Highlights

The Barcelona Metro is on strike today, Monday, which means that service is reduced to a minimum between 7 and 9 am, 4 and 6 pm, and from 8:30 to 10:30 pm. The Barcelona Metro strike began this morning after the negotiation of the collective bargaining agreement between the unions and the Metro board. The first visible signs of the conflict were the crowds on the metro platforms and in the metro trains, which increased from 7 o’clock on. The strike had previously been announced and the passengers who had heard about it had advanced their travel schedule to prevent delays.

FC Barcelona left it as late as they possibly could but it was worth every gruelling second as Leo Messi popped up deep into injury time to seal an epic 3-2 Clásico victory to move level on points with Real Madrid at the top of the table. Ahead of the game, Luis Enrique described it as “a final” for his men, and the scenes after Messi’s strike resembled a trophy-winning moment. The team dug deep to breathe new life and optimism into the title race in the most dramatic of fashions. There was a never-say-die attitude from Barça, as they first came from behind to go ahead in the second half, before a late Madrid leveller looked like the points had been taken away from them, but Messi, as ever, appeared at the crucial moment to earn a priceless win.

London’s Borough Market hosted the celebration of Sant Jordi’s Day in the British capital. Like all over Catalonia, stalls selling books and roses colored one of the most iconic spots in the city, complete with Catalan food tasting, storytelling, traditional human towers (Castellers) and a mix of both Catalan and English folklore. The Delegation of the Catalan Government to the UK and Ireland, together with the Catalan community in the UK, the Tourism Office, and Institut Ramon Llull London, which promotes Catalan culture and literature, also took part in the celebrations and had their own stalls at the market. 

Catalonia’s Patron Saint Day, on the 23rd of April, gathers together love and literature in one of the Catalans’ most beloved traditions. It is the Catalan equivalent to Sant Valentin’s Day and, originally, lovers exchanged books and roses to show their love. However, this tradition has been progressively adopted by friends, relatives, workmates and is also welcome amongst those amazed visitors which experience Sant Jordi for the first time and join the celebration. Nearly 6 million roses and 1.6 million books are expected to be sold on the 23rd of April and in Barcelona alone, there will be nearly 5,000 stalls dedicated to Sant Jordi. Moreover, Sant Jordi is becoming more global each year and in 2017 50 countries worldwide will join the celebration and complement it on their own way. Thus, is not surprising that the Catalan Government has approved Sat Jordi’s candidature as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO.

The entire Executive, led by Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, and Catalan VP, Oriol Junqueras, reiterated its commitment to “organize, call, and celebrate” a referendum on Catalonia’s independence and apply its results, despite Spain’s “threats and attempts to limit Catalonia’s self-government,” said Puigdemont. In a symbolic event held in the iconic ‘Pati dels Tarongers’ courtyard, at the Catalan Government headquarters, the executive aimed to send a clear message of unity regarding its determination to fulfill the democratic mandate of the 2015 27-S Catalan elections, which led to a pro-independence majority in the Parliament. The celebration of a referendum is one of the Parliament's main goals.

One of Catalonia’s most beloved festivals, Sant Jordi, will be celebrated in a record 50 countries worldwide this year. Although Catalonia’s Patron Saint Day is on the 23^rd of April, there are activities related to books and roses—the main protagonists of the day—scheduled over the course of a few weeks in New York, Bogotá, London, Melbourne, Johannesburg, and many others. The Delegations of the Catalan Government abroad play a key role in exporting Sant Jordi around the world. Also active is the Institut Ramon Llull (IRL), which is a public institution in charge of promoting Catalan culture and language, and the University Network of Catalan Studies Abroad. Thus, exhibitions, public readings, stalls selling books and roses, and elements of Catalan culture, such as traditional human towers (Castellers), will deliver the spirit of Sant Jordi all over the globe.

All the members of the Catalan Government, led by Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, and Catalan VP, Oriol Junqueras, will attend an official event on Friday to reiterate their commitment to calling a referendum. The initiative also aims to spread a message of unity among the pro-independence political parties which form the governing coalition, Junts Pel Sí. Indeed, in the last few weeks, some discrepancies between the Catalan Democratic Party (PDeCAT) and the Catalan Republican Left (ERC) regarding how to carry out Catalonia’s pro-independence roadmap have been used by the main opposition parties to question the Government’s stability and its commitment toward the referendum.

FC Barcelona said farewell to the Champions League on Wednesday night at the quarter-final stage, with Luis Enrique’s men simply unable to break down a resilient Juventus> backline in a 0-0 stalemate at the Camp Nou  (0-3 aggregate). The game began with the frenetic intensity envisaged, but without the early chances, or goal, seen in the comeback against  PSG last month. A blazed strike over the bar from each side, first from  Gonzalo Higuain and then from Ivan Rakitic were about as close as either came to goal inside the first quarter of an hour.

Catalonia’s patron saint, Sant Jordi, celebrates love and literature and joins together books and roses in one of Catalans' most beloved traditions. This year, the 23^rd of April is on a Sunday and therefore wholesalers expect rose sales to flourish the whole weekend, starting on Friday and lasting until Monday. This will allow them to maintain the same sales levels as last year's and reach the figure of 6 million roses. ‘Freedom’ is expected to be the best-selling variety of rose, distributed in more ecological and original wrappings, reducing the use of cellophane. Although some customers may go away for the weekend, florists expect sales to be compensated by the number of visitors to the city, which will exceptionally open its shops on Sunday.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Catalonia, created in March by MPs and Peers from all the political parties, held its first debate on Wednesday. Under the title ‘A Democratic Solution for Catalonia’, the event featured eight speakers, including SNP MP George Kerevan, who is one of the main promoters of the APPG, Plaid Cymru MP Hywel Williams, the Daily Mirror’s Political editor, Jason Beattie, and former Consul for Great Britain in Barcelona, Geoff Cowling, among others. “There is only one democratic solution and it is to let the people vote,” said Kerevan and warned that stopping them “is not the European way”. He also criticized the Spanish Government's decision to ban democratically-elected Catalan political representatives from public office. More than 150 people attended the event, hosted at Atlee Suit, at the British Parliament.

Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital, in Badalona, has operated a larynx cancer using Da Vinci robot. This pioneering technology, which was never been used in the Spanish State before, allows to extract the whole larynx through the mouth, without incisions. According to the hospital, this robotic surgery “is less aggressive for the patient and it guarantees a higher security and a quicker recovery”. Morever, the levels of blood waste and the recovery period are significantly reduced, as well as the possibilities of suffering from complications derivated from the operation. This intervention is part of a specific program of head and throat’s robotic surgery promoted by Germans Trias i Pujol.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Catalonia, created at Westminster this past March, will hold its first official event this Wednesday. After being inaugurated by Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raül Romeva, on the 14th of March, the APPG will debate ‘A democratic solution for Catalonia’, with the aim of discussing both the right to discuss self-determination in the Catalan Parliament and the Spanish judiciary cases against democratically-elected Catalan officials. SNP MP George Kerevan, who chairs the group, will take part in the debate, together with Plaid Cymru MP, Hywel Williams, Former Consul General in Barcelona for Great Britain, Geoff Cowling, Daily Mirror´s Head of Politics, Jason Beattie, and former Catalan government official and Lecturer in Sociolinguistics, Michael Strubell, among others.

The Catalan Government believes that the communiqué published by the US Embassy in Spain in relation to Catalonia was “a request of the Spanish Government motivated by the success of Puigdemont’s recent meetings with US representatives”. Puigdemont’s agenda in the US included a private meeting with former US President, Jimmy Carter, after which the institution said in a memo that “neither he nor The Carter Center could be involved” in the negotiations for the referendum. The Catalan executive told the CNA that the US Embassy's statement, published only in Spanish, which described Catalonia’s push for independence as an internal matter of Spain, “shows that the Catalan question is part of the political and diplomatic agenda and therefore is not an internal matter”.

Catalan VP, Oriol Junqueras, insisted this Wednesday on the pro-independence parties’ commitment to calling a referendum this September. He underscored the unity within the group despite the fact that some representatives from the main parties within the governing Junts Pel Sí coalition had expressed differing positions regarding how the referendum should be carried out.  While pro-independence left-wing ERC’s Marta Rovira announced that a task force of unemployed persons could be organized to carry out referendum-related tasks, the Catalan Government’s Spokeswoman, Neus Munté, said this was a decision that “is not part of the Government’s plans”. “We are all committed to the referendum and we are going to do it together,” said Junqueras, playing down the disagreement.

Catalonia’s Medical Emergency Plan aims to guarantee that the citizens use the best available resources regarding medical care emergencies. Thus, the plan foresees launching five new Centers for Medical Emergencies, enhancing the 016 medical helpline— including a pediatric division as well as another for mental health problems, as well as promoting home hospitalization and creating new teams to assist chronic patients in fragile condition. According to the Catalan Department for Health, all these measures will reduce the waiting time for emergencies to a maximum of 24 hours within 4 years. Next year, the number of patients who spend more than a day waiting to be admitted will be reduced by 10%.