There's No Going Back': Why Spain and Catalonia Are on Immediate Collision Course Over Independence

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Catalonia now stands on the brink of a historic election that will serve as a de-facto referendum on the Spanish region's independence. The electoral campaign begins today — somewhat fittingly on September 11, the National Day of Catalonia — and over 1 million independence supporters will gather on the streets on Barcelona.

On September 27, the region will take to the voting booths and if the separatist parties win an absolute majority many are predicting that they will begin preparation to secede unilaterally from Spain within 18 months.

Nominally, Catalonia will simply elect its third parliament in five years, but with the major pro-independence parties all campaigning under a joint secessionist banner and unionists obliged to campaign against this position, the election will function as a kind of mongrel independence referendum — only months before a general election is due.

The pro-independence faction sees the election as a unique opportunity to begin the emancipation of the Catalan people from the bullying, centralist Madrid government. Unionists see Catalan nationalism as a dangerous form of populism doomed to divide a region and cripple the economy. What both agree on, however, is that a unilateral declaration of independence would be a watershed moment in history, not only for Catalonia, but also Spain itself, Europe's fifth largest economy.

'The government is scared. They don't really understand what's going on here'
"It would be huge," said Alejandro Quiroga, a Spanish historian at Newcastle University in the UK. "It's never happened in the Western world that a country has unilaterally decided to quit in a peaceful manner and without any agreement with the other country. When we think about other referenda in Scotland or Quebec they were based on a previous agreement. But in the case of Spain there is no previous agreement."
'There's No Going Back': Why Spain and Catalonia Are on Immediate Collision Course Over Independence | VICE News

I doubt very seriously that there will be an independent Catalonia. Basque isn't getting it and it won't happen here.

 

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Catalonians already plannin' to secede from Spain...

Catalonian leaders would quickly secede if voters want independence
July 5, 2017 -- Catalonia's ruling coalition said it would quickly declare independence from Spain if a majority of voters support an Oct. 1 secession referendum.

The Together for Yes coalition and the Popular Unity Candidacy political party are leading efforts to hold the referendum in which citizens will face the question: "Do you want Catalonia to be an independent state in the form of a republic?" The pro-independence institutions held an event on Tuesday to promote the referendum. The ruling coalition described policies it would enact under a free Catalonia, such as a new hunting law that would "guarantee a safe, sustainable and territorially balanced activity" as well as a road safety effort seeking to eradicate transit fatalities by 2020. The ruling coalition also pitched apprenticeship work programs to combat unemployment.

Catalonia's ruling coalition -- made up of the Together for Yes coalition and the Popular Unity Candidacy political party -- said it would quickly declare independence from Spain if a majority of voters support an upcoming secession referendum.​

Carles Puigdemont, president of Generalitat of Catalonia, on Tuesday said the Oct. 1 referendum will be legally binding. About 7.5 million people live in the Catalonia region, which has its own language and makes up a fifth of Spain's economic output. The calls for autonomy and independence have intensified amid Spain's financial crisis. Barcelona, Catalonia's regional capital, has a population of about 1.6 million while Madrid, Spain's capital, has a population of about 3.1 million. "The attacks on the Catalan language do not stop, and they will not stop if we do not use our vote to change things. On Oct. 1 we will vote," Puigdemont said in a statement on Wednesday.

In November 2015, Parliament members in Catalonia voted in favor of a resolution that would have led to secession. Spain's Constitutional Court annulled the vote two weeks later. Officials in the Spanish government, led by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, have described the vote for Catalan independence as a coup d'etat disguised as a democratic process. Former Catalan President Artur Mas was banned from holding public office for two years after holding a 2014 referendum on secession.

Catalonian leaders would quickly secede if voters want independence

 

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Catalonia Officials 'won't follow orders from Madrid'...

Catalonia Spain: Officials 'won't follow orders from Madrid'
Mon, 23 Oct 2017 - The warning comes as the Spanish government moves to reassert control over the region's authorities.

Catalan authorities will not follow orders from the Spanish government if Madrid moves to reassert control over the region, a senior official says. A regional government spokesman told the BBC that the central government was acting against the will of Catalans. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has announced plans to sack the region's government and curtail some of the powers of its parliament. The Catalan parliament will meet on Thursday to decide on its response. The pro-independence leaders could decide to formalise a unilateral declaration of independence, the BBC's Bethany Bell in Barcelona reports. The Spanish Senate is expected to approve the government's measures on Friday along with a proposal for fresh regional elections.

How did we get here?

The Catalan government, led by President Carles Puigdemont, has refused to halt an independence drive following an outlawed referendum held earlier this month. On Saturday, Mr Rajoy said he was triggering Article 155 of the constitution - an unprecedented move - which allows for direct rule to be imposed in a crisis on any of the country's autonomous regions. But Catalan leaders say they will not accept the plan. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, foreign affairs spokesman Raul Romeva said: "How can the European Union live with that situation [if this happens]? "Because what I can tell you is that the people and the institutions in Catalonia will not let this happen." He said the Spanish government needed to recognise that the people of the region had voted for independence. The Catalan government said that of the 43% who took part in the 1 October referendum, 90% were in favour of independence. Unionist parties who won about 40% of the vote at the 2015 Catalan elections boycotted the ballot.

What happens next?

Apart from stripping Mr Puigdemont of all his powers, the central government will also seek to take control of Catalonia's police force and its public broadcaster, TV3, reports suggest. Mr Rajoy insisted the measures would not mean Catalan self-government itself was being suspended and that they were intended to remove the people who had taken illegal action. The country's Deputy Prime Minister, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, told Spanish radio Onda Cero (in Spanish) that Catalan leaders were "completely not in compliance with the constitution and the statute of autonomy". Once the Senate approves Article 155, Mr Puigdemont will stop receiving a salary and will not be able to carry out his functions, she added.

Pro-independence posters and graffiti in Barcelona​

Catalonia's far-left CUP party - a key support for Mr Puigdemont's minority government in the regional parliament - has warned of a campaign of "massive civil disobedience" if Madrid imposes direct rule on the region. Spanish media report that the Catalan leader is planning to present his arguments to a commission of the Spanish Senate on Wednesday, but this has yet to be confirmed. There have been calls by Mr Puigdemont's supporters to declare a snap election before direct rule becomes effective. The EU has refused to back the drive for Catalan independence and said the crisis was for Spain to resolve.

Catalans 'won't follow Madrid's orders'

See also:

Catalonia independence: Spain's unfathomably delicate task
Sun, 22 Oct 2017 - The prime minister has meandered through previous crises but that won't work now, says Tom Burridge.

Spain's prime minister rarely talks in such stark language. But his message to Catalonia's devolved government, which spearheads the pro-independence movement, was blunt. He said Madrid would remove its leaders and impose direct rule. Mariano Rajoy is conservative by party, and in his political style. He has meandered his way through other crises; a financial one for his country; a corruption scandal that tainted his party. His "keep calm and carry on" strategy worked each time. But Catalonia today is a completely different ball game. This Spanish region has enjoyed a high degree of autonomy since the 1980s - only the Basque Country has more. It's also important to note that in cultural terms, Catalonia is arguably the most distinct of Spain's regions.

The Catalan language is widely spoken and from the folkloric dance of Sardana to human towers, there is a long list of cultural traditions here, which enforce the sense of Catalan identity. And a large part of Catalan society will see Madrid's planned takeover as an affront to their whole way of life. The word among the pro-independence camp is that, in the coming weeks, peaceful direct action will be the order of the day. The Spanish government has outlined a clear strategy, couched within a legal framework. Advisers close to the prime minister emphasise that the decision to intervene was not taken lightly but they also argue that Mr Rajoy was left with no choice.

Competitions to build tall and elaborate human towers are a common sight at Catalan regional festivals​

At stake, they say, is Spain's entire system of governance; no other Western government would allow a regional administration to ride roughshod over its constitution and laws. Catalonia's independence, or a legitimate vote on the matter, has never been and never will be an option, they exclaim. But over the next days Mariano Rajoy's government faces an unfathomably delicate task. It must now reassert Madrid's authority in Catalonia. The practicalities of that won't be straightforward. Some within Catalonia's civil service will be die-hard supporters of independence. Others will simply hate the concept of Madrid being ultimately in charge. Catalonia's regional police force, Mossos, insists it remains impartial. "We are policemen, not politicians," Inspector Albert Oliva told me. But he admits that his force is in the middle of a "political hurricane." Over the coming weeks the loyalties of Catalan police will be tested to the absolute limit. Before we reach that point, the Spanish senate will have to approve Madrid's proposals. That could take days.

In the meantime, the soon-to-be-sacked Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont will try and convene the regional parliament, before it is stripped of powers. If that happens, he will probably make a more emphatic declaration of independence. The vast majority of Spaniards will, in turn, declare that meaningless. But every twist and turn from now will play into an already febrile political atmosphere. Every time I speak to a taxi driver or an old lady pushing her shopping trolley down the street, be it in Catalonia or in the neighbouring region of Aragon, people's views, on both sides, have hardened. To the naked eye of a tourist, Spain is a country at ease, a country of sun, sea, beautiful buildings and friendly people. Scratch below and there are deep political divisions. And in Catalonia the situation is becoming fractured beyond belief.

Spain faces delicate task over Catalan rule