President Mas expects EU to mediate if Catalonia chooses independence

New YorkDuring his get-together with New York’s Catalan residents, with canapés and cava (and after a speech titled “Catalonia at the crossroads” at Columbia University) president Artur Mas stated that “it’s an uphill struggle”. This was his third trip to the US and the Catalan president’s goal was clear: to ensure that the Catalan independence process nudges its way into the international arena. To that effect, on Wednesday and Thursday he met investors and representatives of think tanks and US media to explain “the cause of the Catalans” and seek support for an eventual independence of Catalonia. President Mas is certain that the international community might play a key role, if Catalans vote to separate from Spain in the “plebiscite” elections of September 27.

Standing in front of the 9-11 Memorial on the second and last day of his visit, Mas stated that --should separatists win at the polls-- he expects third-party mediators to put pressure on Spain so that “it engages in civilised talks”. Mas referred to a unilateral declaration of independence as a --for now-- remote, last resort possibility. According to him, “in order to join the world club of independent nations” one must meet several requirements, which include the support of a majority expressed at the polls.

His words came only a few hours after an interview with Bloomberg where he stated that the EU member states “will get involved” in the Catalan process and they will want to “persuade the Spanish authorities that negotiating and reaching an agreement is always the better choice because it is the economy that is at stake”. Mas argued that “it would be very easy for the European nations --Spain’s partners in the EU-- to explicitly support Madrid’s stance. But they have not done so”.

“A Catalan world”

The Catalan president emphasised the need to fight terror and recalled Bill Clinton’s words when he visited Catalonia in 2001: “The future will be Catalan or Taliban”. According to Mas, Clinton’s words referred to the values of the Catalan people: peace, fraternity and dialogue. Mas noted that Catalonia has waved the flag of peace and fraternity “since ancient times”.

During his speech at Columbia University the night before, Mas spoke about Catalonia’s history, culture and language. He claimed that the Catalan parliament is one of the oldest in Europe. He also referred to more recent historic events, such as General Franco’s dictatorship and the Transition to democracy to account for Catalonia’s frustration with Spain. Mas said that Catalonia’s disappointment following Madrid’s recentralisation policies and the attacks on Catalan self-rule and language explains the separatist surge in recent years. He noted that the unrest caused after the 2010 ruling by the Spanish Constitutional Court on the Catalan Statute that had been voted in the polls four years earlier was another contributing factor. “Many Catalans felt betrayed”, he remarked.

Mas recalled President Obama’s historic “Yes, we can” to underscore the Catalan bid for independence. “In Catalonia we, too, believe in the power of “we”, of “us”, in democracy”, he stated in front of 300 attendees.

A heated Q & A

The heat following the president’s address was turned up a notch during the Q&A session. Some participants, most of whom were originally Catalan or Spanish, asked him about corruption, language immersion programmes and Catalonia’s financial grievances. Economist Xavier Sala-i-Martín, who had been tasked with introducing the Catalan president, also asked to speak on the latter issue.

At the end of the evening, one of the few Americans who had attended the event stated that she had found Mas’ explanation satisfactory. “I feel that Catalans should have the right to decide their own future”, said Angela Chen, a student at Columbia University.

Former Bush advisor shuns independent Catalonia

“A potential breakup of Spain by Catalonia is not in the U.S. interest, not in Europe’s interest, not in Spain’s interest and ultimately, not in Catalonia’s interest.” That is the view of former George W. Bush advisor Daniel Runde in an article for Forbes, on occasion of Artur Mas’ trip to the US. A former World Bank executive, Runde claims that “Spain is a success story for democracy and development, and a net contributor to the global liberal order over the last four decades”. He also writes that “at a time when Europe is in significant political and financial turmoil, President Mas’ aspiration to create an independent Catalan state should be viewed with considerable skepticism”. Runde also expects that the Catalan economy “would take a serious hit” compounded by “the need to find a currency other than the Euro, as Spain would veto Catalan membership in the monetary union”.

According to Runde, only King Felipe can avert the clash. “The royal family has tried to help encourage unity in a variety of symbolic ways. One of princesses made her home in Barcelona and worked for a prominent Catalan company, La Caixa. King Felipe VI speaks Catalan and may be uniquely situated to help diffuse tensions”.