Fifteen international organizations meet in Catalonia to support right to self-determination
The delegations, invited by the CUP, met this Friday with Carme Forcadell and Raül Romeva, and will attend the event organised by the National Pact for the Referendum
BarcelonaAn entourage consisting of 15 delegations from Europe and the south-eastern shore of the Mediterranean has arrived in Catalonia to participate in various events in favour of Catalonia’s independence referendum and the right to self-determination. At the CUP’s invitation, they met Friday morning with the Catalan Foreign Minister, Raül Romeva, at the Palau de la Generalitat -home to the offices of the Catalan government- and with the Speaker of the Catalan Parliament, Carme Forcadell, to discuss the vote.
The international representatives also met with the CUP’s parliamentary group and will later meet with several CUP mayors in Navàs. The latter will include Montse Venturós, who has had a court case reopened against her for having flown an estelada flag [an unofficial flag flown in support for Catalan independence] from the balcony of Berga’s town hall. In the afternoon, they will take part in the event held by the National Pact for the Referendum at Barcelona’s Palau de Congresos.
After the delegation left Forcadell’s office, Quim Arrufat, spokesman for the CUP’s National Secretariat, declared that "efforts aimed at internationalization and solidarity with other movements are of vital importance". According to the former CUP MP in the Catalan Parliament, other countries need to "understand what is happening here and support us", while also showing that the process is "a contribution to the overall European debate at a time of withdrawal and the closure of borders out of fear". During a press conference, Arrufat expressed a desire to "hold ballots, constituent processes and establish democratic republics".
All of these matters will be addressed on Saturday at an international conference held by the CUP at the University Pompeu Fabra’s Ciutadella campus. The delegates will be able to discuss several issues related to popular sovereignty, the right to self-determination and the current situation in Europe. The day will end with a political rally at 18.00.
The Basque Country, Germany, Iceland and Kurdistan
The participating organizations include Momentum, England; Rise, Scotland; Democratic Way, Morocco; the Pirate Party, Iceland; BDS, Palestine; Razem, Poland; Bloco de Esquerda, Portugal; Dei Lenk, Luxembourg; Antarsya, Greece; Interventionistiche Linke and Die Linke, Germany; HDP, Kurdistan; Sortu, the Basque Country; Sinn Féin, Ireland; and the Catalan Support Committee for the Rif and SAT, Andalusia, among others.
