Catalonia

Protest In Streets As Spanish PM Moves To Dismiss Catalan Leaders

October 23, 2017 Patrick Grafton-Green, www.standard.co.uk Resist! Catalonia, Independence, Protests, Spain

By Patrick Grafton-Green for Evening Standrad - Thousands of protesters flooded the streets of Barcelona as the Spanish Prime Minister moved to sack Catalan leaders following weeks of heightened tensions in the region. Using previously untapped constitutional powers, PM Mariano Rajoy wants the Spanish government to install its own people in their place and call a new local election. It follows the independence referendum that went ahead despite being banned by Spain's Constitutional Court. Mr Rajoy took the unprecedented move after an extraordinary cabinet meeting on Saturday, saying the central government needs to "restore order" in the face of a secession effort backed by the regional government. He is proposing that the powers of Catalan officials be taken over by central government ministers. Catalan President Carles Puigdemont swiftly dismissed this, describing it as the worst attack on Catalonia's institutions since the Franco dictatorship.

Catalans Are Protesting Against Banks That Have Moved Their HQ

October 21, 2017 James Bissell, www.thenational.scot Resist! Banks, Catalonia, Protests

By James Bissell for The Nation - Bank customers in Catalonia are withdrawing symbolic amounts of money from financial institutions that have moved their official headquarters to other locations in Spain amid a political crisis over the region's independence bid. Pro-independence umbrella group Crida Democracia called on consumers late on Thursday to put pressure on banks that made the decision. By Friday morning, dozens of people were lining up at a CaixaBank branch in central Barcelona, most of them withdrawing 150 or 160 euros from ATMs. The amounts were closest to 155, in reference to the Spanish constitutional article with which the central government plans to revoke some of Catalonia's autonomous powers to prevent regional politicians from pushing ahead with secession. CaixaBank and Banco Sabadell, the largest Catalan lenders, are among hundreds of financial institutions and businesses that have moved their official registration out of Catalonia. "These banks are traitors," said Oriol Mauri, 35, owner of a children's game business in central Barcelona. "They need to see that it's lots of us who are angry." Mauri, who withdrew 150 euros because the ATM would not allow him to take out 155, said he was not worried about businesses fleeing Catalonia. "I'm not afraid of economic repercussions," he said. "Our power as consumers is perhaps the only way to influence and have our voice heard in Europe."

Pro-Independence Grass-Root Leaders Sent To Prison On Sedition Charges

October 17, 2017 ACN, www.catalannews.com Educate! Catalonia, Independence, Nationalism, Spain

By ACN for Catalan News - The leaders of two of the main pro-independence civil society organizations have been sent to prison without bail on sedition charges. A Spanish judge decided to imprison Jordi Sànchez, president of the Catalan National Assembly (ANC), and Jordi Cuixart, president of Òmnium Cultural, for their role in the October 1 referendum. Both of them will already sleep in jail tonight. The same judge also decided to release without passport the chief of the Catalan police, Josep-Lluís Trapero, accused of not having done enough to stop voters from participating in the independence referendum. The initial investigation against Trapero, Sánchez and Cuixart focused on demonstrations on September 20 and 21, when fourteen high-ranking officials of the Catalan government were arrested and people protested massively, and peacefully, in the streets. But the case was extended to also include events during the October 1 referendum and the alleged “flagrant inaction” of Catalonia’s police corps, the Mossos d’Esquadra, to stop the vote. Sánchez and Cuixart lead two of the biggest pro-independence organizations in Catalonia, responsible for organizing the massive pro-Yes demonstrations of the last few years. The prosecutor argues that they mobilized people on referendum day, asking citizens to protest in front of polling stations, thus impeding police officers from closing them down.

Podemos’ Alternative For Catalonia

October 9, 2017 Eoghan Gilmartin, www.jacobinmag.com Educate! Catalonia, Nationalism, Podemos

By Eoghan Gilmartin for Jacobin Magazine - The stakes were increased when Regional Premier Carles Puigdemont told the BBC that Catalonia would unilaterally declare independence within “in a matter of days.” This was followed by a judgement from the Constitutional Court in Madrid suspending Monday’s session of the Catalan parliament. Radical independence party the CUP responded by demanding a session be held in defiance of the ban. However, with major corporations and banks threatening to move their legal headquarters outside the region, the conservative Puigdemont now seems less certain. Any move towards a declaration would most likely result in Mariano Rajoy’s right-wing government suspending Catalonia’s autonomy. Amidst an increasingly-polarized climate, international press coverage has tended to overlook the position of En Comú Podem, the political alliance which has won the last two general elections in Catalonia. This grouping comprising Ada Colau’s Catalonia En Comú and Unidos Podemos has tried to carve out a middle road in the current confrontation. It recognizes last Sunday’s vote as a legitimate political mobilization but doesn’t view it as a valid referendum. It also defends Catalonia’s right to decide but favors a plurinational, federal Spain.

Thousands Rally In Barcelona Against Catalonia Secession

October 9, 2017 Joseph Wilson, www.AP.org Resist! Autonomy, Barcelona, Catalonia, Nationalism

By Joseph Wilson for AP - BARCELONA, Spain — Thousands of people were rallying Sunday in downtown Barcelona to protest the Catalan government’s push for secession from the rest of Spain. Many in the crowd gathered in a central square carried Spanish and Catalan flags. Some chanted “Don’t be fooled, Catalonia is Spain” and called for Catalan president Carles Puigdemont to go to prison. Sunday’s rally comes a week after Puigdemont and other separatist leaders of the Catalan government held a referendum on secession that Spain’s top court had suspended and the Spanish government said was illegal. The “Yes” side won the referendum with 90 percent of the vote, though less than half of the region’s electorate voted. Puigdemont has pledged to push ahead for independence anyway and is set to address the regional parliament on Tuesday “to report on the current political situation.” Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy vows that his government will not allow Catalonia to break away from the rest of the country. In an interview with the Spanish newspaper El Pais published Sunday, Rajoy said that he will consider employing any measure “allowed by the law” to stop the region’s separatists. Rajoy said that includes the application of Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution, which would allow the central government to take control of the governance of a region “if the regional government does not comply with the obligations of the Constitution.”

Catalan Referendum: Attacks On Journalists, Biased Coverage

October 5, 2017 Staff, www.rsf.org Educate! Catalonia, Corporate Media, Journalism, Propaganda

By Staff of RSF - Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is appalled that media personnel were among the victims of police charges against civilians during the illegal independence referendum organized by the regional government in Catalonia, in northeastern Spain, on 1 October. According to figures provided by the Catalan government, around 850 people were injured as a result of the disproportionate use of force by police who had been deployed by the Spanish government. Those injured included press photographers and reporters who were covering the voting. The most serious incidents occurred in and around the Ramón Lull School in downtown Barcelona, which served as a polling station. Several photographers were hit or injured in crushes, as the photo-journalist Juan Carlos Mohr reported on Twitter. Xabi Barrena, a reporter for the Catalan daily El Periódico de Catalunya, was among the journalists attacked by Spanish riot police. He was struck by a police baton while using his mobile phone to film police charges inside the school. When he was on the ground, the police also kicked him. Sofia Cabanes, a reporter for the digital daily NacióDigital in Terres de l’Ebre who also freelances for the Spanish news agency EFE, was filming a police charge in Sant Carles de la Ràpita, near Tarragona when a member of the Spanish Civil Guard (a gendarmerie-style force) struck her arm with his baton, knocking her mobile phone to the ground. When she tried to pick it up, one of the policemen deliberately stamped on her hand.

Catalans Strike Over Violent Crackdown On Independence Referendum

October 4, 2017 Staff, www.france24.com Resist! Catalonia, Democracy, Independence, State Violence

By Staff of News 24 - Schools and some businesses also shut in a dramatic protest bound to further ratchet up fever-pitch tensions with Spain's central government, as Madrid comes under growing international pressure to resolve its worst political crisis in decades. The Port of Barcelona reduced services to a minimum, and protesters stood on roads and highways across Catalonia, blocking traffic. On the AP7 highway linking Barcelona to France two youths set up a folding table and played chess. Catalan pro-separatist trade unions, schools and cultural institutions called for the stoppage to "vigorously condemn" the police response to the Sunday poll, in which regional authorities confirmed over 90 people were injured. Catalonia's leader said 90 percent of voters backed independence from Spain, but the central government has vowed to stop the wealthy northeastern region -- which accounts for a fifth of Spain's economy -- from breaking away, dismissing the poll as a "farce". In Barcelona the Metro provided only minimum service and passengers travelled for free, while major tourist sites like the city's emblematic Sagrada Familia Church were closed.

Catalan Parliament To Declare Independence Following ‘Yes’ Victory

October 2, 2017 Jordi Bedmar, www.catalannews.com Educate! Catalonia, Democracy, Independence, Spain

By Jordi Bedmar for Catalan News.Catalan President Carles Puigdemont with the entire Catalan government, announced that “the right to be an independent state has been won.” He says the referendum will be communicated to the Catalan Parliament so that it can act according to the referendum legislation recently passed in the chamber, which states that independence will be unilaterally declared, should the "yes" vote win.

Despite Police Violence, Catalans Vote Today

October 1, 2017 Staff, www.popularresistance.org Resist! Catalonia, Democracy, Independence, Police violence, Spain

By Popular Resistance. Spain - Catalonians across the region in Spain today voted on a referendum for independence in the face of often severe police violence by the Spanish civil guard. The vote was held even though Spain's Constitutional Court declared it illegal. Despite being evenly split on the issue of independence, 70 percent of Catalonians favored holding a vote on the referendum as an expression of their democratic rights. Catalonia is a region around Barcelona. It has a distinct language and culture. The region is wealthy overall and makes up one fifth of Spain's gross domestic product. The campaign for independence has been underway for a number of years.

Catalonia’s Battle ‘Is A Big Problem For Europe’

September 26, 2017 Greg Russell, www.thenational.scot Create! Catalonia, Government, Nationalism, Spanish

By Greg Russell for The National - A LEADING Catalan official has said Catalonia is in a de facto state of emergency and that its battle with Spain’s central government to hold a referendum on independence is a “big problem for Europe”. In an exclusive interview, Sergi Marcen, head of the Catalan Delegation to the UK, told The National the Catalan Government would work “to the last minute” to try to reach agreement with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s government to go ahead with the October 1 poll. He said he believed Europe had remained quiet because Rajoy’s Parti Populaire (People’s Party) wielded significant influence and had been pressurising countries to stay out of it. But he added: “It is a European problem because 7.5 million European people – Catalans – cannot vote on their future; the Spanish Government does not have a majority in parliament and are using the laws in a bad way and this kind of behaviour is like the times of the dictator Franco. “So it’s a big problem for Europe, not only Catalonia.” Spain’s actions, he said, were denying Catalan citizens their basic rights. “Spanish Government and the police are going into media offices, lawyers, people’s houses looking for ballots,” he said. “Freedom of expression is banned. Police are seizing Catalan flags, posters or anything related to the referendum. Public events and meetings about it have been banned, so we don’t have the right to speak in public about the right of self-determination in Catalonia.

Hundreds Of Simultaneous Rallies In Catalonia “For Democracy”

September 25, 2017 Guifré Jordan, www.catalannews.com Resist! Catalonia, Democracy, Rally

By Guifré Jordan for Catalan News - Hundreds of town squares in Catalonia have been filled by crowds of people wanting to defend “democracy” this Sunday morning. The main pro-independence organizations in the country arranged demonstrations in hundreds of towns in order to stand up for the referendum. In some of them, protesters hung pro-referendum posters in a challenge to Spain, which has branded as illegal any act to promote the vote. In Barcelona some 1 million official ballots were distributed by rally organizers and students. This is yet an even bigger challenge, after the Spanish prosecutor has set its focus on the entities calling people to protest last Wednesday, after the raids of some 20 government buildings. “The Spanish government are acting the same as the Franco dictatorship.” Some 100,000 ballots were distributed outside the main Barcelona University building and the rest given away in several squares of the Catalan capital. One of the highlights of the rally in Barcelona was the Catalan Parliament president’s unexpected visit. “The Spanish government talks about democracy, but they are acting the same as the Franco dictatorship,” she said to the crowd. “They think that by putting us away they'll be done with our ideas, but democracy will always triumph,” she added.

Thousands Rally Outside Court To Demand Release Of Arrested Officials

September 23, 2017 Staff, www.catalannews.com Resist! Arrest, Catalonia, Protests, Rally

By Staff of Catalan News - Around 20,000 thousand demonstrators take the Barcelona streets yet again. Thousands gathered outside the department of Economy in a spontaneous rally yesterday in order to reject the anti-referendum police operation. It lasted almost 24 hours, and with almost no rest, some protesters started a new demonstration this Thursday at noon. The aim of this new rally is not only to refuse the raids again, but also to demand the release of the dozen high-ranking Catalan officials still being held. The Catalan Parliament president took part in the event and chanted “we are not afraid” to the crowd, who repeated the chant. “It does not bite, it is a ballot box,” the demonstrators also chanted. The Catalan secretary of Economy also joined the event. Some major pro-independence organizations hosted the rally, including the Catalan National Assembly (ANC in Catalan). Its president, Jordi Sànchez, said that “there is no democrat in Catalonia who is not embarrassed about what judges and Spain’s Guardia Civil did yesterday”. He also said that after “the despicable performance of the Spanish State against the Catalan government yesterday, they crossed all the acceptable lines, nothing will be the same from yesterday”.

‘Let’s Win Back Barcelona’: The Rise Of Guanyem

December 1, 2014 Kate Shea, www.roarmag.org Organize! Catalonia, Democracy, Spain

Guanyem Barcelona (Catalan for ‘let’s win back Barcelona’) launched in June this year, a citizen platform whose aim is to “take back the city and its public institutions and put democracy back at the service of the people.” The platform’s likely mayoral candidate is the popular anti-evictions activist,Ada Colau. She became politically prominent after she accused a representative of the Spanish banking association of being a ‘criminal’ during a parliamentary hearing. Her popularity and oratory flair are undoubtedly powerful weapons in the movement’s bid for mass media attention. Nevertheless, the platform also has deep roots in the city’s social and political activists networks. Guanyem Barcelona is a joint initiative of members of Colau’s Platform for People Affected by Mortgages, local neighborhood associations and anti-corruption campaigners, as well as a number of Barcelona-based academics, journalists and artists.

Catalonia Vote – Independence Unresolved

November 11, 2014 Paul Ames, www.globalpost.com Resist! Catalonia, Independence, Spain

When the Catalans finally had their say on Sunday, more than 80 percent of those who cast their ballots voted to split from Spain. But despite the massive majority, the restive region may be no closer to independence. Denied a real referendum by Spain's constitutional court, Catalan separatists instead set up voting booths across the northeastern region to host an informal, non-binding "consultation" asking citizens if they want Catalonia to become an independent state. The region's nationalist prime minister, Artur Mas, declared the vote a "total success" as figures showed 80.76 percent of voters backed independence. "Catalonia has proven that it wants to govern itself,” Mas told a news conference in the regional capital Barcelona. "Catalonia has made a quantum leap in its quest to be able to decide its own political future.”

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