The new spokeswoman for the Esquerra Republicana, Raquel Sans, this Monday. at the party headquarters in BarcelonaQuique García (EFE)
The 9/11 pro-independence demonstration is so strong that it can follow last year’s path and become a source of shock within secessionism. The spokeswoman for the Esquerra Republicana, Raquel Sans, assured this Monday that her formation would take part in the “overarching and inclusive” protests to celebrate the Diada, without specifying whether they were based on those organized by the Catalan National Assembly (ANC) and Òmnium Action Related Cultural. Sans’ position came a day after Assemblea President Dolors Feliu criticized negotiations that Republicans and junts had started in Madrid over Pedro Sánchez’s possible investiture. This year’s ANC Diada will focus on criticism of political parties’ “inactivity” in gaining independence.
The 9/11 celebrations in Catalonia will coincide entirely with negotiations to appoint a head of government, something that Alberto Núñez Feijióo, and possibly later Pedro Sánchez, will attempt first. Pro-independence, socialist and Sumar formations have already reached an initial agreement to set up the Cortes and, Sans explained, talks are being held with various parties to explore the possibility of re-electing the current president through a second pact, if such a pact exists Amnesty law, self-determination is recognized and there are advances in social policy. Feliu has denounced precisely this first phase of the agreements: “We thought that we would achieve independence, not that Catalan could be spoken in Europe.” “If we had our own state, we could do that too,” he criticized at the weekend in an interview with the Catalan news agency.
The president of the secessionist entity made it clear that she is “against the negotiations of the crumbs, whoever is leading them”, clearly targeting Junts and its founder, Carles Puigdemont. In last year’s Diada, Esquerra had been the target of all attacks via the open channel of dialogue with Pedro Sánchez, and Junts had thrust himself into the limelight, but without deriving any benefit from this Republican rejection.
Such was the hostility to the ERC that the President of the Generalitat himself, Pere Aragonès, declined to take part in the demonstration and the Republicans ended up holding a party event at the same time, sending only a symbolic delegation to the march, where fisticuffs broke out. Hearing calls for a rise in the elections, and labeling Esquerra’s advisers and leaders “botifler” (traitors). Last year it was the first Diada where political independence and street independence did not go hand in hand since the beginning of the independence process. “ERC will take to the streets again and take part in all comprehensive and inclusive demonstrations,” Sans defended this Monday at his first appearance as the new Republican spokesman.
Junts is currently silent on Feliu’s criticism. Last year they did not hesitate to join the tirade against ERC, as they were the ones who broke secessionist unity on the day that traditionally serves as a thermometer for the pulse of sovereignty claims. Sources for the formation assure that there is no reason not to take part in the demonstration, which will have its epicenter in Barcelona’s Plaza España this year and will bring together four pillars from as many locations in the city. Each will have a different message: language, freedom, land and sovereignty.
The leadership led by Feliu did not have enough support for the ANC in the last election to officially call for abstention in the July 23 general election. However, the Assemblea still insists on the possibility of campaigning with an outside party list that capitalizes on dissatisfaction with traditional pro-independence formations and sees a return to bird-in-hand politics (peix al bay, in Catalan). This eventual candidacy, explains Feliu, is aimed at “giving all citizens the opportunity to vote”.
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