Exclusive: Catalan leader says independence vote must go ahead
(Reuters) - Catalan President Artur Mas said on Wednesday his people
have the right to decide on breaking away from Spain and he is forging
ahead with plans for a Nov. 9 vote on independence that the central government vows to block on constitutional grounds.
Mas, leader of the northeastern Spanish region of 7 million people,
told Reuters in an interview he is seeking a legal formula for a
non-binding vote although Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has said any
format is illegal.
The 58-year-old Catalan leader, president
since 2010, said there is nothing that Rajoy is likely to offer him that
will damp down the surging independence movement and persuade him to
call off the vote, which he calls a "popular consultation".
"In
the end, the central government must abandon its political
shortsightedness and leave Catalonia alone to hold the consultation,"
Mas said in an interview in the Pedralbes Royal Palace in Barcelona.
Two years ago at the height of Spain's financial crisis Mas, an
economist who built his political career as conservative budget slasher,
got fed up with trying to negotiate a new tax deal with Spain's central
government and made a dramatic switch.
He abandoned his
lifelong moderate nationalist stance - that of pushing Spain to give
Catalonia more self-governing powers - and took up the radical cause of
independence.
Riding a wave of pro-independence protests in
Catalonia, Mas called for a referendum. He has since sent a date of Nov.
9, almost two months after Scotland's independence vote.
But
while Scotland's vote is legal and will be recognized by Great Britain,
Spain's parliament earlier this year blocked Mas's initial bid for a
referendum.
Mas said he still had legal options. He said in the
coming weeks the Catalonian regional parliament would pass a law
setting rules for a popular consultation to be held instead.
This is a non-binding vote which will not lead to a unilateral
declaration of independence. However, Mas said it will give him a
mandate to seek a new relationship with Spain, including more power over
taxes, welfare spending, police, infrastructure, and education.
The Catalan leader plans to ask two questions in the Nov. 9 vote:
whether Catalonia should be a separate state, and whether that state
should be independent.
Mas still anticipates the central
government will immediately ask Spain's Constitutional Court to block
the consultation and if that happens he will hold early elections to the
regional parliament as a proxy vote on independence.
"What the
Spanish state has to do is accept the consultation (on independence)
and do what the British government is doing with the Scots, convince the
Catalans they should remain Spanish," said Mas, adding that a "yes"
vote in Scotland would be very positive for Catalonia. Opinion polls
indicate Scotland will not vote for independence.
A SEPARATE IDENTITY
Catalonia, one of 17 Spanish autonomous regions and generator of a
fifth of the nation's wealth, has its own language and cultural identity
and has long fought for greater self-rule.
But in the last
three years, public spending cuts during a deep recession, a perception
of unfair tax treatment from the central government, and limitations on
teaching in the Catalan language in schools unleashed a surge in
independence sentiment.
Seventy-four percent of Catalans want a
referendum on independence according to a Feedback poll for La
Vanguardia newspaper in May. The poll showed 43 percent want
independence, 43 percent are opposed and the rest undecided.
Mas rejected criticism that his separatist fervor is driven by political opportunism.
"I have taken the most uncomfortable position possible, fighting against the status quo and the established powers," said Mas.
POLITICALLY WEAK
If Mas is prevented from holding the consultation and calls early
elections, opinion polls show his center-right CiU alliance would lose
to radical independence party Republican Left of Catalonia and he does
not rule out a pact in the future.
"This is a time in Catalonia
when we have to unite in a joint effort, do things in a new way. When
we are divided, in Madrid they are toasting us with champagne," he said.
Prime Minister Rajoy and Mas have resisted pressure from political and
business leaders to negotiate a solution to their impasse. Mas told
Reuters he was open to dialogue with Rajoy, but only on how to reshape
Catalan-Spanish relations after the popular vote on independence.
He said a separate Catalonia would enjoy 15 billion euros more in tax
revenue every year. Rajoy's government disputes the figure, saying it
does not take into account Catalan benefiting from the Spanish military,
monarchy and other institutions.
Analysts say Mas must abandon the referendum if he wants to negotiate a way out with Rajoy.
"Rajoy will not concede on any profound changes as long as the Catalan
government continues pushing for a referendum," said Antonio Barroso,
political analyst with Teneo Intelligence, a consultancy.
HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Expectations are high in Catalonia over a vote on independence and some fear violent protests if there are no polls on Nov. 9.
"I forecast tension and that's not the best scenario. That is why we are trying to bet on dialogue and negotiation," Mas said.
Visitors to Catalonia are often stunned at the depth of separatist
emotions and the ubiquitous presence of the pro-independence flag - a
white star in a blue triangle against the red and yellow stripes of the
official Catalan flag.
"I was actually shocked to discover the
intensity of feeling," Nobel Peace Prize laureate Desmond Tutu told
Reuters on Tuesday before receiving a Catalan reward for global service.
The recognized expert on reconciliation - one of only a handful of
international figures to speak to the Catalan issue - urged the two
sides to seek dialogue.
Catalonia has drawn little support in its international diplomatic campaign to explain its separatist quest.
Mas said that if a large majority of Catalans show they want
independence, Europe and the euro zone have to be practical and allow
them to stay in the EU and the single currency.
He said his government would present a series of studies this summer to explain the benefits of Catalan independence.
"If Catalonia ended up outside the euro and the EU that would be
because Spain wanted to take revenge and block them out of everything,"
he said.
(Editing by Giles Elgood)
Catalan President Artur Mas gestures during a
seminar of the Leading brands of Spain Forum in Barcelona April 24,
2014.
