09/22/2017

Europe must mediate in the Catalan conflict – It will not help to look the other way!

Controversy about independence referendum in Catalonia escalates (Press Release)

The EU has acted as a mediator in many conflicts in the world – so it is out of all reason to remain silent about an internal conflict that might get out of hand and lead to violence. Photo: Ariet via Flickr

The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) has urged the European Union (EU) to mediate in the dispute over an independence referendum in Catalonia. “The EU has acted as a mediator in many conflicts in the world – so it is out of all reason to remain silent about an internal conflict that might get out of hand and lead to violence. Looking the other way is not a suitable approach to conflict prevention,” said Ulrich Delius, the STP’s director, in Göttingen on Friday. “The opposing parties will have to enter a dialogue to calm down the situation and to find a political solution to the dispute over more self-determination for Catalonia.”

The human rights organization strongly criticized the Spanish authorities for trying to close down websites that are supposed to organize or support the independence referendum. “If there are measures to censor or close down web pages in Europe, the EU’s credibility is at stake when it comes to promoting Internet freedom in China and Russia,” explained Delius. “How far do the Spanish authorities think they can go? Would they dare to block the website of the FC Barcelona, just because the club openly promotes Catalonia’s independence?”

The Spanish authorities had closed down the website “referendum.cat” on September 13, 2017. On September 15, the authorities had demanded the cultural foundation PuntCat to delete the contents of its website “ref1oct.cat” – and on September 20, the offices of the PuntCat Foundation were searched and its director, Josep Masoliver, was arrested. “This is a serious violation of the right to freedom of expression, and the issue will most certainly be investigated by European courts,” said Delius. The foundation, which was founded in 2004, aims to promote the Catalan language in the education system and in society.

Headerphoto: Ariet via Flickr