We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
LEADER OF CATALONIA Carles Puigdemont last night described the Spanish government’s move to remove his administration’s autonomy yesterday as bearing the hallmarks of the dictatorship of Francisco Franco.
Puigdemont and his ministers – who sparked Spain’s worst political crisis in decades by holding a banned independence referendum – will be stripped of their jobs and their ministries taken over under measures laid out by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.
After hundreds of thousands of protesters flooded Barcelona’s streets yesterday to show their anger at Madrid, Puigdemont said Rajoy was guilty of “the worst attack on institutions and Catalan people” since Franco, calling for the parliament of the semi-autonomous region to meet urgently.
Franco ruled Spain with an iron fist from 1939 until his death in 1975, and among other repressive measures took Catalonia’s powers away and banned the official use of the Catalan language.
Cautious, though, Puigdemont did not once say the word “independence” as Spain and the rest of the European Union waits to see if he will carry out his threat to declare a breakaway state.
Barcelona police said 450,000 people joined a protest in the regional capital earlier, many chanting “freedom” and “independence” and waving Catalonia’s yellow, red and blue separatist flag.
Madrid could take direct control over Catalonia’s police force and replace its public media chiefs, with Rajoy saying he had no other choice, faced with a grave threat to Spain’s national unity.
Elections for the semi-autonomous region must be called within six months, he added.
The measures must now pass through the Senate – a process that will take about a week – but Rajoy’s conservative Popular Party (PP) holds a majority there and his efforts to prevent a break-up of Spain have the backing of other major parties.
The Catalonia crisis could cause a “dangerous dislocation”, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told the Journal du Dimanche, adding that he hoped the elections would “clarify the situation”.
‘The game could end badly’
Home to 7.5 million people, wealthy Catalonia fiercely defends its language and culture and has previously enjoyed control over its policing, education and healthcare.
Madrid has the power to wrest back control of rebellious regions under Article 155 of the Spanish constitution, but has never used it before.
Rajoy said the measure was a last resort as Puigdemont refuses to drop his threat to declare independence based on the results of the 1 October referendum, which had been ruled unconstitutional.
“This was neither our desire nor our intention,” Rajoy said.
We are applying Article 155 because the government of a democratic country cannot accept that the law is ignored.
Oriol Bartomeus, politics professor at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, said the central government was taking a huge risk.
“The game could end badly, very badly for Rajoy’s government,” he told AFP, adding civil servants and protesters could rise up against the measures.
It’s going to be like a colonial administration, and independence supporters will see it as an occupation.
Though she opposes the independence drive, Barcelona mayor Ada Colau deplored Madrid’s decision, tweeting: “Rajoy has suspended the self-government of Catalonia for which so many people fought. A serious attack on the rights and freedoms of everyone.”
Despite the political chaos in Catalonia, Barcelona’s football team continued their merry way at the top of La Liga by beating Malaga 2-0 at the Camp Nou.
Other than the usual cries in favour of independence in the 17th minute to mark the fall of Catalonia in the Spanish War of Succession in 1714 and sporadic chants of “freedom”, it was business as usual for Barca.
Elections by June
Allowing 54 days for campaigning, new elections would fall in mid-June at the latest.
Separatists of all political stripes, from Puigdemont’s conservatives to the far-left, have dominated the Catalan parliament since the last elections in 2015, holding 72 seats out of 135.
Prosecutors said yesterday they would take former journalist Puigdemont to court for “rebellion” if he makes any attempt to declare independence, a crime punishable with up to 30 years in jail.
Puigdemont says 90% backed a split from Spain in the referendum, but turnout was given as 43% as many Catalans who back unity stayed away while others were hindered from voting by a police crackdown.
Catalonia is roughly evenly split over whether to go it alone, according to polls, with supporters saying the region pays too much into national coffers while their opponents argue the region is stronger as part of Spain.
The crisis has worried the EU as it struggles with Brexit and taken a toll on one of Spain’s most important regional economies, with nearly 1,200 companies shifting their legal headquarters elsewhere in a bid to minimise the instability.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
What I find hilarious is the fact that some people here comment on every article posted and fancy themselves as experts on all after picking up a few snippets of information here and there. While I don’t count myself an expert on Catalonia I have been married a Catalan girl and we live there for part of the year. I have no problem saying that she is pro independence as are her family and friends. She loves her culture and speaks to our baby in Catalan.
What I would like to read in the comment section is comments from those who are well informed from either side of the story and not the usual Jack of all Trades, Masters of None that we seem to be subjected to more and more over the last couple of months……..
@Sean Higgins: what you are asking for is a comments section that isn’t a comment section.
@Sean Higgins: Informed opinions??? Are you trying to break the internet?!?!? ;)
@Sean Higgins: do you support independence for the other regions in Spain?
If so and if you applied that across Europe we are sowing the seeds for plenty of wars in the years ahead
@James Gorman:
The principle of self-determination is embodied in Article I of the Charter of the United Nations.
@Sean Higgins: Oh yeah. as long as they agree with your opinions.
The Spanish government should allow a referendum with a proper lead in period to facilitate discussion. The hardline route they are talking at this stage is dangerous and risks violence. I suspect Brussels is behind this hardline. They showed their fondness for democracy by crushing it in Greece. There is no sign they are changing the approach despite the fact that the EU will collapse without popular legitimacy.
@John M:
I’m not sure I understand why there should be a referendum at all.
There was a Catalonian Autonomy referendum in 1979, a few years after Franco’s death.
There was a second referendum in 2006.
Both referendums approved the statute of autonomy.
This “new” cry for independence seems to bottom out in greed, and little else.
@Dog Eat Fog: the main reason for a referendum in my opinion is to prevent bloodshed. Perhaps they could put moratorium of 20 years before allowing another one in the small print?
@John M:
I would say bloodshed and further chaos could have been prevented if the sitting government of Catalonia had commenced discussions first, before setting up an illegal vote on independence.
While time can’t be turned back, they still can sit down at the table, if conceding that the vote was unconstitutional, has no validity, but that Catalonia wishes to renegotiate the autonomy statute (that, sure, they already approved in 2006 by referendum).
None of this is being done.
Instead, it’s unreasonably asked of Spain, while with a higher duty to protect all of Spain with all its communities and citizens, to sit down and negotiate a community’s departure based on an unconstitutional vote where only pro-independent citizens participated.
This greed will hurt everyone in Spain.
I’m in favor of partition, where one small, comparatively wealthy, area of the country secedes at the desire of a small local majority against the wishes of the majority in the country and ignoring the rights of those living locally who disagree with them. This roughly reflects the views of Edward Carson, James Craig and their fellow unionists setting up the UVF in 1912. That turned out well.
@Joe Harbison: So if Munster decided it wanted declare itself independent from the Republic, you would be for it.
@Roy Dowling: whoosh
@Ian McNally: Right over the top
@James Darby: And still gathering speed… :)
@Honeybadger197: Irony guys…… it’s difficlty to be in favor of Irish unity AND Spanish disunity.
@Joe Harbison: Technically though it was the rest of Ireland seceding from the UK rather than NI seceding from the rest of the island – Ireland wasn’t an independent state at the time.
@Roy Dowling:
The People’s Republic of Cork will break free from the tyrannical claws of Dublin fascists.
@Roy Dowling: I would. I’m sick of their rugby success.
Small regional government and break up of the eu is the best future for everyone except big business leaders, bankers and filthy politicians
The Irish left again show their cluelessness and pathological attraction to trendy causes.
The proper left is meant to support redistribution of wealth as currently happens in a united Spain with resources being spread from richer areas (like Catalonia) to poorer parts.
The left is meant to be internationalist not sectarian. The Brotherhood of man originally didn’t refer to the Eurovision Song Contest but a slogan of future (if idealistic) intention of world unity.
As for the Shinners wanting some region to secede and they wanting a united Ireland, enough said.
@Deano Cracow: or maybe, just maybe, the Shinners support a people who celebrate and want to protect their own language and culture and who would like the right to secede from a bigger and more powerful neighbouring culture, that has a tendency to forcibly suppress such notions.
@☘️: Funny, those are more or less the EXACT same arguments which do the rounds among the Unionist community!
@☘️Wonder how well they will do when they are kicked out of the EEC?
@☘️: Their culture is in no danger. They had complete autonomy and cultural rights. This has been whipped up vested interests (with overreaction by the Spanish Government). It appears a slim majority still want to stay despite media and leftist (generally hand in hand) sympathy for the secessionists.
The dangers for what would be very little real gain are horrendous.
Taxes to Madrid are a huge issue here. Not going to be highlighted as the major issue.
Not very romantic or sympathetic is it? It is the real issue though.
Next will come the militant elements encouraged by the radical political movement and hey presto – a long term low grade civil war that will take three or four generations to settle.
Oppression is never a solution to a nascent independence movement.
The reference to Franco, the last surviving fascist leader in Europe, is a predictable one. It is powerfully emotive in a region which resisted the fascism of Franco.
@Fiona deFreyne: it is also powerfully dangerous to the social coexistence of ALL the Catalans… in Germany if you go around mentioning Hitler i think you get in trouble…just saying that emotional propaganda is a bit dangerous – apart that comparing 21st century Spain with the Franco days is mad…
Catalonians “fiercely defend their language and culture” – good for them, I’ve no doubt that language and culture will continue to thrive then. After all, we here in this country have had a similar experience and are uniquely qualified to pontificate about the subject. Since 1922 we have fiercely defended and our English language and British culture – long live the Republic, land of the BBC, Sky and ITV, proud Blackpool Eastenders of a Coronation St nation, a Manchester United Ireland.
This Spanish prime minister seems hell bent in keeping catalonia at all costs he does not care what the majority of the people of Catalonia want .and used the police to remind catalonian people whos in charge .thats why hes compared to franco. Whats he got to lose give them a proper referandom let everyone have a vote in catalonia .but i fear it’s the money related as catalonia makes up 20 percent of the spainish economy. Capitalism strikes again.
@Deirdre Doherty: what majority? Can you give percentages? Let me give you some: catalán Parlament is approx. 50% split independentist vs non independentist… and that is an irrefutable fact
@Deirdre Doherty:
Memory is short lived, it seems.
Autonomy referendum in 1979 and 2006, both in favour of the statute.
This looks like greed more than anything else on part of the pro-independent Catalonians, while they seem to forget a few fundamental consequences of their actions.
Catalonia is one of 17 communities. What Catalonia is saying with this to their 16 “sibling” communities, apart from proclaiming their greed, goes something along the lines of – “Hey, there is no Spain. To each their own. We’re not your people. You’re not our people. We’re the elite. Screw you.”
Then, of course, you have the financial impact of setting up and running a country with the required branches of government, the cost of trading from outside the euro zone, and managing the €72 billion debt.
@Dog Eat Fog: let the people decide thats all im saying
@Deirdre Doherty:
And I’m saying, they already have. Twice. :-)
@Deirdre Doherty: Yeah and who cares about what the majority of Spaniards want.
I never hear anything about the Ukrainians or Kurds push for independence. Hypocrites.
I don’t see breaking up of countries as a good thing. And history has given good examples: Yugoslavia, URSS, Coreia, Vietnam, between others. Do you thing EUA will let their states to get independence? Would Brasil let their regions break apart? Would France? Or Switzerland? These nationalists are reeling on their economic status now, but very soon will regret their decision. When there’s bread in the table everybody makes a party.
The marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon/Catalonia and and Isabel of Castile six hundred years ago brought about the Country we know as Spain. The not unexpected Franko jibes from The Catalan leadership are ridiculous. The Spanish Government is democratically elected and acting entirely within the law. The separatist leaders are acting illegally. Any suggestion to change the state of Spain can only be approved by a vote of ALL the people of Spain.
Catalan fascist government might be coming to and end. In the meantime. I share with you the latest and biggest piece of rubish from this disgraceful political movement called catalan nationalism.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wouNL14tAks&t=30s
Must see.. they treat you guys like little babies….
@La Massa: To quote Franco “We do not believe in government through the voting booth” This was never more true when state security forces attacked their own citizens under orders from the junta in Madrid. If people like you are so sure that the Catalan people truly do not want independence give them the referendum they desire and finish this issue for good.
@David Nihill: again… Forget about Madrid. The catalan facists havent been able to convince not even half of catalans to do a ref…
On the other hand a ref won’t settle this. They will ask for another one once and again. This is the 3rd ref…
@David Nihill:
I keep saying this – the Catalonians have already had two referendums and both times approved the autonomy statute. Last time was in 2006.
What’s happening here is that 39% of the Catalonian voting people (eg 90% of the 43% who voted) have decided that they don’t care about the legally held referendums – or the rest of Spain, for that matter – but wishes to discard democratic procedures and break away from Spain through unconstitutional methods.
In any other western nation, martial law, or as we call it in Europe – emergency powers – would be introduced, and the threat to democracy and state contained.
Catalonian leadership have had, and still has, all opportunity to sit down at the table with the state government, but they have so far chosen to go rouge.
I have been trying to work out who Puigdemont reminds me of for the past few days now and bingo …. isn’t he the spit of the German Gunther from the ECB on Apres Match
People are wretched. They crave happiness but wallow in turmoil. What else could describe what’s going on here.. Catalonia doesn’t trip off the tongue like Afghanistan, Syria or Somalia to name a few, where misery is everywhere.
It seems that one can be too well off.
have your say