Europe
Catalan Legislators Raise Stakes in Push for Secession From Spain
Catalonia Votes for Independence
BARCELONA — Catalan separatist lawmakers intensified their standoff with Spain’s
central government in Madrid on Monday, approving a resolution that
lays out a path for the region to “disconnect” from the rest of Spain by creating its own institutions, including a separate Catalan tax agency and social security system.
The
move was immediately denounced by Spain’s prime minister, Mariano
Rajoy, as the latest evidence that Catalan separatists were willing to
flout Spanish law in their pursuit of independence.
In
response, Mr. Rajoy said he would sign a decree to suspend all the
declaration’s possible consequences, pending a ruling by Spain’s
Constitutional Court that is expected to strike down Catalonia’s
resolution, the latest in a series of steps to break away from Spain
that have escalated over the last three years.
“Catalonia is not going to disconnect from anywhere, and there is going to be no breakup,” Mr. Rajoy said.
The
standoff over the future of Catalonia — which accounts for a fifth of
Spain’s economy — has become increasingly tense as both sides have
raised the stakes in each round of the confrontation, and as both Mr.
Rajoy and the head of Catalonia’s regional government, Artur Mas, have
used the conflict to bolster their own standing in the face of political
challenges.
Mr.
Rajoy has sought to present himself as the defender of Spanish unity
ahead of a general election on Dec. 20. The vote is unlikely to yield a
clear-cut winner, according to the most recent opinion polls, with Mr.
Rajoy and his Popular Party holding a small lead that would be
insufficient to keep their parliamentary majority.
Mr. Mas, too, is fighting for political survival.
He and his Convergence Party have been tainted by corruption scandals,
and Mr. Mas is supposed to face a vote on his leadership of Catalonia by
Thursday. Yet he is struggling to garner sufficient support from
lawmakers. One separatist party that voted in favor of the resolution
opposes his re-election.
Should
he not get sufficient support, the main separatist coalition can either
present an alternative candidate or try to prolong the internal
negotiations over its leadership until Jan. 9, the deadline for a new
Catalan regional president to take office or for new regional elections
to be called.
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Addressing
the Catalan Parliament on Monday, Mr. Mas called on fellow separatists
to unite in the “gigantic” challenge of forming a new nation.
“We
have the opportunity to create a new country,” Mr. Mas said. Catalonia,
he argued, has reached a crossroads, facing a choice between
“subordination and freedom.”
The
resolution approved on Monday calls for Catalonia to become an
independent republic, a goal that Mr. Mas and other separatists aim to
achieve within 18 months. Most controversially, the resolution includes a
defiant claim that Catalonia’s march toward nationhood need not be
subject to approval by Spanish institutions or the country’s
Constitutional Court.
In
recent days, Mr. Rajoy has met with other national party leaders in
order to present a common front against Catalonia’s separatist
ambitions. While Spain’s other main parties want Catalonia to remain
within Spain, Mr. Rajoy’s rivals in next month’s general election have
blamed Mr. Rajoy for allowing the secessionist drive to reach such a
precipitous point.
Monday’s
vote followed regional elections in September that gave separatist
parties the most parliamentary seats, but denied them a majority of the
votes. The fact that 48 percent of votes went to separatist parties was
hailed by Mr. Rajoy’s government as proof that separatism was not backed
by most of the region’s 7.5 million citizens.
Still,
the separatist declaration was approved by 72 to 63. The separatists
who voted in favor included those of a far-left party known by its
Catalan acronym of CUP, which wants to remove Mr. Mas as regional
leader.
Mr.
Mas did not address CUP’s concerns about his leadership directly on
Monday. Instead, he sought to portray himself as the victim of
persecution by Madrid. He was recently forced to appear in court over an
independence vote in Catalonia a year ago that was also struck down by
Spain’s Constitutional Court.
“Who wants to live in a state that prosecutes criminally somebody who promotes the ballot boxes?” Mr. Mas said.
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A version of this article appears in print on November 10, 2015, on page A10 of the New York edition with the headline: Catalans Raise Stakes in Push for Secession.
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