The Catalan president-in-exile, Carles Puigdemont, has recalled that this Friday marks the sixth anniversary of Catalonia's unilateral declaration of independence (UDI). In a social media post, he reflects that Parliament is the "legitimate representative of the people of Catalonia". Puigdemont reiterated that all peoples have the right to self-determination, and precisely for this reason, and with the results obtained in the referendum of October 1st, 2017, "six years ago today, Parliament proclaimed the independence of Catalonia". Despite the adversities that the pro-independence leaders have faced since that moment, he warns that "we have neither renounced it nor shall we do so, no matter how hard some try to disown it".
Puigdemont recalled that since 2017 "we have preserved it from the pressure to forget and the drive to disdain from some". In this regard, he defended that for six years "we have stood by it, we have translated it into 25 languages and we keep it alive for when independentism as a whole knows how to come together in a single strategy, overcoming partisan temptations". The president made a call to take care of everything that is achieved so that "it does not lead to renouncing [goals], or dismantling what we started to construct six years ago, despite the fact that to some it seems little and to others it seems too much".
6 years since Catalonia's UDI
Catalonia's declaration of independence has also been celebrated by the general secretary of Together for Catalonia (Junts), Jordi Turull. On the social media X, he recalled that "today, October 27th" 6 years ago, the Parliament of Catalonia passed the Declaration of Independence. Turull reflected that many things have happened since 2017, but he defended that Parliament, which represents Catalan citizens, has never revoked the UDI, "and nor do we renounce its political value or the legitimacy to make it effective".
On October 27th, 2017, the former speaker of the Catalan Parliament, Carme Forcadell, was in charge of reading the Declaration of Independence in the Catalan chamber, and she also wanted to recall that moment. In a social media post, Forcadell referred to the passing of the resolution on the independence of Catalonia. "It's always in my memory", she said.
In the context of the negotiations for a possible investiture of Pedro Sánchez as leader of a new Spanish government, Forcadell affirmed that "hopefully" this will happen because "it will mean that we have progressed nationally as a country" - referring to Catalonia. In an interview this Friday with radio station SER Catalunya, Forcadell explained that the agreement for the investiture would not only involve an amnesty law, but also the "reduction" of the fiscal deficit, the transfer and "improvements" in Rodalies commuter rail services. In addition, she considers that it would mean that "we will be on the way to exercising self-determination".
For its part, the Catalan National Assembly (ANC) has claimed that the unilateral declaration of independence remains "valid" six years later. "It is only necessary to apply it and make it effective", added the ANC in a message on the X network. The organization also highlighted that the mayors of hundreds of municipalities showed support for Parliament and that the support given by civil society was "essential". "Thanks to the people's determination and popular mobilization, the October 1st referendum was held with nearly 3 million votes," they emphasized. Also, in the context of the negotiations for the investiture, the Assembly argues that no "concessions" can be made to those who "suppressed" the sovereignty of Parliament by applying Article 155.