Catalans favor talks with Madrid instead of breaking away from Madrid: Puigdemont's party
The party of ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont says pro-independence parties in the Spanish region have become more inclined to engage in talks with Madrid rather than seek secession unilaterally.
Marta Pascal, a coordinator of PdeCat party, said Thursday that main pro-independence parties in the northeastern Spanish region were planning to abandon a call to break away from Madrid.
“The draft follows this line. It is not finished. It seems like a good route to work on,” Pascal said, adding that the plan was meant to gain more popular support for Catalonia’s independence drive, which she said should be “effective” and above all “count on the support of more people.”
Puigdemont, the former Catalan leader who fled to Belgium after his October 27 declaration of independence led to his ouster, along with other senior officials in the region have been accused of launching a rebellion against Spain and misusing public funds in a controversial referendum they held on October 1. Less than half of eligible voters turned out in the vote, which Catalan leaders used to declare independence.
PdeCat and the far-left ERC party are seeking to secure a majority for the pro-independence camp in the regional parliament in the upcoming election on December 21. ERC officials also confirmed that they were in favor of negotiations with Madrid.
Roger Torrent, the ERC's spokesman in the Catalan parliament, said next month’s election would effectively be like another “referendum” in Catalonia, urging Madrid to respect the popular will for more autonomy.
“The process of building a republic has started. We want this to be negotiated,” Torrent said, adding, “This is why we urge the Spanish government to accept the results.”
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