They requisitioned the leaflets informing about the vote, investigated the mayors who were willing to open polling stations, and blocked the sending of letters summoning the tellers. Finally, with a raid on the offices of the regional government, they arrested dozens of senior officials involved in organizing the consultation. From the Civil Guard to the Public Prosecutor's Office, from ministries to the post office, Spanish state bodies and companies are working to keep Catalans away from the voting booths. But their 'minister' of Foreign Affairs Raül Romeva i Rueda (the inverted commas are a must, not having been authorized by Madrid to use this title) has no doubts: "The Catalans will vote in the referendum for self-determination on 1 October" .
The inhabitants of Catalonia are said to be the Germans of Spain; and Romeva fits this profile. In Rome for a conference of the Catalan delegation in Italy, he is surprised by the delay with which the event begins. For the Italians it is routine, and also for the Spaniards. “But not for the Catalans,” she points out.
And, on the sidelines of the conference, he shares his predictions with those who – impressed by the alternation of offensives and counteroffensives between Barcelona and Madrid – legitimately wonder what will happen in Barcelona, Girona, Cambrils and in the many other cities of Catalonia in ten days' time. Whether the referendum will take place and how - between predictable prohibitions and equally predictable protests - or if it won't be held at all, and with what consequences. In short, if the Catalan independence dream, already tormented by sudden awakenings in recent years, returns to a state of vague illusion.
Certainly the aspiring secessionists did not spare themselves: mindful of the failure of the 2014 referendum, they prepared the Spaniards with constant warnings, approved their law on the referendum, ignored the suspension decided by the Constitutional Court and issued a second law which already regulates secession from Spain. Now that the die is cast, all we have to do is wait and see.
Minister Romeva i Rueda, what will happen on 1 October?
“We will vote. We are convinced that this is the only solution to our current problems. There are no alternatives, democracy cannot have any”.
Do you really believe that you will be able to vote, despite the measures taken by the Spanish government?
“First of all let's look at what the government is doing: it is requisitioning posters, leaflets, preventing debate. It is questioning fundamental rights such as political freedom, of expression, of voting, of association. And so it only strengthens the mobilization, because every measure to prevent the referendum translates into an even more massive response from the Catalan people. This is why I say that we will be able to vote, because if they prevent us from doing so, there will be many of us protesting. The determination, the will of the people is there, and it cannot be circumvented”.
Did you expect such a reaction from Madrid?
“It's no surprise to me – state structures are a legacy of Francoism and reflect it -. If anything it was for others, even in Europe. The Catalan question must be seen precisely as an opportunity to improve democracy in Spain and, if I may say so, also in the EU. Our requests demonstrate that there is a structural problem, which must be taken seriously”.
As foreign 'minister', did you expect greater support from other heads of state and government?
“We never asked: our priority was to be able to explain our reasons, what we will do on October 1st and why. It doesn't matter that there are public declarations in our favor, but that we are talking about an issue that concerns shared values. We are not asking for recognition, but for listening, because otherwise the consequences of this process will then be difficult to manage. And – if there are questions – the opportunity to answer”.
If Catalonia really managed – one way or another – to gain independence, it would also leave the European Union. And if it then wanted to join, Spain could veto its entry.
“Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union establishes the conditions for entering the EU, just as article 50 identifies those for leaving. But none of the articles talk about how to become a member state having already been part of the Union. There are 7 and a half million Catalan citizens who are also European citizens, 6 thousand European companies based in Catalonia, 17 million tourists who come here every year: there is no reason to think that the member countries – including Spain itself – they want to exclude us. And we will be open to negotiating our entry. But I would not take any hypothesis for granted, neither that of our accession – subject precisely to negotiations – nor that of a Catalonia outside the EU, because what concerns us is not a scenario envisaged by the Treaties”.
There is an article of the Spanish Constitution, the n. 155 (similar to our art. 117 on the State-Regions relationship, ed), which gives the government the right to "adopt the necessary measures for an Autonomy to respect its obligations, if it is attacking the general interest of the country". Do you think Madrid will apply it?
“We can't know. But something in this sense has already been done. The "commissariat" of the Catalan funds was decided for the same reasons - namely "in defense of the general interest and to guarantee public services" - but through the issuance of a decree, a much simpler procedure than that required for the application of article 155”.
You had asked Madrid to talk to you. At this point, would you still evaluate alternative proposals to secession, perhaps a reform of the Statute?
“We are always willing to negotiate. But, firstly, we cannot sit alone at the table and secondly, there is a lack of a proposal. We had invited the Spanish government to make one, which never arrived, while ours has always been ignored. The only proposal acceptable to people today is to vote”.
