It was a weekend that seemed likely to be momentous for the Catalan National Assembly (ANC), with a meeting on Saturday that was a litmus test for internal unity. In the midst of the critical situation that the major pro-independence entity is going through, with reproaches and critiques between the officialist line and a significant dissident group over the last few weeks, the National Secretariat held a nine-hour conclave in Barcelona at which the formal consummation of the split was a distinct possibility. And so it turned out. The vice-president of the ANC, Jordi Pesarrodona, announced that he was leaving the position - although he will continue as a secretary - while a total of 13 critical members of the secretariat also decided to take a stand and announced their resignation from the governing body. These resignations are in addition to the two that have already taken place in the National Secretariat with two more in the ANC's Permanent Committee over the last few weeks.
However, it is worth noting that the departures have had a limited impact. In the last few days before Saturday's meeting it had been considered that there was a group of up to 24 people prepared to resign. In the end, little more than half of them did so. In addition, during today's session, a point of debate was held on the organization's internal democracy, which sought to reconcile positions and resolve disagreements. A subsequent resolution proposal on the National Secretariat's commitment to improve relations and the internal functioning of the governing body was widely approved, with 40 votes in favour, 8 against and 8 abstentions. These two developments brought a lukewarm sense of satisfaction to the members supporting the established line. "They suffered a great defeat today, they fell far short of their expectations," one national secretary explained to ElNacional.cat, referring to the critics. "We want to make peace, not continue with the blockages, the ill-feeling and the internal battles."
In any case, the departure "en bloc" of the 13 members of the National Secretariat and the resignation of Jordi Pesarrodona have left an inevitable bitter taste. The organization's management quickly issued a short statement in which it "regretted this loss", although it has already added that all outgoing members will be relieved "following established democratic procedures". Nor did the surprise announcement by Uriel Bertran, who renounced the previously-agreed move under which he would take up the vice-presidency from May from Pesarrodona, served to avoid the resignation of the former municipal councilor of Sant Joan de Vilatorrada. Pesarrodona's resignation will not be immediate, but will take effect when an agreed replacement has been found.