Two historic European football teams, Benfica and Barça, will face off on Tuesday evening (20.45 CET) at the Da Luz Stadium for the second match of the Champions League group stage. On Sunday, FC Barcelona will play the domestic classico against Real Madrid at the Spanish League, in which the Catalans are 8 points ahead the All-whites.
The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, signed the dissolution of the Catalan Parliament calling for early elections on Monday. He stated that Catalans have “to vote without fear”, referring to Spain’s threats to veto Catalonia’s access to the EU or even with a military intervention. Mas sent a warning to Spain: “act as a mature and sensible state” and “watch out” as the world is looking. Furthermore, Mas guaranteed that Catalonia’s self-determination will be “a totally democratic and peaceful process”. Besides, European Commission’s Vice President Reding stated that Catalonia’s independence from Spain does not mean its exclusion from the EU. “International legislation does not say” that Catalonia would be excluded, she said in an interview with a newspaper from Seville.
Two goals in the last five minutes gave Barça the points in Seville in a thrilling match that saw them fight back from a 2-0 deficit and extend Barça’s unbeaten Spanish League start to six games.
Barça will play with Sevilla, Benfica and Real Madrid. At the Sánchez Pizjuán, Barça will play the first of three vital matches in which they could equal or even beat their best ever start to a Spanish League campaign, and also get their second win in the Champions League.
A miraculous goal from the midfielder with just minutes to go, followed by an own goal, gave Barça the win in a gripping climax to a game against a surprisingly daring Granada. As Barça made it five wins out of five, Valdés made a crucial save just seconds before Barça opened the scoring at the other end.
In the middle of the political storm referring to the relations between Catalonia and Spain, the Spanish Government announced an education reform that recentralises the school curriculum and evaluation system. The Catalan Education Ministry qualified the reform as a “total recentralisation” and a “total attack” against Catalonia’s Statute of Autonomy. In the reform, the Spanish Government would impose 65% of the school curriculum and would run evaluations at the end of school and high school.
The Catalan President states that, “if the Constitution is always interpreted from a centralist point of view”, “Catalonia will have to quietly and democratically reflect on its own future” as “no legal framework can be eternally used to annul the majority, democratic, and peaceful will of a people”. The Catalan President, Artur Mas, and the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, met in Madrid 9 days after the 1.5 million strong demonstration for Catalonia’s independence. Rajoy categorically refused to negotiate a specific fiscal agreement between Catalonia and Spain because he said it does not fit into the Constitution. No one from the Spanish Government addressed the press after the meeting.
As part of the strategy to create state structures and to get a new fiscal agreement between Catalonia and Spain, the Catalan Government and the four Provincial Councils, all run by the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU), have created the embryo of Catalonia’s Treasury. They will merge exiting structures, in terms of facilities, staff and resources, to create a single body to collect all taxes at local and Catalan level at no extra cost. The pillar for the future Catalan Treasury’s formal birth ceremony comes the day before the crucial meeting between Catalonia’s President, Artur Mas, and the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy. Rajoy has already said he will not accept a specific fiscal agreement for Catalonia.
Barça, who have a 100% record in this season’s Spanish League, will debut in the 2012/13 Champions League against Spartak Moscow at the Camp Nou (20.45 CET). Alexis Sánchez, who hasn’t been declared fit to play, was named by Tito Vilanova to the team.
In a very unusual movement, Juan Carlos I has issued a short but clear letter one week after the massive demonstration for Catalonia’s independence. The King emphasised the need to remain “united” and asked the people to retake the “values” of the “Democratic Transition”, such as “dialogue” and “the sacrifice of particular interests for the general good”. The Catalan Government does not feel “concerned” by the King’s letter. However, it states that Catalonia “offers solutions” and “does not chase pipe dreams”. Spanish nationalists celebrate the King’s words while PM Mariano Rajoy still remains silent. Catalan and Basque nationalists criticise the King for taking sides and not emphasising values such as “pluralism, diversity, tolerance, and respect for discrepancies”.
The Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) is against independence but supports claims for greater self-government and fiscal autonomy for Catalonia. The PSC’s Secretary General, Pere Navarro, proposes a “preferential bilateral relationship” between Catalonia and the Spanish Government, within an “asymmetrical” federal Spain. However, the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE), which is formed by federated territorial parties such as the PSC, seems to evade the question, at least for the time being. The PSOE’s Secretary General visited Catalonia for the first time after the 1.5 million strong demonstration for independence and did not mention the word “federalism” a single time.
The renovation work in Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Tarragona have revealed tens of polychromes on the walls of this temple of transition from Romanesque to Gothic. The grey painting layer that covered the walls of the building concealed these polychromes which date from the 14th to the 16th centuries. The Medieval artworks were mostly painted in shades of red and green. This is the fourth phase of the renovation work that started in 2010 and have cost €3 million, funded by the Spanish Ministry of Culture.
Barça brushed off any effects of a busy week of international games with a convincing 1-4 win at the always tricky Getafe with goals from Adriano, Messi (2) and Villa. Real Madrid lost against Sevilla and Barça are now 8 points ahead.
The Autonomous Communities are responsible for 18.7% of Spain’s global public debt, while they manage around 40% of the country’s public spending. The Spanish Government’s share represents 76.8% of Spain’s global debt, which reached €804.39 billion at the end of June. Spain’s debt is now 75.9% of the GDP. The Catalan Government has a debt of €43.95 billion. The day before, the Spanish Finance Minister announced that the Catalan Government had a 0.59% deficit for the first half of 2012. Furthermore, Catalonia suffers from a structural fiscal deficit due to Spain’s fiscal redistribution scheme, which annually takes away 8.5% of its GDP, a €17 billion annual solidarity contribution.
Three days after the 1.5 million strong demonstration for Catalonia’s independence, partially fuelled by the Spanish nationalism’s recentralisation attempts and the lack of respect to Catalonia’s self-government, language and culture, the Spanish Government is about to approve a reduction in Catalonia’s share in the definition of the school curriculum. Furthermore, the Spanish Education Minister wants to establish “homogenous evaluations” throughout Spain, although the Catalan Government exclusively manages such evaluations, as well as the school facilities and staff.