Catalan president, Carles Puigdemont, has answered the requirement he was sent by Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy for a yes or no answer as to whether independence had been declared. The president's answer was to ask for two months of dialogue.
Via a letter sent to Madrid this Monday morning, Puigdemont has made a last call for dialogue. Specifically, he indicates that his request "taking into account the petitions from numerous international, Spanish and Catalan figures and institutions who have expressed their wish to open negotiations".
The note emphasises that, when the Catalan president offered dialogue on 10th October, he "didn't do it as a demonstration of weakness, rather as a sincere proposal to find a solution to the relationship between the Spanish state and Catalonia which has been deadlocked for years".
Note that the original Spanish text (below) includes an annex with some twenty relevant links, many in English.
Puigdemont also notes that on 1st October, in the referendum, more than two million Catalans voted in favour of independence and "entrusted to the Parliament the democratic mandate to declare independence". This coming after the previous Parliament elections where "a clear majority... voted for independence parties".
Two petitions
Puigdemont continues that he "communicates two petitions" to the Spanish prime minister: the first is to revert the "repression against the people and government of Catalonia", making special mention of the "two leaders of Catalan civil society" who have been behind many peaceful demonstrations of "millions of people" over the years and the head of the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police), Josep Lluís Trapero. The two leaders referred to are Jordi Sànchez and Jordi Cuixart, heads of the pro-independence Catalan National Assembly and Òmnium Cultural respectively. All three have been cited to testify to the National Audience court in Madrid.
The second request is to organise, "as soon as possible", a meeting "to explore initial agreement". The president ends with a call to not let the "situation to deteriorate further" and to act "in good faith, recognising and facing the problems head on".
List of links
As well as the letter's two sides of text, there are two more of links to documents. This annex includes a Spanish translation of the president's speech to the Parliament on 10th October, the Referendum Law, the results of the last Parliament elections and reports by international organisations denouncing the police violence during the 1st October referendum.
Deadline: Thursday
Once this reply has been received, Puigdemont has until Thursday to rectify it. Otherwise, that day, the Spanish prime minister will confirm if he plans to apply article 155 of the Spanish Constitution to Catalonia and revoke its autonomy.