Agreement in principle on a breakaway declaration by Parliament

The beginning of the process towards the creation of "an independent Catalan state structured as a republic". This is the formula agreed upon, not without difficulties, by negotiators for CDC and ERC --both members of the pro-independence Junts pel Sí group (Together for Yes) in Parliament-- and the CUP for the initial declaration of the breakaway process from Spain, which they foresee bringing up for discussion and vote in Parliament during the first week in November, prior to the debate on investiture of the new president. According to what ARA has gleaned from various sources privy to the conversations, the declaration that will serve in Parliament to formalize the kick-off of the independence process will announce the beginning of a "disconnection" of Catalonia from Spain, and refers to the starting bell of the constituent process.

The draft is part of an agreement in principle, still to be completed. The CDC, ERC and CUP negotiators are working on what should be the preamble of the text, which is still up in the air. According to our sources, Raül Romeva --who led the Together for Yes coalition slate-- announced to MPs in their meeting yesterday -- where Jordi Turull was appointed president of the group and Marta Rovira, spokesperson-- that they expect to finalize the details of the text in a matter of hours. It is "in an advanced stage but not yet finished", with "clear content" that is still in need of polishing some controversial "words".

The basics of the agreement were finalized in various meetings over the past few days by negotiators of the coordinating commission --among which were Josep Rull, general coordinator of CDC, Marta Rovira, Secretary General of ERC, Raül Romeva, head of the list for Together for Yes, and Benet Salellas, the CUP representative from Girona. According to sources within the various groups, they agreed to bring it to a vote as soon as possible. Thus, in spite of the need to polish the text of the preamble, it is expected that on Monday (when the parliament’s first session is scheduled) an extraordinary plenary session will be called for the first week in November, during which the solemn declaration will be debated and put to a vote.

Concessions for the sake of reaching an agreement

On this point, it is known that the CUP facilitated a preliminary agreement on the explanatory part of the draft by agreeing to avoid explicit references to a "Catalan Republic", a democratic "rupture" with Spain, and "disobedience" of the rulings of the Spanish Constitutional Court that have paralyzed decisions made by Parliament and that chip away at Catalan self-rule. These were elements rejected from the beginning by Convergència (CDC), which prefers to keep the rhetoric in check. The president of the Generalitat himself, Artur Mas, admitted his own discomfort last week with the rhetoric of "rupture" and "disobedience". "Disobedience leads to confrontation. On an international level, which is where the economic game is played, it doesn’t help us at all. We have to present things as a process of self-affirmation", he argued on RAC1 radio, arguing that the debate over rhetoric is merely "a formality". It was Carme Forcadell, the incoming president of Parliament, who did speak explicitly of a "Catalan Republic" yesterday. She did so in a meeting of the pro-independence parliamentary coalition, in which she expressed her willingness to oversee a presidency that gives equal treatment to all groups and MPs, regardless of their ideological leanings. Without losing sight of the fact, she said, that she will be president of a chamber that must lead to a "Catalan Republic", a term that bothers CDC, who prefer to speak of a Catalan state.

Once the new Parliament presided over by Carme Forcadell approves the formal and solemn declaration that kicks off the independence process, the text will be presented to the Spanish authorities, the European governments, and international community. In addition to the solemn announcement abroad, according to the Together for Yes manifesto, the text will also serve as an internal mandate for the next Catalan government "so that they take the necessary steps to implement the agreements contained in the declaration".

The agreement in principle became the first acknowledgement of any progress in the ongoing negotiations that, according to sources, does not presuppose any forward movement in the negotiation over the investiture of the next president. At the negotiating table this week, the CUP again explicitly stated their refusal to vote for Artur Mas.

Creative formulas for December 20th

In any case, the agreement in principle on the solemn declaration in Parliament of the beginning of the independence process does pave the way for another debate: that between Convergència and ERC concerning the formula for running in the Spanish elections on December 20th. Once they had discounted the possibility of simply not running at all after obtaining the mandate for independence on September 27th, now both CDC and ERC believe that they must use the Spanish institutions to defend Catalonia until the eve of independence. On Saturday ERC will debate the various options in their national council. These include a joint slate, with or without the participation of politicians, or two different candidacies sharing a brand name and with a common platform in defense of the 27-S mandate, but with a different ideological bias to avoid the loss of pro-independence votes.

Catalan minister Francesc Homs, the CDC leader who is viewed as the party’s front man in Madrid, noted yesterday that the independence movement will be united in the 20-D elections, no matter what. United, but not necessarily as a single list --"We will go together and the specific formula will be determined in the next few days".

For Homs, who admitted to being willing to head the list for Convergència in the Spanish elections, the formula must be decided in terms of what will be "most useful". "Whatever is decided, we will do together, regardless of the specific formula", he indicated in a symposium held by Nova Economia Fòrum (New Economy Forum). And he promised: "We will be very creative about the form in this campaign. You will continue to see things that you have never seen before", said Homs, evoking the Together for Yes campaign. He didn’t go any further. He thus left open for interpretation one of the many looming unknowns in the Catalan political arena, which has a dizzying agenda starting on Monday with the formal inauguration of a new term that is likely to be turbulent from day one. Not even the debate on where the MPs must sit has been devoid of tension.

Over 25 years of statements in favor of the right to self-determination in Catalonia:

The first, in committee

On 12 December 1989, a Parliamentary committee approved the first resolution, which stated that ,while it would comply with the existing laws, it would not renounce the right to self-determination. Votes in favor included CiU, ERC, ICV, and CDS. The PSC opposed it and the PP did not even attend the session.

A defeat and a victory in plenary session

At the general political debate in 1991, the three ERC MPs --Àngel Colom, Josep-Lluís Carod-Rovira, and Miquel Pueyo-- submitted a resolution in favor of "the democratic right to political independence" of all the peoples of Europe, including Catalans. They were alone, facing the rejection of CiU, PSC, PP, and CDS, and the abstentions of ICV and Esquerra Catalana. The same session approved a text in favor of the right to self-determination, with the PP casting the only votes against.

Symbolic stance

The plenary approved several texts in favor of the right to self-determination. In 1998, with the votes of CiU, ERC, PI, Els Verds, and EUiA, the abstention of ICV and PSC, and the opposition from the PP. In 2010 and 2011, they came back to it with the approval of CiU, ERC, ICV, --and in the second instance with SI-- and the rejection of the PP and C’s-- and in the second instance with the PSC, who abstained the first time.

Declaration of sovereignty

On January 23 2013 the Parliament approved the start of the exercise of the right to decide with a declaration of sovereignty that defined Catalonia as a "sovereign political and legal subject". Votes in favor were from CiU, ERC, ICV, and one MP from CUP-- the other two abstained-- and it was opposed by PSC --five of their MPs didn’t vote--, the PP, and C’s.

The biggest majority in support

On March 13 2013 pp to 104 MPs --from CiU, ERC, PSC, and ICV-- gave support to "initiating a dialogue with the Spanish government regarding the possibility of holding a consultation for Catalan citizens to decide their future". It was only opposed by the PP and C’s, while the CUP abstained in bloc.

Pro-independence unity for 9-N

From generic statements to specifics. CiU, ERC, ICV, and CUP approved a resolution in September 2014 to hold the 9-N consultation "with all possible democratic guarantees", "in accordance with the law", and consulting Parliament when necessary.