Catalonian Democracy Versus the Heirs of Franco

Earlier this week I committed on  the news that  Mayor of Barcelona has dealt a blow to bid to hold an independence referendum  refused to let its voting centers be used for the ballot opposed by the national government.

Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau told Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont in a letter Friday she couldn’t allow use of the centers until he could outline plans for protecting public employees from the consequences of working on the vote, according to El Pais. Spain’s constitutional court on Thursday said it would ask 947 Catalan mayors to avoid taking part in the referendum.

 I argued that 

Catalonia has been let down by the Radical Spanish left which Mayor  Colau  represents  to which Michael Haggett of the Syniadau Blog and who has constantly supported Catalonian Independence  (Please, Please post more often Mike) made the point

I wouldn't want to be categorical, Glyn, but look closely at the form of words Ada Colau used. She said, "UNTIL he could outline plans for protecting public employees from the consequences of working on the vote".

With the Spanish authorities using the threat of various forms of legal action against anyone and everyone involved in the referendum, one of the characteristics of the movement has been to keep them in the dark for as long as possible, and only act at the last moment. I therefore half-suspect that the assurance she is looking for will come, but perhaps not until a few days before the actual vote. I can't be sure, though.

It's true that most mayors in Catalunya have made a very public show of support for the referendum, but the circumstances of a large cities like Barcelona are understandably different from those of the smaller municipalities, not least because they have hundreds, if not thousands, of employees.

I see Mike's point but  there comes a time when you have to stand up to an authoritarian state  and even if Mayor  Colau  opposes Independence should she side with the democratic will of the Catalonian Parliament  or obey the Heirs of Franco in Madrid.

 Spain's public prosecutor has summoned more than 700 Catalan mayors to appear for questioning over their support for the independence referendum.

Jose Manuel Maza said that any of the municipal leaders who agreed to help stage next month's vote should be arrested if they fail to appear.

Prosecutors earlier ordered the seizure of ballot papers and voting materials.

Catalonia's vote on breaking away from Spain is deemed illegal and has been suspended by the constitutional court.

But Catalonia's pro-independence government has said that the referendum, which is planned for 1 October, will go ahead.

If the vote is held, prosecutors could charge the council leaders with misuse of public funds.The Association of Municipalities for Independence has written to hundreds of Catalan officials assuring them that they are doing nothing wrong in helping to run the ballot, despite such actions defying Spain's constitutional court.

In response to the Spanish government's latest move, the Catalan authorities have urged the region's mayors to take to the streets of Barcelona in protest on Saturday.

 On Tuesday, the Spanish Public Prosecutor's Office instructed security forces to remove all voting materials which it said could help with the "consummation of the crime".

The order included promotional materials and the ballots themselves, Spanish newspaper El Pais reported ,

 The BBC Reports that

"The loyalty towards Spanish courts of the national police and Civil Guard forces is unquestionable. But the role that will be played by the Catalan regional police force, the Mossos d'Esquadra, is less clear, especially if activists turn out in force to obstruct state orders to close polling stations, as some pro-independence parties have urged.
Union representatives of the Mossos, Catalonia's most numerous police force, are divided. The spokesman for the SME Mossos union accepts that the force is "at the orders of judges and prosecutors".
But Francesc Vidal, president of the Mossos' Uspac union, said his members were at the centre of a "train collision" with Spanish legal authorities bearing down on the police force's employers, the Catalan government.
"Security has to be our priority. There are more important and serious things to do than investigate ballot boxes," Mr Vidal said, apparently siding with the Catalan government".

I think nothing could strengthen the call for Catalonian Independence than the Civil Guard moving in possibly even clashing with Mossos d'Esquadra, to prevent a democratic poll.

The threat to possibly try thousands of Individuals being prosecuted in Mass Trials or dismissed, will see Spain seem by many as an authoritarian state.

Unfortunately  it may not see Spain becoming an International Pariah as many states would fear a domino efect.

Certainly unionist in the UK will be unlikely to protest loudly, as they would like to prevent a second Scottish Independence Referendum being called by the Scottish Government using much of the legality claims of their Spanish counterparts.