Torra to Sánchez: 'Your grace period is over'

The president of Catalonia, Quim Torra, insisted on Wednesday that the Spanish leader, Pedro Sánchez, must present a political proposal for solving the Catalan crisis as soon as possible.

Addressing Parliament, Torra said he and all the pro-independence leaders "will always appeal to dialogue," but warned that the "grace period" for Spanish president Pedro Sánchez "is over."

"We need an offer on the table now," Torra said. The Catalan president admitted that he "fears" that his meeting with Sánchez last summer was only "a photo opportunity" with no real consequences.

Meanwhile, the leader of the Socialists in Catalonia, Miquel Iceta, asked Torra to make use of the opportunity of "having a Spanish government willing to engage in dialogue." Iceta also suggested Torra present proposals to Madrid for "constitutional change" with the support "of at least two thirds" of the Catalan chamber.

"The best way forward is united"

In the plenary session, Torra insisted that Catalan pro-independence forces must stay "united" despite differences over the last few days, which saw them losing their majority in Parliament.

"The best way to react is with unity," he said, adding: "They should give up any hope to divide us, they won't divide us. We'll work until the end to defend democracy and defend those in prison and exile."

"At this time, the country needs us to recover the spirit we had during the October 1 referendum," Torra said, appealing to "defending" institutions, "disobeying" and "resisting" when needed.  

He admitted being "close" to the people on the streets that may be disappointed with the divisions seen amongst pro-independence parties in the last few days. "Let's go back to the spirits of October 1 and the political declaration of independence on October 27, together, and let's move forward," he insisted.

ERC: Divided we are "weaker"

The president of Esquerra (ERC) in Parliament, Sergi Sabrià, urged Torra to work with his allies to rebuild trust and "unity of action." Sabrià warned that when pro-independence parties prioritize "strategic dispersion" they become "weaker," and called to build "large consensus" in order to move forward.

Sabrià reminded Torra of his commitment, express in a meeting with vice president Pere Aragonès from ERC last week, to work united. "In front of all citizens, you put forward a united strategy. Let's go for it, we cannot wait another minute," he said.

 CUP: "Not with our support"

Torra's words, however, did not convince far-left pro-independence CUP, that criticized the Catalan President for speaking only "rhetorically." CUP MP Maria Sirvent said that her group was "ashamed" after pro-independence parties lost their majority in the chamber yesterday due to disagreements on how to proceed with the suspended MPs.  

Sirvent criticized the Government for not voting with them on resolutions about housing, public banks, and for allowing a text on the right to self-determination to be defeated because not all pro-independence MPs can be counted. "We wanted you by our side yesterday. We know the rhetoric very well…in practice, it means you comply with what the Spanish State wants, and you draft a budget that is not good for the working class. Not with our support, Mr President," she said.