recently, she was named president of the Study Committee for the Constitutive Process, responsible for setting the basis for Catalonia's roadmap towards independence.

Pro-independence cross-party list 'Junts Pel Sí' MP Muriel Casals died this Sunday at the age of 70. Former president of civil society association Òmnium Cultural, Muriel was one of the greatest exponents of the pro-independence movement in Catalonia. Recently, she was named president of the Study Committee for the Constitutive Process, responsible for setting the basis for Catalonia's roadmap towards independence. Together with Carme Forcadell, Parliament's President and former president of pro-independence grassroots organisation Catalan National Assembly, Muriel was responsible for the massive pro-independence rallies which have taken to the streets of Barcelona for the past six years. Casals had been in hospital since the 30^th of January, after being hit by a bicycle in Barcelona. She failed to recover from a traumatic brain injury.

The current Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, announced that the processing of the three laws which would prepare Catalonia for its disconnection process from Spain may be taken before the court. According to Rajoy, Spain’s legal services will analyse these laws and if evidence that they “could contradict what it is said in the Constitution” is found “the Spanish government will act as is has done up to now”. “The government is temporary, but the State, the Constitution and the laws are still in force” he warned. Rajoy also announced that the executive will approve this Friday a conflict of jurisdiction to be presented to the Spanish Constitutional Court regarding the creation of the new Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs. 

If Catalonia proclaims its independence, the international community will in the end “accommodate itself to the new reality”, stated former Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jón Baldvin Hannibalsson. “Don’t be scared by scaremongering. In the end, all nations and all political leaders have to accommodate themselves to new realities” he assured in an interview with CNA. Although he predicted that proclaiming independence outside of the law will at first be considered “illegal” for the international community, “freezing Catalonia out forever” would be “nonsense”. Baldvin Hannibalsson recognised the Baltic States’ independence in 1991, when neither the United States nor the European powers dared to do so for fear of confronting the USSR.

New Catalan President Carles Puigdemont and the recently named Leader of the Opposition Inés Arrimadas held this Wednesday their first official meeting. At a press conference directly after the meeting, the Catalan government’s spokeswoman, Neus Munté, expressed her hope that the differences regarding the roadmap towards independence, which is “a priority of the new government”, won’t obstruct “the daily management” of the citizens’ needs. Arrimadas described the meeting as “cordial and full of constructive proposals” but lamented that Puigdemont wouldn’t make “any move” to reform Catalonia’s funding system, one of Ciutadans’ core proposals. “If the government renounces negotiation, we will do so in the Spanish Parliament” she stated. 

The main Catalan trade association for small and medium-sized companies, Pimec, has repeatedly shown its support for Catalonia’s right to decide its political future. However, in an interview with CNA this Thursday, Pimec’s president Josep González called for the Government to keep the pro-independence process “within the law”. “Let’s do things, but let’s do them right and with common sense”, he stated. González also urged the new executive to approve a new budget as soon as possible and fight against unemployment. The association head went on to celebrate the election of the new Catalan Minister for Business and Knowledge, Jordi Baiget, and defined him as “prudent, open-minded and educated”.

New Catalan President Carles Puigdemont called for “permanent dialogue”between the different parliamentary groups in the chamber, besides the agreement between pro-independence forces cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’and radical left CUP. During the first plenary session of the new Government, Puigdemont committed himself to putting Catalonia “on the verge of”independence within 18 months and doing it “with all the guarantees and without false moves”. The new Catalan President outlined two main objectives to be reached during this term of office. One is to maintain the services for all citizens in order to fight the consequences of the economic crisis and the other is to respond to the democratic mandate expressed in the 27-S Catalan Elections, which he defined as “clear and undeniable”. Puigdemont also explained the different departments of the new government, which he described as “renewed, reorganised and modern”.

One day after the new Catalan executive was constituted, the Spanish government has announced that the State Attorney will analyse the competences of the new Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs, as it may violate some of the Spanish government’s functions. “We will not allow any action which could be contrary to the Constitution or to the laws, whatever it may be” warned current Spanish Government Vice President Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría. This warning comes after the Spanish Government confirmed that a report will be written analysing the taking office ceremony of new Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, during which Puigdemont didn’t mention Spain’s King nor the Spanish Constitution.

Carles Puigdemont was invested as Catalan President number 130 with the absolute majority of the Catalan Parliament. A last-minute agreement between pro-independence forces cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ and radical left CUP allowed the new government to start working and finally unblock the deadlock over the investiture. Mas decided to step aside and named president of the Association of Municipalities for Independence and mayor of Girona, a city 100 km north of Barcelona, Carles Puigdemont as his successor. A member of former governing party liberal Convergència Democràtica de Catalunya, Puigdemont ran for cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ in Girona and has repeatedly expressed his commitment to Catalonia’s pro-independence roadmap. 

Association of Municipalities for Independence (AMI) president and mayor of Girona city Carles Puigdemont has been instated as Catalan President number 130 by an absolute majority of the Parliament. Puigdemont, a member of cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ proposed by current Catalan President Artur Mas, obtained 70 votes in favour, 63 against and 2 abstentions. The investiture debate took place this Sunday after a last-minute agreement between pro-independence forces ‘Junts Pel Sí’ and CUP and just before all the legal deadlines were due to expire and new elections would have had to been called in Catalonia.

Just when calling for new elections seemed to be unavoidable, cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ and radical left CUP have finally reached an agreement to resolve the presidency of the new Catalan government and launch the independence roadmap. Current Catalan President and ‘Junts Pel Sí’s number four, Artur Mas has decided to step aside and president of the Association of Municipalities for Independence (AMI) and mayor of Girona city, Carles Pugidemont, has been appointed as the candidate of consensus. In exchange, some of CUP’s MPs will resign in order to guarantee the stability of the new government. The investiture debate will take place on Sunday and a new President would have to be elected before midnight.

Left wing ERC leader and ‘Junts Pel Sí’ number five, Oriol Junqueras, considers it “irresponsible” to talk about elections and urged current governing party liberal CDC and radical left CUP “to be loyal to the country” and “try to find an agreement”. Junqueras noted the “sacrifices” that ERC has made in order to reach the present situation and urged the other pro-independence forces to “use up all the deadlines” as agreement “is still possible”. “Very complicated negotiations have been solved in a few days, even in a few minutes” he stated. According to ERC’s leader, an agreement is better than “a scenario full of uncertainties” which would be elections in March. 

Current Catalan President Artur Mas admitted to being ready to call for elections, but won’t do so until the 11^th of January, when the legal deadline expires. However, Mas insisted that cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ “can’t make any other offer” to radical left CUP since “the presidency of the Catalan Government is not a fish auction”. “Junts Pel Sí has moved on everything which mattered. CUP hasn’t moved on the only thing that wasn’t important: the ‘who’” he stated. “Our mistake was to trust in CUP’s sense of state” he assured and added that CUP “didn’t understand that to turn Catalonia into an independent state it is necessary to add and not to subtract, voting rather than vetoing”. According to Mas, accepting the conditions of those who “put the vetoes and the crosses” would be “the end of the pro-independence process.”

CUP’s ultimate veto against current Catalan President Artur Mas has forced its top member, Antonio Baños, to resign from his position as MP. “I couldn’t or I didn’t know how to fulfil the [27-S Catalan Elections’] mandate and therefore I quit” stated Baños in a letter published this Monday. The radical left pro-independence MP admitted to being “amongst those who supported ‘Junts Pel Sí’s proposal and was willing to invest its candidate” and therefore feels “unable to defend the majoritarian position” taken by CUP’s Political Board and Parliamentary Action Group on Sunday. According to Baños, the only goal of his political career was to make this term of office “that of the irreversible break with the Spanish State”. 

Current governing party liberal CDC commented on CUP’s ‘no’ to investing President Mas as President and accused the radical left party of being “immature” and “putting the revolution before independence”, according to CDC’s general coordinator, Josep Rull. “CUP hasn’t been able to make operative the majority of 72 pro-independence MPs” stated Rull and added that “by accepting CUP’s demands it will look like the minority of 10MPs out of 135 is leading the process”. Rull denied that cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’ would present an alternative candidate to Artur Mas. “We have moved because we wanted to be respectful of the 27-S democratic mandate” he emphasised “and they told us to reach agreements to make the roadmap possible”.