‘Long road’ to independence: Catalan leader accepts new election

Sacked Catalonian President Carles Puigdemont arrives for a press conference in Brussels, Tuesday, October 31, 2017. (AP)

BRUSSELS/MADRID: Catalonia’s ousted leader Carles Puigdemont said on Tuesday he accepted the snap election called by Spain’s central government after Madrid took control of the region to block its push for independence.
Puigdemont, speaking at a news conference in Brussels, also said he was not seeking asylum in Belgium after Spain’s state prosecutor recommended charges for rebellion and sedition be brought against him. He would return to Catalonia when given “guarantees” by the Spanish government, he said.
Puigdemont’s announcement that he would accept the regional election on Dec. 21 confirmed that the Madrid government had gained the upper hand in the protracted struggle over Catalonia, for now at least.
Resistance to Madrid’s imposition of direct control on Catalonia failed to materialize at the start of the week and the secessionist leadership is in disarray.
Spain’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday blocked the unilateral declaration of independence made by the regional Parliament on Friday, a move that gained no traction and led to its dismissal less than an hour after it was made.
“I ask the Catalan people to prepare for a long road. Democracy will be the foundation of our victory,” Puigdemont said.
The Spanish government has said Puigdemont was welcome to take his chances and stand in the election, called by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy as a way to resolve the stand-off.
The political crisis, Spain’s gravest in the four decades since the return of democracy in the late 1970s, was triggered by an independence referendum in Catalonia on Oct. 1.
Though it was declared illegal by Spanish courts and less than half Catalonia’s eligible voters took part, the pro-secessionist regional government said the vote gave it a mandate for independence.
European nations including Britain, Germany and France have backed Rajoy and rejected an independent Catalan state, although some have called for dialogue between the opposing sides.
Meanwhile, the Madrid stock market rallied Tuesday on the fading prospect of Catalan independence, helping other European bourses higher, dealers said. In midsession deals, the Spanish capital’s benchmark IBEX 35 index was up by around 0.7 percent, off earlier highs, having fizzed 2.44-percent higher the previous day.
London and Paris stock markets each posted smaller gains, while Frankfurt was closed for a German public holiday.
“Spanish stocks have enjoyed another leg higher today, with the IBEX 35 hitting its highest level since August as the Catalan independence push has seemingly lost its way,” said analyst David Cheetham at trading firm XTB.