Many in the Spanish state of Catalan have desired independence for quite some time now, but with the economic situation in Spain so quickly deteriorating, it has become more pressing. There was a march in Barcelona in support of separation on Friday. The separatists have proposed that if they hold the majority in the upcoming Parliamentary election that they be granted the right to secede. The Prime Minister is reluctant, though. And many other obstacles stand in their way, like the fact that they would have to reapply for European Union membership, thus being added to the bottom of a long list of candidates. But Catalans are confident the EU would re-accept them.
This is very interesting to me because I had no idea that Catalan wanted to secede. It makes sense though, because they have a different language and the state's economy is doing relatively well in comparison to the rest of Spain. It is always weird when modern countries want to separate or change borders and things like that because we are so used to what they look like on a map. It will be weird if this happens for their to be a Spain and a Catalan on the globe, but we can be grateful that this battle for independence is only a figurative one and will not be as bloody the American Revolution.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/12/world/europe/catalans-campaigning-for-independence-march-in-barcelona.html?ref=world
It is astounding to think that new countries are currently being bargained for rather than just hundreds of years ago. I think it makes sense, like you said, that if Catalan can sustain itself without the rest of Spain, and the culture can become separate, then they have the right to split.
ReplyDelete-shara Jeyarajah