We hereby publish an unofficial translation of an article published by Servir al Pueblo.

Notes on the new Catalunya government, the flight of Puigdemont and the crisis of the old State

The last Catalan electoral farce was a media failure for the bourgeoisie: the bourgeois elections of May 12 ended with 42% abstention and a distribution of seats that made difficult to have a stable government. On average, four people out of ten refused to participate in any way in the electoral farce. The parliamentary situation was difficult, since the only real possibility of forming a autonomic [Translator’s note: a regional administration of the Spanish State] government fell on Salvador Illa and the PSC (Socialist Party of Catalonia) [Translator’s note: Catalan branch of the party which heads the government in the Spanish State, the Socialist Workers Party of Spain, PSOE]. For Illa being able to form a government, the PSC would have to make agreements with the pro-independence forces, something they strongly denied in the electoral campaign. But as usual, they swallow their own words and made a deal with them. The State cannot afford a repetition of the election as it would be a tremendous blow to its propaganda. Abstention would increase from 42% and would be dangerously close to 50%, which would demonstrate – if possible, even more – the country’s “crisis of governability”, which is one of the ways in which the old State’s crisis is reflected. Finally, on August 8, Salvador Illa was elected as President of the Generalitat [Translator’s note: the Generalitat is the regional government of Catalonia within the Spanish State].

The pact has been made between the PSC and ERC (Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya) [Translator’s note: Republican Left of Catalonia, pro-independence party]. This pact allows Illa to be president in exchange for a fiscal agreement. Due to this agreement, Catalonia will handle its own taxes. In other words, it is a historical transfer from the State to the Catalan bourgeoisie in its independence project (separation and constitution as its own bourgeois State) as a preliminary step. But, in reality, the transformation of the administration of Catalonia to having more regional capabilities is just a play to the gallery. “Fiscal solidarity among all Spanish people” has not been broken, as Feijóo [Translator’s note: political leader of the Popular Party, conservative and main opposition party in Spanish State] says, nor “is it a step closer to independence” as ERC says. It is a historical transfer in words, but not in deeds.

According to the bourgeois law system itself, this is a legislative operation that is difficult to execute, BECAUSE it requires the modification of the Regional Financing Law (Ley de Financiación Autonómica – LOFCA) and the Financing Law of the Autonomic Communities or the Taxes Management Law. This “large-scale” legislative operation (as defined by the press) has not been carried out, which is why we say that to date, the new fiscal agreement for Catalonia is only a play to the gallery.

What is closest to reality, for now, is what the PSOE Executive Commission has said: “there is finally a Generalitat committed to Spain and unity, fictitious of an independence movement that has hit rock bottom.” Ironically and paradoxically, the PSOE is right: the Catalan bourgeoisie is unable of leading the independence of Catalonia.

Why has Salvador Illa invested? Because he is the best option, since all the other options are bad or very bad for the Catalan bourgeoisie and the Spanish financial oligarchy – mainly bad for the Catalan bourgeoisie. A repeated election would increase abstention levels, but in addition, ERC would continue to lose seats. No one is interested in repeating the elections.

Among all of this, we see the media maneuver of the other side of the Catalan bourgeoisie: Junts and Puigdemont. The former President of the Generalitat, Carles Puigdemont, came back to the State, gave a pro-independence rally and left the country with the help of several Mossos d’Esquadra [Translator’s note: Catalan autonomic police] without being arrested. This escape is worthy of being a scene from a movie. Puigdemont is not a character in The Dirty Dozen , but rather he has entered and left Catalonia as he wanted to.

The contradictions between the Spanish financial oligarchy and the Catalan bourgeoisie are evident, but there is something even more evident: the Spanish imperialist State is not interested in continuing to stir up the hornet’s nest. It allowed Puigdemont to be free since the State it is interested in him. It was not a clever maneuver by Puigdemont, but the State allowed him to come and go because he is not a real danger. Puigdemont is totally discredited in the most combative independence movement, and increasingly among the affluent pro-independence layers.

It is obvious that the CNI (Centro Nacional de Inteligencia – National Intelligence Center) knew Puigdemont’s steps, it even knew the steps of those who supposedly were going to detain him. And it turned a blind eye to his flifht. The Spanish imperialist State is a jailer who leaves the door open and looks to another direction, and when the prisoner escapes, it makes a public scandal out of it: how is it possible that he has escaped!?

In summary:

How to understand the investiture pact that brings Salvador Illa (PSC) to the presidency? As the less bad option of the Catalan bourgeoisie in the current political panorama. Repeating the elections would increase abstention, would further increase its discredit among many pro-independence voters and therefore, it would lose more seats and privileges.

How to understand Puigdemont’s media maneuver? As an attempt by the Catalan bourgeoisie to continue raising the flag of self-determination, to achieve a “feat” so many defeats and so much discredit.

How to understand that he has escaped? As an escape possible thanks to the passivity of the State, which thinks that it is better for the Catalan bourgeoisie to continue destroying the independence movement, turned from a combative mass movement to a peaceful parliamentary project, than to stop it and continue provoking more conflict.

All this leads us, once again, to the crisis of the old State as the center of everything. The crisis of governability, the unnatural pacts, the repetition of elections, the increase in abstention, the reactionization and facistization of the bourgeois political institutions, the cut of public rights and freedoms within bourgeois democracy, etc. Crisis of the old State, which is how the crisis and decomposition of imperialism manifests itself in the bourgeois states .

Let’s remember some notes which were previously published in Servir al Pueblo:

“The torrent of mobilization and fury of the Catalan national liberation movement, whose qualitative leap we saw on October 1, 2017 with the holding of the referendum declared illegal by the Spanish State – and its subsequent repression – has led to nothing. We must learn a lesson from what happened.

The Catalan bourgeois politicians have betrayed the Catalan people over and over and again. They have governed in the same way as the political representatives of the Spanish imperialist bourgeoisie. The policy of the Generality of Catalonia (Junts, ERC, and PSC, including the CUP) regarding the increase in the CPI [Translator’s note: Consumer Price Index] and the gains has been the same: none. The policy regarding the housing issue has been the same: allow the gentrification of urban centers, allow the abusive increase in rents, evict the poorest families and vacate social centers. The health policy has been the same: privatization and cutting resources. The democratic rights policy has been the same: repress mobilizations and attack/torture political prisoners. The educational policy has been the same: allow the advancement of concerted and private education, cut resources and attack teachers’ labor rights. With one hand they falsely championed the right to an education in Catalan while with the other they attacked education. The international policy with the State of Israel has been the same: constant denial of the right to exist and defend Palestine. Immigration policy has been the same… even worse! The abuses of the Barcelona Urban Police and the Mossos d’Esquadra throughout Catalonia are notable. And a long etcetera in all the specific government policies.

“Thank goodness ours govern and not the PP and Vox” they say in the TV3 gatherings. The reality is that ERC, Junts and PSC govern exactly the same as PSOE, PP and Vox. The Catalan bourgeois politicians are class enemies of the proletariat and enemies of the people. They seek independence only for their economic interests, they do not hesitate to crush the proletariat and they absolutely do not care about the Catalan language and culture.

(…)

There are two paths in the Catalan national liberation movement: the bourgeois path and the proletarian path. The two paths are completely different in class interests, method and objectives.

The bourgeois path serves the Catalan bourgeoisie, which seeks the independence of Catalonia from the Spanish State to become imperialist itself, continue oppressing its own people and take the leap to oppress other peoples in the world. The bourgeois path keeps the proletariat and the people in poverty, as it has done for centuries. Increase in prices and increase in the CPI, labor exploitation, increase in rents, evictions and police violence, etc. The Catalan bourgeois politicians in Barcelona have governed in the same way as the Spanish bourgeois politicians in Madrid. The bourgeois path urges the masses to participate in the electoral farce, seeking to extinguish the people’s desire for democratic rights and freedoms and spreads racism and chauvinism against the people (both the Spanish people and the oppressed nations of Latin America, Africa and Asia).

The proletarian path serves the proletariat and other democratic layers that make up the Catalan people (democratic petty bourgeoisie, small peasants, artisans and semi-proletarians, etc.), defends the right of self-determination and separation of nations tooth and nail, and fiercely combats the attacks of Spanish chauvinism against the Catalan language and culture. The proletarian path seeks the emancipation of the proletariat, destroying the oppressive bourgeois State – be it the Spanish one or a hypothetical Catalan State – to build socialism, to build the proletarian State. The proletarian path calls for proletarian internationalism and the common struggle of the proletariat of the nations of the Spanish State (Spain, Catalonia, Basque, Galicia) to struggle against the same enemy, the Spanish imperialist State, with the perspective of a federated Socialist Republic of nations and peoples inspired by the great and heroic Soviet Union. If the bourgeois path calls to participate in elections and legitimize the bourgeois State, the proletarian path calls to discard false parliamentary illusions and prepare for the present combats and those to come.”

(Snap Elections in Catalonia: Discard Illusions and Prepare for Struggle. Boycott the Electoral Farce!, published in Servir al Pueblo on March 18, 2024)

Additionally the translation was published in Red Herald on March 21, 2024.

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