Spain: Government Asks Constitutional Court to Block Talk in Catalonia About Independence · Global Voices

Her government announced that it decided to ask the country’s Constitutional Court to block the debate, in the parliament of the one text with which this district is requested to be declared independent. The office of the parliament of Catalonia agreed on 20 February to consider a “People’s Legislative Initiative” (ILP) which was promoted by a small, extra-parliamentary party, the “Catalan Solidarity for Independence”, calling on parliament to unilaterally declare Catalonia’s independence from Spain. Carles Pujdemon’s party “Together for Catalonia” (JxCat) voted in favour of this initiative debate while the other separatist party, the Democratic Left of Catalonia (ERC), which is more moderate, abstained from voting. Pedro Sanchez’s government “requests the cancellation of the examination of this proposal” and its freezing “directly”, Justice Minister Felix Bolanios said, at the press conference he granted after the cabinet’s weekly meeting. This central government intervention is noted less than two weeks after parliament voted for amnesty from which nearly 400 people, who had been convicted or prosecuted for their role in the attempt to secession of Catalonia, in 2017. Among them was Pujdemont. Amnesty, to be ratified at the end of May or early June, was the price demanded by the two separatist Catalan parties to support the Sanchez government, as without them it did not secure a majority in parliament. However, both parties, but mainly JxCat, did not renounce their struggle for independence and referendum on Catalonia’s self-determination. Bolanius reiterated that the government would oppose this plan and that he does not want “the isolation of Catalonia from Spain and the rest of Europe”. He commented that the proposed law promoted by this initiative “divides society, causes tensions”. The government’s request to the Constitutional Court is based on an article in the Constitution which gives Madrid the right to freeze measures or examine measures by an autonomous community, with immediate effect.