09.04.2014 - 07:28
The President of the parliamentary group ICV-EUiA, Joan Herrera, told the Spanish Congress that responding with an “authoritarian solution” to Catalonia’s petition—the delegation of the power to hold referendums—will not last, nor will it be convincing, since the referendum is backed by the support of a majority of society. “You can delay the debate, but you can’t stop it. The most intelligent solution is to face the challenge,” he added. Herrera called out the Spanish parties for acting as if they hadn’t heard a thing. “Your No will not make the problem smaller, but rather the distance greater.”
Herrera structured his speech in four sections: “Why we’re here, what we propose, what we hope for, and what we have” and he said today’s session was meant to be “educational” for Spain.
ICV’s leader, the third of the Catalan MPs to speak before the Spanish Congress in defense of the Catalan Parliament’s proposal, complained that the Spanish MPs had refused to enter into dialogue with Catalonia so that it could hold a referendum within a legal framework, agreed on with the State. “This conflict could have a democratic solution or an authoritarian one, but authoritarian solutions never last when there is a political and social majority like there is in Catalonia, which would not accept it.”
“This is not capriciousness”
Herrera called for an agreement like the one arrived at between the United Kingdom and Scotland, or between Canada and Quebec. And thus he criticized the large parties who have always used partisanship and how have not fulfilled their democratic obligation to enter into dialogue and sit down to negotiate. “You are trapped by the anti-Catalanism that you yourselves have sown.”
Further, he blamed the Spanish Congress and Government for having taken Catalonia’s demands as “capriciousness” and for having thought it was all Artur Mas’ doing. That is, “without understanding that it is more widespread and more mainstream” and without realizing that it is accompanied by “one of the most intense and extensive social mobilizations that Catalonia has ever seen”.
He also blamed PSOE (Spanish Socialists) for continuing to advance “that which is out of date” and the right for not being “more British”.
