Spain and Catalonia: The Border Issues

Issue explanation

• The 2006 Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia was rejected by the Spanish Court, which led to the creation of the Catalan independence movement.
• The 2017 Catalan independence referendum was deemed unconstitutional and Spain used armed forces in an attempt to resolve the issue.
• The majority of seats in the new Catalan government is still taken by pro-independence parties.

The history between Spain and Catalonia borders

• Catalonia had a broad autonomy from the rest of the country prior to Franco’s rule.
• In the past century, Catalonia was a target of discrimination from the Spanish government during Francisco Franco’s rule.
• In 2010, the Spanish Constitutional Court declared part of the 2006 Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia unconstitutional, thus leading to the increase in demands of independence.

Issue identification

• Catalonian nationalists believe in the unfairness of the system. The average income in the region is higher than in most of Spain, while Catalonia receives less government funding that it provides. (Troitiño, Chochia, & Kerikmäe, 2017).
• The autonomy of Catalonia has been questioned by Spain’s overrulings.
• Catalonian nationalism is “an intercultural nationalism”, which promotes multiculturalism, not xenophobia, but their “views on immigration policies differ from the ones proposed by the central government”. (Miro, 2019, p. 12).

Issue breakdown

• In the era where politics in European countries worked beyond nation-state borders, Catalonia kept its strong regional identity.
• “In Catalonia, demands for the effective decentralisation and subsidiarity of cultural policies and greater exercise of political power were not only demanded by nationalist parties but also by federalist and regional ones.” (Moreno, 2017, p. 97).
• Trying to rush for independence and holding the referendum despite the government’s orders, separatists aggravated Spain to take forceful action. (Minder, 2017).

Involved sides

• The government of Catalonia, who refused to abide the order of the Constitutional Court.
• The Catalan independence movement, that quickly spread higher up to the politicians.
• The Spanish government, who outlawed it, held referendums.
• The European Union. Catalonians hoped to retain the UN membership after the secession and expected the EU to act as a mediator between Catalonia and Spain. (Caplan & Vermeer, 2018)

Ongoing events

• The Catalan independence movement is active and keeps growing, approximately 350,000 people participated in the latest protests.
• In response to lengthy jail sentences given to Catalan independence leaders, protests have increased in frequency and size since October 2019.
• Quim Torra, the current President of Catalonia, was accused by Spanish prime minister in failing to properly address violent outbreaks on the streets of Barcelona.

Analysis of the current situation

• The protests continued practically on a daily basis and gained strength after sentences were given to ex-leaders of the movement.
• Secessionist parties achieved the highest results in national elections, reflecting that the majority of Catalonia wants their own state. (Oller, Satorra,& Tobeña, 2019)

What actions were taken

• After several rejected candidates, the Spanish government approved a pro-independence president of Catalonia, Quim Torra.
• Spain imposed direct rule over Catalonia after the 2017 incident. Catalonia regained its autonomous status afterward and leaders began the discussion about the region’s political future.
• The Catalans proposed two points: the legalization of the 2017 referendum and the release of pro-independent political leaders from prisons. They are yet to be answered by the Spanish government.

Is it resolved?

• Despite the actions taken to alleviate the conflict, Spanish and Catalan governments are yet to achieve the agreement.
• The pro-independence demonstrations still occur almost bi-weekly, and regimes of self-government provided by Spain are deemed insufficient by a large portion of Catalan citizens. (Calzada, 2019)

The crisis is not yet over and as long as both governments would not back down, the security on the streets of Catalonia is not guaranteed.

References

Calzada, I. (2019). Catalonia rescaling Spain: Is it possible to accommodate its “stateless citizenship”? (pp. 805-820). John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Regional Science Association International. Web.

Caplan, R., & Vermeer, Z. (2018). The European Union and unilateral secession: The case of Catalonia. (pp. 747-769). Fachbereich Öffentliches Recht, Völker- und Europarecht. Web.

Minder, R. (2017). The struggle for Catalonia: Rebel politics in Spain. Oxford University Press. (p. 28). Web.

Miro, C.J. (2019). Identity discourses about Spain and Catalonia in news media: Understanding modern secessionism. [Ebook] (p. 12). Rowman & Littlefield.

Moreno, L. (2017). Europeanisation and the in(ter)dependence of Catalonia. (pp. 95-103). Diputació de València. Web.

Oller, J., Satorra, A., & Tobeña, A. (2019). Secessionists vs. unionists in Catalonia: Mood, emotional profiles and beliefs about secession perspectives in two confronted communities. [Ebook] (pp. 336-357). Scientific Research Publishing. Web.

Troitiño, D., Chochia, A., & Kerikmäe, T. (2017). Critics to the Catalan independence process and the Catalan political nationalism. [Ebook]. Nova Science Publishers Inc. Web.