The Council for the Catalan Republic, chaired by separatist leader Carles Puigdemont from his self-imposed exile in Belgium, will hold an internal vote later this month on whether secessionist parties should vote to reinstate Spain’s acting Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez.
The centre-right separatist Junts Per Catalunya (JxCat, Together For Catalonia) party, led by Puigdemont, won seven seats in Madrid’s parliament in last July’s elections, a vital support for Sánchez (PSOE/S&D) if he wants to rule the Iberian country again.
Puigdemont’s red lines for supporting the Socialist candidate include the approval of an amnesty law for those involved in the 2017 secession attempt, as well as a referendum on self-determination for the wealthy Spanish region, which already enjoys a high degree of autonomy in many areas, including health, education and culture.
Although Sánchez has ruled out holding a referendum because it would violate the Constitution, the current government is exploring the possibility of an amnesty law or similar formula under the Magna Carta.
A Catalan ‘parallel government’ in Belgium
Shortly after Spain’s King Felipe VI tasked Sanchez with seeking the necessary parliamentary backing to form a new government earlier this week, the Socialist candidate gave some hints about his short-term goals in the long-running political dispute between Madrid and Catalonia.
Sánchez refused to use the word ‘amnesty’ but spoke of the need for reconciliation and ‘generosity’ with Catalonia. Analysts say this suggests that behind the scenes, he may be negotiating an extraordinary measure of clemency for those involved in the serious events of October 2017 – around 4,000 people, according to some Spanish media estimates.
Meanwhile, the socialist candidate of the progressive platform Sumar and acting Labour Minister Yolanda Díaz agreed on Wednesday to “accelerate” negotiations to sign a coalition agreement this month, to hold the investiture debate in parliament by early November.
On the same day as the meeting between the two progressive leaders, news broke that members of the Council for the Catalan Republic will submit to an internal consultation on whether Puigdemont and all Catalan separatist parties should give a “yes” to Sánchez, La Vanguardia and EFE reported.
The consultation, to be held online between 17 and 23 October, will ask whether Puigdemont and the Catalan pro-independence parties, above all JxCat and the left-wing Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC, Republican Left of Catalonia) in the regional government (Generalitat), should “block” or vote in favour of Sánchez’s investiture.
A trick question and a political bargaining chip
The question, drafted by one of the Council’s members, whose identity has not been disclosed, reads: “Should the Council for the Republic promote the blocking of the investiture of the Spanish prime minister (president) by the Catalan pro-independence parties?”
Several analysts quoted by the Spanish media on Wednesday stressed that it was a “trick question” because it directly induces a negative answer, in the certainty that the Catalan separatist parties will sooner or later obtain numerous political concessions from Sánchez as a bargaining chip.
On the other hand, according to some media reports, the consultation may be part of an internal strategy by the Catalan separatist forces to create a favourable political environment and pave the way for a final agreement with PSOE and Sumar, which should be ready before the end of November.
The Council of the Republic, which is currently made up of the Assembly of Representatives – a kind of ‘parallel executive’ – and the Council’s own governing body, is now debating an internal reorganisation proposal put forward by Puigdemont which, if it goes ahead, will reduce the powers of the Assembly and turn it into a bicameral body.
However, his reform proposal has caused unease among some members, who recently issued a communiqué highly critical of the Catalan separatist leader.
In fact, before the consultation on Sánchez’s investiture, the members of the Council will have to vote on the internal reform initiative proposed by the former president of the Generalitat.
(Fernando Heller | EuroEFE.Euractiv.es)
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