Europe News

Catalonia Suspends Independence Referendum Campaign

Catalonia's Leaders Still Hope to Hold Vote on Nov. 9

By

Matt Moffett TWSJ

 

Updated Sept. 30, 2014 11:15 a.m. ET

Pro-independence supporters hold cutouts of ballot boxes during a protest in front of the Spanish parliament in Madrid on Tuesday. Catalonia's regional government said it was suspending its promotion of an independence referendum after Spain's Constitutional Court barred the vote from going ahead. Reuters

 

BARCELONA—Catalonia's regional government said Tuesday it was suspending its promotion of an independence referendum, a day after a decision by Spain's Constitutional Court blocking the nonbinding vote.

The Catalonia government will appeal the decision, said spokesman Francesc Homs, but meanwhile is halting the campaign for the Nov. 9 referendum to avoid subjecting public servants to possible legal liability for defying the court.

Separatist Movements in Europe

"As a precautionary matter, we can't put public servants and individuals against the ropes," Mr. Homs said. He described the suspension as "temporary and precautionary," adding that private citizens were free to promote the referendum if they so choose.

Mr. Homs indicated that Catalonia's leaders still hoped to hold the vote Nov. 9, and intend to take legal steps to have Monday's injunction lifted while the court considers the central government's request to declare the referendum illegal.

"Yesterday, nothing ended and the determination of the government is to move forward," he said.

Catalonia's government kicked off a campaign to promote the referendum shortly after its president, Artur Mas, signed a decree setting the date. Catalan authorities outlined plans to ready 10,000 ballot boxes for the region's 5.4 million voters and publicize the referendum with an online video. The government unveiled an informational web video with a slogan: "Remember you have an appointment on Nov. 9. You decide."

Spain's central government asked the court on Monday to outlaw the referendum, arguing that the 1978 constitution requires a majority of all Spaniards to be consulted on any issue of sovereignty. The court agreed hours later to hear the case, a unanimous decision that effectively enjoins Catalonia from holding the vote while it deliberates. Some legal experts say a final decision could take months.

The regional government's decision Tuesday to suspend the referendum campaign followed a threat by the Catalan branch of the Popular Party, which governs at a national level and opposes independence, to file charges against Mr. Mas for alleged misuse of funds.

Alicia Sánchez-Camacho, the Popular Party leader in Catalonia, said that if the campaign moved forward, "all the taxes that we Catalans pay would be being used for an activity that is suspended and illegal.

"The Catalans don't deserve a president who is leading us into illegality and rebelliousness," she added.

Pro-independence citizens' groups in Catalonia said they intended to promote the referendum anyway. Rallies were scheduled at town halls throughout the region Tuesday evening, followed by a door-to-door campaign to persuade people to vote, according to a spokesman for the Catalan National Assembly, the largest pro-independence citizens organization.

The group has been behind the large street protests in the region, including one on Sept. 11 when hundreds of thousands of people formed a miles-long V—for vote—in downtown Barcelona.

Many Catalans complain that their region doesn't receive investments in proportion to the taxes it pays, and that the central government in Madrid meddles in its linguistic and education policy. Spanish officials say Catalonia benefits from being part of Spain, and that many of the region's problems are due to its own leaders.

Write to Matt Moffett at matthew.moffett@wsj.com