Catalan independence drive falters as its wealth fails to provide political leverage
Catalan independence receded into the far distance in the last turbulent 48 hours, although both Madrid and Barcelona refrained from a violent confrontation.
Catalonia came out of the last 48 turbulent hours, that were triggered by its parliament’s declaration of independence under the baton of President Carles Puigdemont, worse off than before. By Saturday, Oct. 28, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy had moved to strip the region of its hard-won autonomy, sacked its leaders, police chief and parliament and assumed direct rule, in the person of Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria. She took charge of 5.7 million Catalans as caretaker until the snap regional election on Dec. 21 that was called by Rajoy.
In his first public appearance following these measures, Puigdemont called for independence supporters to “resist Article 155” (which nullified Catalan autonomy) in a non-violent way. “We must fight without violence or insult, in a manner that respects people and their opinions,” he said. When his pre-recorded speech was aired on public regional TV Saturday afternoon, Puitdemont was seen in his home town of Girona.
Both sides to the dispute, Madrid and Barcelona, seem to be digging in for a long haul, mindful of its long history. The kings of Valencia subdued the Catalans and captured their country 303 years ago at the end of a bloody war over the Spanish succession.
The last armed battle was waged against Catalonia by the fascist dictator General Francisco Franco 79 years ago. The Catalan army was defeated in the 1938 Battle of Ebro, leaving 3,500 dead. Tens of thousands of Catalans were thrown into exile.
Today, both Madrid and Barcelona are careful to avoid letting the current Catalan drive for independence draw them into an armed clash. But there is no guarantee they will succeed.
Independent experts on the dispute forecast a majority casting their vote against separation from Spain in the December poll – roughly 48 percent to the 38-40 percent who will support independence.
But there are other factors to be taken into account. Catalonia’s rapidly growing economy is based mainly on financial services, hi-tech and tourism, along with a stable textile industry. The pace of the independence drive is set by young business leaders aged 18-25 who are confident that the region’s economy is strong enough to stand on its own feet and break away from dependence on Spain, whose economy is much weaker.
Catalonia produces $314 billion worth of goods per annum and its economy ranks as the 34th strongest in the world, ahead of Hong Kong. Its GDP is $35,000, topping South Korea, Israel and Italy. The separatists see no reason to share their wealth with Spain.
But it seems that wealth alone can’t buy independence. Not a single world government has recognized the Catalan parliament’s proclamation. In fact, the European Union and most of its member nations as well as the United States are ranged against secession and solidly support a united Spain. Therefore, an independent Catalonia condemns itself to international isolation, which would be not only political, but also hamstring its economy and its financial institutions.
Madrid has already cut off salary payments to the pro-independence Catalan leaders, but Rajoy’s next step could be to ask Washington and the EU to impose a financial boycott on the rebellious region. Even the strongest economy can’t function or survive in a vacuum into today’s world of interdependence among the international financial markets and world banking. For total independence, Catalonia would need to cut itself off from Spanish and European institutions, drop the euro and print its own currency.
But then, would the international financial markets agree to recognize the new currency and use if for transactions? There is much to consider before taking a thriving Catalan economy out to terra incognita outside the Spanish federation. In his speech Saturday, therefore, separatist leader Puigdemont was careful to advise his eager adherents to stay calm and conduct civil disobedience without violence. He was recorded standing on a podium with the official emblem of the Catalan regional government. Behind him were the Catalan and European Union flags, but not the one from Spain, although the EU has disowned his claim. The Spanish authorities have also carefully held back from arresting him for rebellion – as yet – realizing that this could be a trigger for the situation to veer out of control.
Their standoff could last for some months with possible interruptions for dialogue to resolve it, or else it could tip over into violence.
Please, review your article. There was no Catalonian army in Civil war. Contenders were nationalist army (right wing-Franco) vs. republican army (left wing band-Republican government). There was no Catalonian state in Spanish Republic (1930’s), Barcelona was an important anarchist city in that period but Franco army was supported by wealthy catalonian businessmen. After Civil War, important public companies (SEAT, chemical industry) were installed in Catalonia and textile product imports were taxed in order to protect Catalonian products (expensive and low-quality items)
This from the proponents of a lawless state almost universally held in contempt that has existed for a mere seventy years! these jews are making it up as they go along. Catalonia will be a place for Catalans long after the golden calf of Zionism has been tossed in the fire.
Russian stirrer.
Israel is far older than Spain or Catalonia. Israeli democracy is far more stable and sophisticated than Spain’s young post-Franco democracy. Israel’s economy is thriving while Spain is going down the drain.
Israel has existed for over three thousand years, which is ten times as long as Catalonia. Israel is mentioned on an Egyptian stele called the Merneptah Stele dated approximately 1,210 BC.
However before we discuss one must first differentiate between the falsehood, ‘the shelter of lies’, whose people are taught to worship ‘the god of fortresses’, ie. the idolatrous Zionist state entity, ‘Israel’, the man of Gd, Israel, himself, Israel the people and The House of Israel, the ten tribes.
In any case, temples to Messiah claimant, Melcarthus, king of Carthage, are found at least three Phoenician sites in Spain: Cádiz, Ibiza in the Balearic Islands and Cartagena. Are we to hear Lebanon’s claim to this. The plain and obvious fact is, militants are squatting in the holy land shedding innocent blood, and our honorable hashem is going to end it by the appearance of his coming.
Second Thessalonikeus 2:8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
eshaya 30:33 For Topheth has long been ready, Indeed, it has been prepared for the king. He has made it deep and large, A pyre of fire with plenty of wood; The breath of the LORD, like a torrent of brimstone, sets it afire.
Iyov 4:9 “By the breath of God they perish, And by the blast of His anger they come to an end.
Iyov 41:21 “His breath kindles coals, And a flame goes forth from his mouth.
Iyov 15:30 “He will not escape from darkness; The flame will wither his shoots, And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.
Yeshaya 11:4 But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
Yeshaya 40:4-8
4 Every valley is raised up, And every mountain and hill become low, And the crooked place hath become a plain, And the entangled places a valley.
5 And revealed hath been the honour of Jehovah, And seen it have all flesh together, For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken.
6 A voice is saying, ‘Call,’ And he said, ‘What do I call?’ All flesh is grass, and all its goodliness is As a flower of the field:
7 Withered hath grass, faded the flower, For the Spirit of Jehovah blew upon it, Surely the people is grass;
8 Withered hath grass, faded the flower, But a word of our God riseth for ever.
Kefa Alef
1:24 For all flesh [is] as grass, and all the tifereth of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
1:25 But the dvar of YHWH endureth le Olam Va ed. And this is the dvar which by the goodnews is proclaimed unto you.
Malachi – Chapter 3
17. And they shall be Mine, says the Lord of Hosts, for that day when I make a treasure. And I will have compassion on them as a man has compassion on his son who serves him. [Iwill raise them]
18. And you shall return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him who serves God and him who has not served Him.
19. For lo, the sun comes, glowing like a furnace, and all the audacious sinners and all the perpetrators of wickedness will be stubble. And the sun that comes shall burn them up so that it will leave them neither root nor branch, says the Lord of Hosts.
20. And the sun of mercy shall rise with healing in its wings for you who fear My Name. Then will you go forth and be fat as fatted calves.
21. And you shall crush the wicked, for they will be as ash under the soles of your feet on the day that I will prepare, says the Lord of Hosts.
that’s pretty heavy reading…
‘And you shall crush the wicked, FOR THEY WILL BE ASH under the soles of your feet on the day that I will prepare…’
hashem will take the kingdom from Amalek and that He will make the land desolate.
1. The Lord has reigned, the earth will exult; many islands will rejoice.
The Lord has reigned: when He takes the kingdom from Amalek and from his descendants.
the earth will exult: This is what Ezekiel said (35:14): “When the whole earth rejoices, I shall make you desolate.” He prophesied this concerning Amalek.
You could even make an argument to show that the Jews have a claim to the land of Israel that is older than that of any other people on Earth. When Homo Sapiens left Africa approximately 200,000 years ago the first place they came to would have been Israel. People settled there and eventually became the Canaanites and archaeology has shown that the Jews are descended from some of the Canaanite tribes. There is no evidence for a Hebrew sojourn in Egypt, or the conquest of Canaan by Joshua. The Jews were living in Israel all along as the indigenous people. The oldest indigenous people on Earth outside of Africa. What the Palestinians don’t realise is that they are probably also descended from the Jews, who remained in the land of Israel after the Romans put down the Jewish revolt in AD70. Those Jews were later forcibly converted to Islam and eventually became the Palestinians, who have long ago forgotten their Jewish pedigree.
No, Babylon, the great.
In the chant of Balaam at Numbers, 24:20, Amalek was called the ‘first of the nations’, attesting to high antiquity.
Amos – Chapter 6
1. Woe to those who are at ease in Zion and to those who are secure in the mountain of Samaria, those called the first of the nations, and the house of Israel has come to them.
2. Proceed to Calneh and see, and go from there to the great Hamath, and go down to Gath of the Philistines-are they better than these kingdoms, or is their border greater than your border?
3. You, who bring yourselves closer to the day of evil, and you bring near the dwelling amidst violence.
It seems an armed conflict is at hand. Regional freedom against centralist dictatorship. Europe must become a union of regions, as Churchill prophecised after the WWII.
Nobody is interested in that, when i say “nobody”, it means our modern Roman Empire or globalist orgs,
Spain is not Jugoslavia or former soviet republics. I think you should make a review when you talk about regional freedom fighters, because maybe a new state would be clearly an antisemitic nation (greater muslim immigration than other areas in Spain) and presence of BDS movement in supporters. So, a new muslim-friendly country in Western Europe is not recommended for jewish interests and states in other parts of Europe.
They seem eager to cull the nationhood movements, in this manner, but let the people beware, in tranquility and quiet you will be saved. Don’t be provoked.
If the world does not want Catalans to break from Spain or Kurds to break from Iraq, Turkey and Syria, then why does the world support Arabs (so-called “Palestinians”) breaking from Syria, Egypt and Jordan to form another one or two additional failed terror states in the Land of Israel? It is because in the case of Catalan and the Kurdish situations, the world does not want to offend Spain or the Arab nations but with the “Palestinians” the world does not mind offending and stealing from Jews and, conversely, pandering to Arabs.
Does anyone remember Kosovo in our short memory-span politics? There the world rushed to recognize a unilateral declaration of independence. If there, why not elsewhere, indeed, why not everywhere? Putting it that way of course gives one pause for thought. Contrast all this with the peaceful and mutually agreed-upon breakup of Czechoslovakia into Czech Republic and Slovakia. Perhaps the Czechs and Slovaks are more civilized than most, or maybe they had the benefit of an exceptional leader in Vaclav Havel.
It was necessary to destroy Jugoslavia (divide-conquer). If there is a society divided 50/50, there cannot be an easy solution. Catalonia was always a spoiled child in Spain, multiple public industries were based there and laws favored Catalonia, sometimes it damaged other parts of Spain, though.
Economic crisis and industries relocation to Asia increased independence sentiment, regional government blamed to Central government…and so on…Madrid-Barcelona feud eternally…A referendum should be a solution but now it’s complicated and hart to explain to rest of Spain
Perhaps the pro independents are actually losing support and thought that this was the time to make a move. An election will tell.
No, an election will provide an opportunity for Hegelian dialectical fear mongering sheep shearing and general thug skull duggery
https://twitter.com/tsankaram/status/924686301894504448/photo/1 Just look at the hand of this rioter, he’s a pro-spanish unionist.
https://twitter.com/lepenjm/status/924918853867573248 And of course, Jean Marie Le-Pen is also against the Catalan indepence.
Just saying.
interesting. i hear the palestinians are talking about independence even though there never was a country, never a legal system, no Palestinian language. They were called Palestine by the Romans which meant they disliked the Jews and named the area after their enemies the Phillistines. But Catalan had been separated before and they have a different culture and different language. wonder what the UN hypocrites intend to do about this.