Spain’s government announced on Tuesday that it would challenge in the Constitutional Court a Catalan bill proposing a unilateral declaration of independence.
Justice Minister Félix Bolaños underscored that “in no case do we [the Spanish government and the Socialist Party] support the independence and isolation of Catalonia in respect to Spain and the rest of Europe.” His comments came days after Marta Rovira, secretary general of the ERC party, revealed that her party was negotiating an independence referendum with Spain’s ruling Socialist Party.
However, Bolaños claimed on Tuesday that Rovira was not telling the truth because of the upcoming elections, with Socialist politicians strongly rejecting her statement. He also rebuked her party for returning to “old formulas of conflict and collective failure.”
Catalan voters will go to early elections on 12 May.
Bolaños also stressed that challenging the Catalan independence bill was “coherent” with the government’s approach, focusing on “dialogue, living in harmony and protecting the Catalan institutions.”
Patrícia Plaja, the spokesperson for the Catalan government, criticised the government’s decision to stall the legislation in the courts. She also accused the Socialists of “overreacting against independence” in their own “electoral interest.”
To us, it seems like the government hasn’t learned anything… trying to restrict and limit parliamentary debate will never be a solution.
Previously, the Spanish government was sharply criticised for passing an amnesty law that dropped non-violent criminal charges against those who had participated in Catalonia’s independence campaign.
