Una Solució, Si Us Plau: Self-determination and the Catalan Crisis

• Citation: Vol. 36 No. 2
• Publication year: 2022

Una Solució, Si Us Plau: Self-Determination and the Catalan Crisis

Jared Skinner

UNA SOLUCIÓ, SI US PLAU: SELF-DETERMINATION AND THE CATALAN CRISIS

Abstract

Nestled in the corner of Spain is the birthplace of a people and a political conflict as old as the history of the peninsula itself. Catalonia, long a bastion for independence movements around the world, is caught at the center of tensions between traditional regionalism and political centrality in Spain. As internal unrest continues to intensify, miring discussion and dialogue, the crisis creeps closer to a point of drastic political uncertainty. Exhausted with the enduring lethargy of domestic and European legal fora, the Catalans have often thought of turning to international law for a solution. This Comment draws upon decades of scholarship in the realm of self-determination to argue for a critical re-analysis of these now-dated concepts. Formulated in response to a post-colonial era, the mechanism of self-determination fails to ascertain and address the challenges faced by modern ethnopolitical minorities. A reassessment of the norms of self-determination could provide novel and politically stabilizing options for stateless groups in Europe and other parts of the world.

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Table of Contents

Introduction.............................................................................................390

I. Myth and History: Making Sense of the Modern Legal Maze of Catalonian Secession...................................................392

A. Early History: Myth and Nation Building ................................ 393
B. The Middle Period and La Diada ............................................. 394
C. Twentieth Century: Terror and Rebuilding .............................. 396
D. Tumultuous Modern Legal and Political Atmosphere.............. 398

II. Where Is the EU?............................................................................403

A. The Law on Its Face ................................................................. 404
B. When Law Collides with Aspiration ......................................... 408
C. Has the EU Well Run Dry? ....................................................... 409

III. International Law........................................................................411

A. Self-Determination and Secession in International Law .......... 412

1. Peoples ............................................................................... 413
2. External Self-Determination and Secession ....................... 415
3. Internal Self-Determination and Beyond.............................420

Conclusion.................................................................................................423

Introduction

Greuge in Catalan means "grievance" or "affront."¹ This is a word at the core of the Catalonian character, a word branded on the lips and hearts of those struggling for independence in the region for hundreds of years.² The willful obliviousness towards Catalan culture and its concerns, the neglect, and often deliberate ill-treatment of the region and its people have festered in the collective national memory. Unaddressed grievances, unsettled affronts, and an utter failure of communication are now an essential part of the makeup of the Catalan people, their land, their pátria³ and its relationship with greater Spain. These grievances, their seemingly interminable nature, and the search for a solution are the subject of this Comment.

This is a conflict about language, history, and the failure to settle upon a cohesive national narrative. The pluri-nationalism of modern Spain is a dizzying descendant of a nation haunted by violent twentieth century totalitarianism,

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which only exacerbated centuries of confused attempts at bureaucratic nation-building amongst the country's many regions. The political idea that Spain relies on is a kind of "dual nationalism," comprising of a loyalty to one's region and the nation of Spain. For a country creeping ever closer to neo-Francoist rhetoric in its political dialogue,⁴ the Catalonian independence crisis represents a key moment for the future of Spain. This moment hinges on a fragile balance between the anti-regionalist rhetoric of the Vox party⁵ and the pro-independence groups of the Catalan secessionists.⁶ The contemporaneous demands for separatism, and the subsequent instability resulting from the region's clash with the central government in Madrid, retrogresses an already historically tenuous situation.

Amidst this startling backdrop, one would assume international law would lend some method of relief: either by custom, action, or at least advocacy. This Comment hopes to gauge why this is unfortunately not the case for the Catalan situation and to offer a potential remedy for an international legal tool that has proven ineffective. Every further action by the Spanish State, in its unfailing resistance and steadfast unwillingness to compromise, further atrophies the already-weakening emotional ties that the region has towards the central government. This tension was a key factor in driving Spain to a civil war less than a century ago, and with the internal situation habitually embittered and motionless, the need for external aid is now.

This is a complex problem which requires all the support international law can lend. This Comment will point out areas in which international law must be refined to assuage problems like the ones faced by the Catalans. Part I will begin by focusing on the local situation of Catalonia in Spain before expanding into international legal obligations under the law of the European Union (EU) in Part II. Finally, this Comment will address to what extent international law speaks to this issue and how its principles may remedy a situation at a standstill in Part III. Ultimately, this Comment attempts to posit three central claims. First, that the

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Catalans as an ethnic group and political minority have legitimate, historical claims worthy of acknowledgement. Second, that the EU has a concrete but compromised interest in maintaining order in an increasingly fragile situation. Third, given the compromising predispositions of the EU, international law must confront the challenges presented. This involves reconceptualizing or further developing the principle of self-determination, which has been static since its formation, but must adapt to meet the increasingly common demands of groups like the Catalans.

I. Myth and History: Making Sense of the Modern Legal Maze of Catalonian Secession

Catalonia's history is one that predates the concept of Spain by hundreds of years and as such, it is one of rich contradiction, foundational mythmaking, and profound emotional influence. This section will provide an outline of their colorful past to understand the legal puzzle that the region finds itself in today. This legal-historical sketch is included because it is part of the story, as important an element in modern Catalan life as any bit of the contemporary news, and key to understanding the region's place in international legal discourse.⁷ Throughout the journey, it will become clear that there are several common motifs: that abuse, the challenge of dual nationality, the contention of multilingualism, and above all, secession attempts, are not new to Catalonia.

It is important to distinguish what these historical facts do not mean. They have no bearing on the legal status of Catalonia today. These stories are an essential part of Catalans' cultural story and lend credence to their position as a distinct, minority political group.⁸ This section will highlight those episodes critical to the formation of the Catalan pátria, elaborating only on the grievances and the triumphs central to the legal debate currently tearing the nation at its seams. The section ends with a snapshot of the legal situation of modern Spain, stressing the key issues of constitutional crisis and subsequent deadlock stemming from illegal referenda and lack of governmental relief. The problem

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that will begin to emerge is the gulf that exists between groups like the Catalans and their ability to attain relief under the law.

A. Early History: Myth and Nation Building

The legend of the pátria of Catalonia begins in an Iberia on the threshold of antiquity, in a city what was then called Barcino, perhaps named by the Romans or after the infamous Carthaginian General.⁹ In its first millennium the occupants of the northeastern corner of the rugged, Iberian marchland came to be known as the Catalans, their name possibly deriving from the "Gothic" settlers who originally emigrated to the region.¹⁰ Although their etymology remains shrouded in mystery, it is no secret that their existence was torn between the many powerful kingdoms to the south and the Frankish militaristic state to the north from the beginning.¹¹ Following a term of occupation under Charlemagne in the ninth century and a period of brief independence, the Catalans secured a marital union with the powerful kingdom of Aragon.¹² This alliance, coupled with the leadership of Count-King Jaume I "the Conqueror," began Catalonia's mercantile domination of the Mediterranean with its powerful seafaring and commercial empire based out of what was by now called Barcelona.¹³

In the late fifteenth century Ferdinand and Isabella united in marriage, forging their respective kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, declaring themselves King and Queen of las Españas (the Spains), and creating "a plural political entity, a composite monarchy similar to those found elsewhere in the Europe of their day."¹⁴ Unfortunately, the Iberian situation would prove immensely more complicated to consolidate, as this "composite monarchy" comprised of the several autonomous territories under allegiance to a single ruler proved difficult to navigate.¹⁵ By the late sixteenth century, the Catalans had grown jealous of the immense growth of the Castilian...