This Sunday, like every September 11, the Catalan separatists celebrate their “national” day and march through the streets of Barcelona. But this year the internal tensions in the secessionist camp separate for the first time two currents which seem irreconcilable
The celebrations of the Diada, the day of Catalonia – traditional independence demonstration – began this morning, under a leaden sky, with the laying of the wreath at the foot of the statue of Rafael Casanova. Not the crowd of the big days, it is also that, for the first time since 2016, the Catalan president announced that he would not attend the Diada on Sunday afternoon.
Father Aragonèsfrom the separatist left Esquerra Republicana (ERC), accuses the organizers of targeting him since he began his term of office last year, reports our correspondent in Barcelona, Elise Gazengel. “ Instead of being against their fellow travelers, they should rather put pressure on the Spanish institutions which still deny the right to self-determination of Catalonia “, did he declare. Last year, he had been the target of whistles from some of the demonstrators. The members of the regional government from his ERC party have also withdrawn, unlike those of Junts per Catalunya (JxC, Together for Catalonia), ERC’s partner in the independence coalition, but which defends a hard line against -vis Madrid.
Betting on negotiations with Madrid rather than the unilateral way to obtain a referendum, the Catalan leader and his movement attract the wrath of the most radical of his camp who consider these negotiations with the central state useless. ” We want to put pressure on the Catalan parties so that they understand that this independence project must be real and it cannot be a chimera or an unattainable dream. », Explains Dolors Feliu, president of the ANC, association organizing the rally.
In addition to this demonstration, several other festive events are organized this Sunday to try to prove that, despite the division, the independence camp remains mobilized. Participation in this day will give an indication of the balance of power within the independence movement.
(and with agencies)