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WORLD NEWSTuesday 29 September 2015
Spain: Tough talks loom for Catalonia pro-secession parties
CIARAN GILES The separatist “Together government and pick its The President of Democratic Convergence of Catalonia, Artur
IAIN SULLIVAN for Yes” pro-indepen- leader. The Popular Unity
Associated Press dence alliance on Sunday Candidacy party, known Mas, talks to journalists in Barcelona, Spain, Monday, Sept. 28,
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) won 62 seats in Catalonia’s as CUP, won 10 seats and
— Secessionist parties who 135-member parliament, has lambasted Mas for in-
agree on breaking Cata- six short of a majority, forc- voking unpopular austerity
lonia away from Spain but ing it to seek support from measures.
little else started preparing the Popular Unity Candi- Members said Monday
Monday for tough politi- dacy anti-establishment they wouldn’t support any-
cal negotiations aimed at separatist party that de- one to lead Catalonia’s re-
forming a regional coali- tests Artur Mas, the region- gional government linked
tion government to push al leader who called the to “cutbacks and corrup-
their independence agen- vote. tion,” a clear reference to
da despite a warning from No meetings were set Mas, who presided over
Prime Minister Mariano Ra- Monday but both sides cutbacks during Spain’s
joy that any separation at- said talks would begin years of economic hard-
tempt won’t be permitted. soon to form a regional ship during the financial
2015. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
crisis. Spain.
While CUP leader David
Fernandez promised his Prior to the elections,
party will help the “Togeth-
er for Yes” side because Mas and his group had
both share the common
goal of independence, pledged to work for an in-
analysts predicted difficult
negotiations. A new gov- dependent state within 18
ernment isn’t expected to
be in place until Novem- months, including a unilat-
ber.
CUP is “in a tough spot: eral declaration of inde-
supporting Mas would an-
tagonize its voter base, but pendence.
forcing him to step down
could paralyze the inde- But CUP’s main candidate,
pendence process,” said
Antonio Barroso, a London- Antonio Banos, said Mon-
based analyst with the
Teneo Intelligence political day that such a declara-
risk consulting group.
Mas on Monday brushed tion couldn’t now be justi-
off suggestions that his
leadership was in question fied as it would have need-
and insisted that under
party agreements he has ed the backing of more
to be the regional presi-
dential candidate. than half the votes.
He insisted the vote gave
them a mandate to pro- Under the 41-year-old Fer-
ceed with the indepen-
dence drive and that they nandez, CUP has succeed-
would work with CUP “to
carry out the road map” ed regionally in tapping
and to put in place gov-
ernmental structures need- into the same anger at aus-
ed for what he called “the
legal disconnection” with terity measures exploited
by far-left European parties
like Syriza in Greece.
Catalans, he said in an
interview with The Associ-
ated Press last week, need
to claim their sovereignty
as a nation from a Span-
ish state he sees as having
little respect for Catalonia
and is an enthusiastic par-
ticipant in a global capital-
ist economy he labels as
“a war machine that robs,
kills and lies.”
Anti-secession parties
played up the fact that the
pro-independence parties
won just 48 percent of the
popular vote.q
