POLÍTICA I COOPERACIÓ INTERNACIONAL

Arrel de l'onada de repressió per part de l'estat espanyol intentant evitar la celebració del referèndum d'autodeterminació de Catalunya del proper 1 d'octubre, les Joventuts d'Esquerra Republicana rebem suport internacional a través del següent manifest:

The Spanish governments have recurrently oppressed and exploited the Catalan Countries culturally, socially and economically. This oppression and exploitation has usually been supported and promoted by Catalan economic elites, benefiting from this system. Nevertheless during the Second Spanish Republic (1931-1939) and the Constitutional Monarchy (1978-present), there have been shy attempts to accommodate Catalonia (also the Valencian Country and the Balearic Islands) inside the Spanish State, through the creation of autonomous regions. Despite that in the Second Republic and the first decades of the Constitutional Monarchy this decentralised status brought important cultural and social achievements, after the year 2000 the situation radically changed. The different Spanish Governments (openly during PP and more subtly during PSOE governments) have repeatedly tried to pull back competences to the central government. In the decade of 2010 this situation became unsustainable. The Spanish Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional the new Catalan Statute of Autonomy of 2006 (which sought higher competencial decentralisation) and the central government denied the possibility to improve the fiscal framework between Spain and Catalonia.
 
Since then, the Catalan civil society has pushed for the organisation of an independence referendum to solve this stagnant situation, worsened by the deep economic crisis of 2008. This pressure and mobilisation led to the creation of a pro-self determination majority in the Parliament after the 2012 elections, which repeatedly tried to seek an agreement with the central government to organise a referendum. As a consequence of the constant denial of Rajoy’s government (with the support of PSOE) to this proposition, the Catalan Government organised in November 2014 a non-binding independence consultation. Despite being merely consultive, the Constitutional Court declared it illegal and many politicians who helped to organise it (including the former Catalan president) have been judicially condemned. To overcome this situation, the three main pro-independence parties agreed in 2015 to call for “plebiscitarian elections” to seek a democratic mandate towards independence. Thus, pro-independence forces got the majority of MPs. Their goal was to pave the terrain to the organisation of a binding referendum (if possible agreed with the Spanish government) through the creation of the necessary laws and institutions for it. Finally, last June the Catalan government called a binding referendum for the 1st October with the following question: Do you want Catalonia to become an independent state in form of a republic? Despite the intention to reach a deal with the Spanish Government on the organisation of the referendum, the unilateral way is currently the most likely option.
 
The Catalan pro independence movement is a non-partisan, popular and radically democratic movement, led by two civil society organisations: The Catalan National Assembly and Òmnium Cultural. They fight for the independence of Catalonia for three main reasons:
 
 
 
In the first place, an independent state would end with the current plunder of the Catalan economic resources. Every year, aproximately 15.000M€ paid by Catalan taxpayers do not return to Catalonia in form of expenditure or investments. This numbers represent around a 7,5% of the regional GDP, and mean more than 214.000M€ kept by the Spanish government between 1986 and 2010. Catalans want to be solidary with the rest of Spanish people through EU cohesion funds, by becoming a net contributor to EU budget. However, the current financial framework represents an exploitative system of the Catalan Countries rather than a solidarity and cohesion mechanism.
 
Secondly, an independent state would stop continuous attacks to the Catalan language in Catalonia (unfortunately, the situation of Catalan language in the Valencian Country and the Balearic Islands is more pessimistic). Nevertheless, Spanish would remain as an official language due to strong ties with Spain and Latin America.
 
Thirdly, an independent state would allow Catalonia to put into force all the social and progressive regulations passed by Catalan Parliament but suspended by the constitutional court. These include legislation referred to environment (tax to the nuclear plants, law against fracking), economy (tax over bank deposits, tax over empty flats), or fundamental rights (law on equality between men and women, law against bullfighting, law against evictions, law against energy poverty). Thus, Catalonia would immediately leave NATO following the result of 1986 referendum in Catalonia, and negotiate a higher refugee quota as the Catalan government has expressed several times.
 
The Catalan pro-independence movement is not based on an ethnic but on a civic nationalism. It does not seek confrontation, but solidarity and fraternity among the Iberian peoples. This implies a strong opposition with the Catalan economic elites, represented by big finances and construction companies. These regional elites have closely worked during centuries with the Spanish elites, trying to maintain the status quo during the monarchic, dictatorial and “democratic” periods. This implies that the independence of Catalonia would not only mean a simple change of borders, but a profound change in the economic and political system, following the principle of radical democracy.
 
Logically these changes would not end at our borders. We also aim to transform the EU in a more democratic, socially just and bottom-up organisation.

Taking into account that:

- The right to the self determination must be recognised in any advanced democracy.

- A huge majority of Catalan citizens support the celebration of an independence referendum to democratically decide the future of Catalonia.

- The Spanish government has denied several times the possibility to reach an agreement with the Catalan government in order to celebrate a referendum within the Spanish legal system.

The signatory organisations state that:

- Catalonia has the right to its self-determination.

- The Spanish government should agree on the celebration of an independence referendum according to the Spanish legal system.
Given that the Spanish government denies the possibility to Catalonia to celebrate an independence referendum according to the Spanish legal system, the Catalan government is legitimized to organise a referendum according to its own legal system.

- We encourage the international community to accept the result of the referendum as legally binding and democratic.

Organitzacions firmants del manifest:
 
SNP Youth - Escòcia
Junge Linke - Àustria
Scida - Sardenya
Juventudes Andalucistas - Andalusia
Plaid Ifanc – Gal·les
Sinn Féin Republican Youth - Irlanda
Galiza Nova – Galicia
Gazte Abertzaleak – Euskal Herria
Sanca Veneta – Veneto
UDB Yaouank - Bretanya
Bloco de Esquerda (Jovens do Bloco) - Portugal
Socialistisk Folkepartis Ungdom (SFU) - Dinamarca
Socialistisk UngdomsFront (SUF) - Dinamarca
Ung vinstri græn (UVG) - Islandia
Vasemmistonuoret (Left Youth of Finland) - Finlàndia
Unga Tjóðveldið – Illes Fèroe
SSW Ungdom - Schleswig-Holstein.
Jungbayernbund - Baviera
Rainbow Party (youth wing) – Minoria macedònia a Grècia
Enotna Lista (youth wing) – Minoria eslovena a Àustria