A photograph taken in Brussels of Miriam Nogueras, spokesperson for Junts in Congress, Carles Puigdemont and Jordi Turull.Delmi Álvarez
The recent maneuvers of Junts per Catalunya in the Parliament to promote a popular legislative initiative that aims to proclaim Catalan independence have once again put the focus on the singularities of the negotiating tactics adopted by the party led by Carles Puigdemont.
In the midst of a debate with the PSOE in the Congress of Deputies to reach an agreement on the amnesty law, the
post-convergent
formation endorses in the regional parliament a plan that represents a return to the starting box of the separatist challenge.
More information
Puigdemont's judicial future, between the Supreme Court and the amnesty
Junts and the PSOE signed a commitment three months ago to give “stability” to the legislature, but both partners maintain a constant pulse.
Jordi Turull, general secretary of JxCat, repeats that the priority is “maintaining the position.”
Privately, officials from the independence party point out that “Junts and the PSOE start from a considerable distance and it is normal that it is difficult to reach a meeting point.”
Although the alternative is to leave the PP and Vox free, Junts did not hesitate to delay an agreement with the PSOE for the Congress Board or for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez.
Furthermore, the party devised a parliamentary stunt to avoid staging explicit support for the Government in approving the decrees of economic measures.
And the amnesty law does not represent any truce in the negotiating tension.
Meanwhile, in Catalonia, Esquerra has chosen to focus its efforts on reaching an agreement with the PSC to approve the budgets and relegate Junts.
The facilitator
The president of the Parliament, Anna Erra, has been the facilitator for the successful processing of a popular legislative initiative to approve a law in favor of the declaration of independence of Catalonia.
Erra has a reputation for being a judicious and moderate figure within Junts.
“It is not a decision of the president, it is a party decision.
And it is coherent, because Junts has always considered that in the Parliament we can talk about everything,” they say from the formation.
The procedure to revive faith in independence “is an illusory, extemporaneous approach that does not come from any representative force,” says one of the parliamentary advisors who has channeled the proposal, but it reinforces the theory that at a negotiating table Junts is an unpredictable eater.
After 23-J, Puigdemont sold the idea that a Government led by the PSOE did not matter to him or another where the PP and Vox were.
Junts hung by a thread until the last moment the appointment of the socialist Francina Armengol as president of the Congress Board.
Then, during Pedro Sánchez's investiture debate, Miriam Nogueras issued a warning to the PSOE candidate, moments before the vote: "Don't tempt fate with us."
The push for a new parliamentary ingenuity related to independence has fueled speculation in the final stretch of the amnesty negotiation and puts the thermometer on the level of trust between JxCat and the socialists.
“The ILP (popular legislative initiative) should not have any impact on the amnesty negotiation, there is no intention to compromise the PSOE,” reports a Junts source close to the leadership.
“The dialogue is constant and fluid,” says the same person.
“The relationship between Junts and the PSOE will always be tense, but it is a relationship between two partners who can understand each other,” indicates another Junts position, with a direct connection to the leadership.
The understanding between Junts and the PSOE involves reaching an amnesty law that meets the expectations set by Puigdemont and his lawyer Gonzalo Boye, and that does not affect the constitutionality of the articles.
“Pedro Sánchez is interested in approving the budgets, but for Junts the amnesty is the most important law of the legislature,” the party indicates.
Regarding the difficulty that would entail giving public explanations if the amnesty ultimately does not prosper, the argument is that it is more difficult to stand up for an amnesty that leaves defendants outside of judicial benefit.
“Pretending that all those affected by the
Tsunami case
remain within the law is not to humiliate the PSOE,” the party defends.
On November 9, the PSOE and Junts per Catalunya made public a four-page document that, supposedly, had the value of an agreement between both parties to promote the “stability of the legislature.”
Two and a half years earlier, in May 2021, Junts had signed another government commitment, in that case with Esquerra, to “guarantee stability throughout the entire legislature” in the Generalitat.
Junts ended up leaving the Government mid-term.
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