Barcelona: The world’s attention may be riveted on Scotland and its secessionist drive, but last Thursday was Catalonia’s turn, as hundreds of thousands of flag-waving citizens rallied in the streets in what Catalan leaders hoped would be the prelude to the region’s own vote on independence from Spain.
In central Barcelona, Catalans formed a giant V — for vote and victory — by filling two of the city’s main avenues and draping themselves in the red-and-yellow colours of the Catalan flag. The demonstration coincided with Catalonia’s National Day, but it had all the feeling of a pre-independence celebration.
As Scotland’s push for independence enters its homestretch before a referendum September 18 on whether to break from the United Kingdom, Catalonia’s secessionist drive, too, has reached a critical phase with its own vote approaching November 9. The outcome is likely to be influenced by what the Scots decide.
But unlike in Scotland, where British leaders have belatedly tried to persuade Scots not to leave while not threatening to block the vote, Catalonia’s secessionist drive is veering dangerously toward a constitutional crisis.
The mass rally on Thursday came as Artur Mas, the president of the regional government, insisted that Catalonia — Spain’s economic powerhouse — would go ahead as planned, despite opposition from the central government in Madrid.
Later this month, Catalonia’s regional Parliament is set to give the go-ahead for the vote. That green light is expected to be struck down by Spain’s constitutional court, however, and Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of Spain has repeatedly warned that any such vote would violate Spain’s constitution.
Mas would then face the difficult choice of going ahead with an illegal vote or of delaying the vote to allow for further negotiations with Rajoy. He could also call early elections in Catalonia — with the risk that more hard-line secessionist politicians would win and oust him and his Convergence party from power.
Mas is already struggling with a major fraud scandal centering on Jordi Pujol, the patriarch of Catalan politics, who founded the Convergence party and ran the regional government for 23 years.
In July, Pujol admitted committing tax fraud by hiding money offshore. He has since delayed appearing before lawmakers, but at least three of Pujol’s adult children are also under investigation on suspicion of financial crimes ranging from money laundering to bribery. One of them is expected to appear before Spain’s national court on Monday.
Rajoy, however, is in an increasingly difficult situation, too. Scotland is now “causing headaches in Madrid,” particularly since the British government recently offered concessions to sway Scotland’s voters, according to Antonio Roldan, an analyst at the Eurasia Group, a think tank in London.
“London is offering major devolution of powers to the Scots to incentivise them to remain part of the union, further complicating Rajoy’s tougher, non-cooperative strategy,” he said.
Still, Rajoy also has concerns over whether concessions to Catalonia would trigger similar demands from other regions, led by the Basque Country, which has only recently emerged from decades of separatist violence.
Catalonia’s 7.5 million people represent about 16 per cent of the Spanish population and account for 19 per cent of Spain’s gross domestic product. The Basque region, with 2.2 million people, is Spain’s richest region per capita, accounting for 6 per cent of GDP.
“We’re fed up with being told that we’re in a democracy but can’t even give our opinion,” said Montse Bosch, a kindergarten teacher who travelled from Vilafranca del Penedes, about 30 miles from Barcelona.
Bosch warned that Madrid’s refusal to allow a November vote risked sparking “civil disobedience.” Still, she said that Thursday’s peaceful demonstration showed the secessionist push was not driven by extremists: “We’ve got nothing against Spain, but just want it as our friendly neighbour,” she said.
Rajoy and Mas have been at loggerheads for two years, after Rajoy refused to give Catalonia a more favourable fiscal treatment, but the two met last July in what Mas described as “a climate of open dialogue.”
On Thursday, Mas said in a speech that he regretted Rajoy’s stonewalling, but “we’re ready to vote on November 9.” The “V” demonstration, Mas said, was not an act of provocation by Catalans toward the Spanish state but proof that “we want to vote, we are a nation and we want to decide our political future.”
Some demonstrators said that the Catalan government had lost much of its credibility because of its links to Pujol, whom Mas succeeded as party leader. The Pujol scandal “is a negative for sovereignty, but all it really shows is that politicians have been corrupt everywhere,” said Josep Maria Bru Vea, a firefighter who attended the demonstration along with his family.
Antonio Lopez, a pensioner, was among many people wearing the official “V” T-shirt of the demonstration, with the slogan, “Now is the Time.” He said the T-shirt cost 15 euros, but he had given 20 euros because “this is a good cause.”
Lopez, however, admitted that the time might still be some years away, given Madrid’s veto. “I don’t think that I will get to see an independent Catalonia, but I’m also here to make sure that at least my grandchildren get to enjoy it.”
