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Catalonia’s Referendum Is Culmination of a Former Journalist’s Lifelong Drive for Independence
Keywords: Catalan, Catalonia, Spain,
Marina Force of the WSJ gives this excellent report on Carles Puidgdemont, head of the Catalan party that is holding a referendum for independence from Spain in October 2017. The referendum is to be held on Oct. 1, 2017, and will be held in a tense region divided by pro and anti independence supporters, with the central government of Spain declaring the referendum illegal, and police obstructing voters. This has pushed Spain into a major crisis, as Puigdemont says he will declare independence after the vote, and the possibility that many voters may not have voted at all in this tense atmosphere.
Here Marina describes the recent history of Spain that dates back to the period under General Franco's dictatorship when state rights in the Basque region, in Catalan region and in the northern region in Galicia, as well as other regions, were suppressed. Today there is regional autonomy and the languages in the regions such as Catalan are used in the autonomous regions.
Prime minister Rajoy is from the Galicia region. His family suffered under Franco's dictatorship as he points out in his book- Mariano Rajoy, En confianza, Mi vida y mi proyecto de cambio para Espana. As a result Catalan leader Arturo Mas and other Spanish leaders including Rajoy from Galicia worked hard to establish autonomy for all the regions in Spain, including use of the local language in Valencia, Catalonia and the Basque region, a variation of Spanish.
As in Scotland for most of the period after the end of the Franco dictatorship in the nineties, this focus on regional autonomy was seen as a big step forward. Puigdemont is journalist who was editor in chief of a Catalan newspaper in the 1980's. In 2006 he was elected to the Catalan parliament. In 2013 he was elected mayor of Girona, a city just north of Barcelona. It was in this period that the movement for Catalan independence moved forward setting the stage for the 2014 referendum with 81% voting for independence. In 2016 pro-independence parties won a majority in the Catalan parliament. This set the stage for a confrontation with the central government in Madrid that is now taking place.
Catalonia and the Franco period
09/11/2012
Grouped Articles
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Wall Street Journal 01/02/2014
Madrid Rebuffs Catalonia on Secession Vote
Wall Street Journal 01/17/2014
Spain: Marchers Demand Independence for Catalonia, as Budget Cuts Bolster Separatism
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Catalan Separatists Pull Off Protest But Referendum Is Harder
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Faces in Catalonia as it seeks increased autonomy or independence from Spain
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Grouped Articles
Wall Street Journal 03/24/2014
Catalan Separatists Pull Off Protest But Referendum Is Harder
Wall Street Journal 09/12/2013
Spain's King Felipe Strikes New Tone In Catalonia
Wall Street Journal 06/27/2014
Fostering National Identity but Not Nationalism
New York Times 09/25/2014
Spanish Court Blocks Catalonia Independence Referendum
Wall Street Journal 09/30/2014
Catalonia Suspends Independence Referendum Campaign
Wall Street Journal 10/01/2014
Deep divisions in Catalan society and Catalonia's independence movement in 2016-2017
01/03/2016
A pro-independence party CUP repudiates the leadership of Arturo Mas after a corruption scandal in the government led by Mas. Spain's general elections led to an inconclusive result and no new government has been formed in Madrid.
Grouped Articles
New Elections Likely in Catalonia After Separatist Leader Is Rebuffed
New York Times 01/03/2016
Splits in Catalonia's pro-independence campaign before key vote
The Guardian 07/05/2017
Catalonia’s Referendum Is Culmination of a Former Journalist’s Lifelong Drive for Independence
WSJ 09/29/2017
In Catalonia’s wild-card bid to secede from Spain, youth want a big voice
Washington Post 09/29/2017
Spain expected to remove Catalan powers
BBC News 11/17/2017
Barcelona: A Global City in the Eye of a Separatist Storm
The New York Times 10/20/2017
Spain's Catalonia region- growing sentiment for fiscal autonomy and a referendum for independent status
09/10/2012
Grouped Articles
Catalan Separatists Pull Off Protest But Referendum Is Harder
Wall Street Journal 09/12/2013
Rajoy Appeals to Catalonia to Stick With Spain
Wall Street Journal 09/23/2013
Wall Street Journal 12/02/2013
Spain: Catalonia Calls Vote on Split
New York Times 12/12/2013
Catalan TV Network Reflects Separatist Fervor
Wall Street Journal 01/02/2014
Madrid Rebuffs Catalonia on Secession Vote
Wall Street Journal 01/17/2014
TV 3 in Barcelona and the movement for Catalan independence
09/11/2012
Grouped Articles
Catalan TV Network Reflects Separatist Fervor
Wall Street Journal 01/02/2014
Spain: Marchers Demand Independence for Catalonia, as Budget Cuts Bolster Separatism
New York Times 09/11/2012
Catalan Separatists Pull Off Protest But Referendum Is Harder
Wall Street Journal 09/12/2013
Spain's King Felipe Strikes New Tone In Catalonia
Wall Street Journal 06/27/2014
Fostering National Identity but Not Nationalism
New York Times 09/25/2014
Spanish Court Blocks Catalonia Independence Referendum
Wall Street Journal 09/30/2014
Catalan leader Arturo Mas and Catalonia's plans to seek a referendum along the lines of Scotland
10/08/2014
Arturo Mas scheduled a referendum vote on independence for Catalonia on Nov. 9, 2014. He awaits a ruling from Spain's Constitutional Court which could come in 2015. Mas says the Constitutional Court is biased in favor of Spain. His Plan B is to hold a new parliamentary election as a plebiscite on independence. The head of the Catalan Assembly says Catalans will act in a peaceful and democratic way as Catalans are a mature people having gone through much suffering in the 20th century.
Grouped Articles
Catalonia’s Leader Plays Down Talk of Secession Crisis
New York Times 10/08/2014
Separatists in Catalonia Win Narrow Majority in Regional Elections
New York Times 09/27/2015
Catalonia Lawmakers Approve Resolution for Secession Process From Spain
Wall Street Journal 11/10/2015
New Elections Likely in Catalonia After Separatist Leader Is Rebuffed
New York Times 01/03/2016
The Parallels Between Brexit and Scottish Independence
WSJ 03/16/2017
Splits in Catalonia's pro-independence campaign before key vote
The Guardian 07/05/2017
The Spanish regional elections in Catalonia in 2015
09/27/2015
Grouped Articles
Separatists in Catalonia Win Narrow Majority in Regional Elections
New York Times 09/27/2015
Catalonia Lawmakers Approve Resolution for Secession Process From Spain
Wall Street Journal 11/10/2015
New Elections Likely in Catalonia After Separatist Leader Is Rebuffed
New York Times 01/03/2016
Splits in Catalonia's pro-independence campaign before key vote
The Guardian 07/05/2017
Catalonia’s Referendum Is Culmination of a Former Journalist’s Lifelong Drive for Independence
WSJ 09/29/2017
In Catalonia’s wild-card bid to secede from Spain, youth want a big voice
Washington Post 09/29/2017
Catalonia's debt situation in 2012 and request for 5 billion euros in aid from the federal government
08/28/2012
Grouped Articles
Rajoy Appeals to Catalonia to Stick With Spain
Wall Street Journal 09/23/2013
Madrid Rebuffs Catalonia on Secession Vote
Wall Street Journal 01/17/2014
Wall Street Journal 03/24/2014
Catalan Separatists Pull Off Protest But Referendum Is Harder
Wall Street Journal 09/12/2013
Spanish Court Blocks Catalonia Independence Referendum
Wall Street Journal 09/30/2014
Spain Region Seeks Cash, Stoking Fear
Wall Street Journal 08/29/2012
King Felipe of Spain and mediation of differences between the government in Madrid and the Catalan people
06/27/2014
Prince Felipe, now King of Spain, is thrust into the role of mediating differences between Madrid and Barcelona. Felipe's fluency in the Catalan language and his knowledge of Catalan society are likely to help him navigate the period ahead- with Catalans feeling their grievances over language and other issues have not been heard or resolved. A professor at Georgetown where the prince did his masters degree in international relations see him well trained with the human qualities for the task- as also some Catalan journalists and influential members of Catalan society.
Grouped Articles
Spain's King Felipe Strikes New Tone In Catalonia
Wall Street Journal 06/27/2014
Fostering National Identity but Not Nationalism
New York Times 09/25/2014
Spanish Court Blocks Catalonia Independence Referendum
Wall Street Journal 09/30/2014
Catalonia Suspends Independence Referendum Campaign
Wall Street Journal 10/01/2014
Grim challenges for EU after rollercoaster year - BBC News
BBC News 12/19/2016
Splits in Catalonia's pro-independence campaign before key vote
The Guardian 07/05/2017
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