Politics

Trade unions and the two associations of municipalities in Catalonia have issued a joint manifesto to protest against the Spanish Government’s Local Administration Reform. This reform recentralises powers and services, reducing the municipalities’ capacities and transferring resources to the Provincial Councils, political bodies associated to Spanish centralism and whose members are not directly-elected. The manifesto criticises the Spanish Government “for not having faced any significant reform of its heavy structure”, despite managing 53% of Spain’s public expenditure. The Spanish Government is also forcing the Autonomous Communities to reduce their services and structures.

The Spanish Minister for Justice allowed the legal procedure regarding the extradition to Argentina of two Franco torturers to continue. This decision occurred after a letter written by a group of MEPs, led by Catalan and Spanish representatives, had asked the Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy for the two men’s extradition. In their letter, the MEPs urged Spain to stop “hampering the progress of the Argentine justice”, which is currently investigating Franco crimes. Indeed a first unsuccessful request for the two men’s extradition had been made in 2010. Spanish High Court Judge Pablo Ruz is in charge of making the next move. For now, he has interrogated the two alleged torturers and confiscated their passports as a precautionary measure. However, there still are many steps to go before the extradition. In their letter to Rajoy, the MEPs had also demanded the repeal of the 1977 Spanish Amnesty Law which is used to prohibit Franco criminals from being prosecuted.

Barcelona’s High Court has decided to close the case since the leader of the People’s Party (PP) in Catalonia, Alícia Sánchez-Camacho, reached an extra-judiciary deal with the espionage agency Método 3. The agency had recorded a private conversation with the former girlfriend of the eldest son of Jordi Pujol, the historical leader of the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU). Parts of the alleged recorded conversation involving the Pujol family were leaked, as well as information about their own intimate lives and other PP leader’s private life. Speculations about who ordered the recording pointed towards the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC), CiU and even the PP or Sánchez-Camacho herself. Now one of the shadiest political scandals in Catalonia will end without any public conclusions. This contradicts Sánchez-Camacho’s initial statement, when the story was first made public. At the time, she had stated that she would go “until the end” to shed light on the issue.

The People’s Party (PP) – running the Spanish Government, the anti-Catalan nationalism party Ciutadans (C’s) and the Spanish-nationalist party UPyD – with no MPs in Catalonia – participated in a march to support the current Constitution and the unity of Spain. The demonstration was organised by the alliance ‘Som Catalunya, Somos España’ (We are Catalonia [in Catalan], we are Spain [in Spanish]), chaired by the former C’s MP José Domingo. It aimed to be a massive march, as an answer to the demonstrations in favour of Catalan independence that gathered around 1.5 million people each. It was also the second part of the demonstration organised for Spain’s National Day, almost two months ago. Back then, 30,000 people demonstrated for Spanish unity while this Friday there were 5,000 demonstrators according to Barcelona Local Police.

The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, said that he is “convinced” that parties will be able to agree on a “clear” question for the self-determination vote. Before the Catalan Parliament, Mas added he believes the question’s formulation will be supported by “a wide majority” of parties. He highlighted the need for a clear question, as in Scotland’s referendum, in order not to “allow different interpretations on the following day”.  Mas pledged the parties to reach a wide consensus on the exact question, date and legal way to organise the self-determination vote, because “a part of Catalonia’s strength lies here”. Parties supporting the organisation of such a vote have publicly stated they were committed to reach an agreement before the end of the year. Mas ratified this announcement last week.

The Spanish Executive has presented a 720-page report in which it proposes 120 measures “to eliminate duplications” and “improve the coordination” between government levels in order to “rationalise” and “increase the efficiency” of the public sector. However, the initiative proposes a true recentralisation of Spain, since almost all the measures point towards transferring powers and services back to the Spanish Government. The Catalan Executive and the non-Spanish-nationalist parties have announced a common front to stop “the pruning” of Catalonia’s self-government. Madrid’s document proposes the direct elimination of several institutions that are defined in the Catalan Statute of Autonomy, approved by citizens through a binding referendum. Furthermore, it cancels pending power devolutions, which had been planned for years but whose effective transfer has been constantly delayed.

The Catalan President explains in a new book how his determination to let the people of Catalonia decide their future in an independence referendum has affected his personal life. In a very human account, Mas admits he has become “a hated person in some parts of Spain, particularly Madrid”. The leader of Convergència i Unió also rejects in the book the idea of a unilateral declaration of independence, saying that the process should not be “rushed” into and that politicians should trust the people of Catalonia to hold a vote. “If we really believe in the project, it will go ahead”, he says.

The Public Diplomacy Council of Catalonia (DIPLOCAT) organized on Friday in Barcelona a conference on the Responsibility to Protect. This UN-backed principle claims that all countries have the responsibility to protect their citizens from human rights violations. The Executive Director of the World Federalist Movement-Institute for Global Policy, William Pace, argued that “the EU has in its DNA the responsibility to protect” and added that the attitude of the Catalan society is “also fundamental” in order to fight against “impunity for serious crimes”. The Secretary General of the DIPLOCAT, Albert Royo, said that “it is especially important” for Catalonia to “be able to explain which role it wants to play” in the international arena, now that is considering becoming an independent country.

The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, also replied to the message sent on Wednesday by the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, against an EU membership for Scotland and Catalonia if they were to become independent states. Mas “welcomed” Rajoy’s statements, as the Spanish PM indirectly “admits that Catalonia can become an [independent] state”. In addition, Mas stated that Catalans are becoming “less sensitive” to “the threats” of the Spanish Government. Furthermore, Alex Salmond, First Minister of the Scottish Executive, highlighted that Scotland “is a European nation”, which “will be welcomed” within the EU if it becomes an independent state. In addition, Salmond urged the British Government to formally ask the European Commission to start a legal analysis on Scotland’s EU membership. However, despite the road map towards independence has already been clarified, Londond rejects asking Brussels about it.

The Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy sent a message to Scotland and Catalonia, stating that if they were to become independent they would be excluded from the European Union and would have to re-apply for membership. The statement sounded like a threat, particularly when he added that “this is not simple”, since “it requires becoming an [independent] state, re-applying for membership and unanimity” from the 28 current Member States, suggesting a possible veto from Madrid. Rajoy made this statement next to the French President François Hollande, who was on a state visit to Spain. However, Hollande did not explicitly support Rajoy: he said that this was an “internal matter” for Spain and refused to make further comments. The Scottish Government replied that Rajoy “has not read” its White Paper on Scotland’s independence, which totally rejects being kicked out of the EU.

The Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, has confirmed that “in theory” the Spanish Government will implement a tax on bank deposits in 2014 – taxing the global amount of deposits and not individual ones. The revenue from this tax will be transferred to the Autonomous Communities. Furthermore, Rajoy stated that he “is studying” the question of compensating the Catalan Government financially for not having allowed them to implement such a tax in 2013. Catalonia approved a tax on bank deposits for 2013 in December 2012, aiming to collect €500 million per year. However the Spanish Executive approved its own tax a few days later, but at a 0% rate, de facto cancelling Catalonia’s. Despite the fact that Madrid has been compensating Andalusia, Extremadura and the Canaries for the same tax, it refused to compensate the Catalan Government.

The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, replied that “nobody believes” in the “apocalyptic” message sent by the Governor of the Bank of Spain, who was appointed by the current Spanish Government in 2012. Mas asked Luís María Linde for “caution” and “to serve the whole of Spain and do not take sides”. Linde stated in Madrid that “independence is unviable”. He argued that the European Central Bank only funds Member States and thus Catalonia would be “obliged to issue its own currency” and have “its own banking supervisor”. On the same day, the Spanish Finance Minister, Cristóbal Montoro, said that if Catalonia were independent it would have “to abandon the Euro” and this could even lead to putting the entire Eurozone at risk. However, in September the European Commission confirmed that an independent Catalonia could continue to use the Euro in different scenarios.

Thousands of people – 12,000 according to Barcelona’s local police and 200,000 according to the organisers – demonstrated on Sunday in the streets of Barcelona to protest against the Spanish and Catalan Governments’ austerity measures and “antisocial” budgets. Led by the platform ‘Prou Retallades’ (“Stop Budget Cuts”) , the UGT and CCOO trade-unions, as well as political parties and associations, citizens voiced their disapproval of the new pension reform, working fragility and the latest austerity measures. They also specifically protested against the Catalan and Spanish Governments’ budgets for 2014, which they consider “antisocial”. The demonstration organisers criticised the “blind obedience” of the Catalan and Spanish Executives to the European Commission and the Troika.

According to a poll from the Catalan Centre for Polling (CEO), 54.7% of Catalans would vote “yes” to independence while 22.1% would vote “no” and 15.7% are undecided. The poll shows similar percentages than the other polls issued in the last few months from several different institutions and companies. However, the poll indicates that for the first time, independence is the clear preferred alternative among possible formulas for the relationship between Catalonia and Spain. Independence would be the preferred scenario for 48.5% of Catalans, while those in favour of a federal Spain with Catalonia having greater powers represent 21.3% of the interviewees. Finally, the Catalans that prefer maintaining the current status quo amount to 18.6%.

Experts from academia and Catalan and Andalusian civil society held a debate on the right to self-determination in the University of Seville. This Friday, the Public Diplomacy Council of Catalonia (Diplocat), in cooperation with Seville’s Law Faculty, organised two round tables on the democratic and legal implications of a self-determination vote in Catalonia and the role played by civil society. Diplocat is the Catalan soft diplomacy network supported by the main public institutions, business associations and chambers of commerce. Diplocat’s Secretary General, Albert Royo, pointed out that 80% of Catalans would like to hold a self-determination vote and for this reason the soft diplomacy network organises events such as the one in Seville, in order to involve the Spanish society in the debate. Antonio Merchán, Dean of the Law Faculty, highlighted the importance “to talk” about it.