Head of Catalonia’s delegation to UK explains independence process at Westminster
The Scottish National Party (SNP) MP, George Kerevan, invited the delegate of the Catalan Government to the UK and Ireland, Sergi Marcén, to explain Catalonia’s current situation to a group of British MPs. The meeting, which took place on Tuesday at Westminster, aimed at giving information to the MPs regarding the independence debate going on in Catalonia and, mainly, the Catalan Government’s wish to hold a referendum on independence. “We did not tell them about [Catalonia’s] independence, but about the referendum process”, Marcén explained in an interview with the Catalan News Agency. According to Marcén, “the democratic tradition” of the UK is “so powerful” that the “most surprising” thing for British MPs is “the lack of a negotiating table” with Spain to “reach an agreement and hold a referendum”.
London (CNA).- The delegate of the Catalan Government to the UK and Ireland, Sergi Marcén, was invited by the Scottish National Party (SNP) MP, George Kerevan, to explain the current situation of Catalonia to a group of British MPs. “We gave them information”, explained Marcén to the Catalan News Agency. “We did not tell them about [Catalonia’s] independence, but about the referendum process”, he added. According to Marcén, British MPs understand what is happening in Catalonia, but “they lack information”. What surprises them the most, he stated, is “the lack of a negotiating table” with the Spanish Government “to reach an agreement and hold a referendum”, he added.
During the session, which took place on Tuesday in one of the committee rooms of the UK Parliament, Marcén explained to MPs “what is happening with the Parliament’s President”, Carme Forcadell. The representative is facing criminal liability for allegedly disobeying Spanish Constitutional Court (TC) rulings and allowing the pro-independence roadmap to be put to vote on the 27th of July. Furthermore, Marcén also explained the “resistance from Spain to allow Catalans to vote”. “What we did was give them information”, stressed Marcén.
“We did not talk about independence, but about a referendum process”, he clarified. “We told them we want to hold referendum to see what future citizens want for Catalonia”, he continued, adding that if the referendum result was “an overwhelming yes” to independence, the Government would “activate everything the Parliament requests”.
According to Marcén, “the democratic tradition” of Britain is “so powerful” that the “most surprising” thing for the MPs in Westminster is “the lack of a negotiating table” with Spain to “reach an agreement and hold a referendum”. “The government of Catalonia is a fully democratic government”, he said. “We are received with open doors in all the democracies of the world we visit”, Marcén added. The delegate stressed that the Catalan Government is “open to talking with everyone, as and when it is necessary, until the very last minute to reach agreements”.
The relationship with the SNP
The meeting on Tuesday was at the request of the SNP MP, George Kerevan. Marcén described the relationship between the delegation of the Catalan Government to UK and Ireland and the Scottish National Party as “very good” and predicted that “it will be even better in the future”. In this sense, he stated that the SNP MPs “understand” what the Catalan Government is doing and “certainly support the fact that there is a government that wants to give voice to the citizens of Catalonia”.