He became a national celebrity after his speech at the Parliament of Catalonia on September 7, 2017, when he denounced as spokesman for ‘Catalunya Si Que es Pot’ the performance of the pro-independence parties
VIDEO OF THE SPEECH
http://www.rtve.es/alacarta/videos/especiales-informativos/coscubiela-070917/4206619
He received the standing applause of the members of Parliament of the PSC, the Citizens, the PP and the major part of his own party. He was a member of the Spanish Parliament for ‘Iniciativa per Catalunya’ between 2011 and 2015. He has just published Empantanados (Peninsula), a book that gathers his most recent political experiences in Catalonia.
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The speech of Joan Coscubiela (SíQueEsPot) in the plenary session of the
Parliament of Catalonia
Full text of his speech in the Plenary Session
El Periódico / Barcelona
Friday, 08/09/2017 | Updated on 09/12/2017 at
07:45 CEST
"Good, thanks, good night. These days it is
clear that the Parliament of Catalonia has crossed the Rubicon. For years the extreme
bunker mentality of the Partido Popular, its refusal to recognize the right to
decide, the use of the state sewers, the attempt to solve a political problem
disregarding politics and betting solely on the repression has placed us in
what some have described as an unknown territory. Until this very date, at
these times, in a real state crisis, the only actions that the Popular Party
and the Government of Mr. Rajoy are capable of carrying out are in the field of
judicial courts and criminal responsibilities, and not a single political
proposal.
In this context, it was and still is absolutely
important that the pro-sovereign forces choose the terrain of conflict well.
For years we the sovereign forces have been the ones to win the ideological
battle of democracy. This is what has made us strong; that is what has allowed
us to add, which has allowed us to have a lot of moral authority.
And you, the parliamentary majority, have finished
off this political capital in forty-eight black hours; a political capital which
for five years has been the great strength of the sovereignty side, the great
moral authority of the defense of democracy. And all this only because
irresponsibly you have decided that your strategy of unilateral referendum had
to be carried out at any price, losing sight of what has been the great
political capital of sovereignty: the moral authority of the defense of
democracy.
FORTY-EIGHT BLACK HOURS
The battle of the ballot boxes, the battle of the
referendum can only be won if the path is made from the most scrupulous respect
to democracy here in Catalonia. And so far it had been like this, but during
these forty-eight black hours in the Parliament of Catalonia you have polished
it off. How could you not be able to evaluate, to ignore during those
forty-eight black hours, that placing yourselves in the field of denial of
democratic rights debilitates the objective of the referendum and the
legitimate aspiration held by some of the pro-independence side? And, in
addition, it facilitates the anti-democratic strategy of the PP and the
criminalization of the right to decide.
What a great mistake, Mr. Puigdemont, what great
irresponsibility you have committed yesterday and today. How have you been able
to deliver the flag of democracy to the PP, the party that steps on the
democratic rights of minorities in Spain, the party of the gag, the party of
the life imprisonment, the party of repression of strikes, the party that
denies us the right to decide, the party that is the heir of Fraga, that one of
‘the street is mine’ and of the death sentences of the Franco regime?
HISTORICAL ERROR
All this ... no, all of this, you, during this
Plenary Session of two days, have thrown it overboard because you have allowed
others to take this flag. This is the great consequence of this historical
error of which you will be responsible. I hope to share with Junts pel Sí and
the CUP one thing, which is that the convening and holding of a referendum and
the beginning of a constituent process, which would conclude with the creation
of a republic, are the objectives of this law. These are subjects of great
transcendence - at least, in this we have to agree, I guess, right?
And, therefore, they cannot be treated with the same
superficiality and lack of rigor and contempt for democracy that you have applied
in these sessions. Among other things, because using procedures that deny the
democratic rights of a large part of Parliament delegitimize the legitimate
objectives of the referendum and the constituent process. We are telling you
all the groups in the Parliament.
The means used always condition and affect the
goals achieved. They will be dignified, if the means are worthy, or they will
be degraded and delegitimized, as it happened yesterday, if the means are
authoritarian and barely democratic. And if our arguments do not serve you, I
suggest that you read Norberto Bobbio and all his reflections on purposes and
means and their deep relationship, how they condition each other. The means
used can delegitimize absolutely legitimate goals and this is what you have
done during these forty-eight black hours of the Parliament of Catalonia. The
way you are dealing with these debates shows something very clear: you are not
... we are not facing a serious project.
THE FICTION OF A UNILATERAL REFERENDUM
It is a project that aims only to present a story
to keep going the fiction of a binding unilateral referendum, and that is the
goal that you have placed before us during these forty-eight hours as well. One
can know ..., none of you have yet answered this question: how can one know what
kind of need you had to force the machine today for such a pyrrhic purpose as a
law that is wet paper, and that even if it were not suspended by the Constitutional
Court, would never be applicable, because its limitations make it inapplicable,
the limitations of a law that does not have the capacity and the force behind
to be able to be implemented. This law is placed in the field of political
fiction that you have accustomed us to during these two years of the
legislature. Many of us believe that the social, political and territorial pact
born out of the Constitution, of the Transition, is exhausted, it is most
exhausted. We are many, the ones to believe that a constituent process must be
implemented.
Quite another thing is if this is done from declarations
and motions, or is done by correlating enough forces, because it is not guaranteed
that the final result would be better than what was achieved in the year 1978.
But without doubt, it is legitimate to ask for it. But does anyone think that
such a process can be done outside of the correlation of forces at their
disposal? And that this could be done through a law that declares unilateral
independence and the configuration of a republic, like you are bringing up to
us at this very moment?
The majority has tried, in a moment, to approve a
law that supposedly entails, among other things, the unilateral declaration of
independence and the foundation of the Catalan Republic. Look, we do not
challenge the objectives of this law. They are legitimate, like all goals. What
we do challenge, of course, is the fact that ..., you do not tell us how you plan to achieve them
only with the publication of a law, if it is to be done in the end, and
unilaterally, because that is the really fundamental issue.
Laws can force, have power, coercive capacity,
ability to be imposed. That is why international organizations approve
resolutions and many norms and then they cannot fulfill them, they cannot
impose them, because they lack this coercive capacity to be imposed. This is
the definition of State, the definition that relates the State to norms and
ability to be demanded and, therefore, the possibility of being applied.
THE MEMBER OF SPANISH PARLIAMENT RUFIÁN
A few days ago, someone asked in a talk-show to the
member of the Spanish Parliament Rufián how he would do to apply the law and
expel the Spanish army out of the control of the borders. And his response was:
"I do not know." And when asked how to control air space, his
response was the same: "I do not know." The member of Spanish
Parliament “I do not know”, in the end is recognizing that it is not possible.
Well, well, each and every one of the sections in this law have the same
questions, and all the same answer, that of Mr. Rufián: "I do not
know". How do you plan to enforce this law to exercise sovereignty over
the land and sea space described in Article 6? Could you tell me?
This proposal regulates Catalan nationality and
generously generates the recognition of dual nationality and says that this
will be agreed with the Spanish State, together with public debt and I do not
know how many things. Can you explain to me how it is not possible to agree to
a referendum on self-determination and, on the contrary, a unilateral
declaration of independence can be made, in addition to the Catalan Republic,
and then, after this process, make a negotiation on the double nationality? Can
you explain this to me? Of course you can think, well, about what someone said
in relation to Europe: "OK, they will not dare to leave me outside of Europe,
because then the problem would be theirs, right? Why, it’s so clear…" Someone
has come to say even these kinds of things.
LEGITIMATE
OBJECTIVES
Well, possibly, if you ask this, Mr. Rufián would
say: "I do not know." The objectives are legitimate, but what is not
legitimate is to deceive people. How do you think about explaining the tax
sovereignty, Mr. Junqueras? How do you plan to get the taxes paid to the
Catalan Tax Office, if this is the responsibility of the Spanish State? So far,
you had taken care of keeping up manners, as well as confirming that you would
not put Catalans on the tax risk, that you would not make them choose. However,
now you are offering the citizens of this country the possibility of deciding
whether they want to be confiscated by the Tax Agency of Catalonia or, instead,
prefer to be confiscated by the Spanish state tax agency, because as there will
be two laws, they will have to pay only in one place and the other will confiscate
them. This is what you are considering, at this moment, with this law. And you
have solved this with a paragraph where you so calmly say "and the new State
will protect the citizens against other powers". How? I do not know, Mr. Rufián.
Perhaps Mr. Junqueras knows better - maybe Mr. Junqueras knows better. With
what fiscal data do you plan managing these taxes?
In matters of social security, exactly the same. Do
you plan subjecting companies, freelancers and home employees to the conflict
of deciding where to enter their contributions, whether in the General Treasury
of Social Security of Spain or in the Catalan Social Protection Agency that we
have just passed? Should Catalans choose by whom would they prefer to be confiscated
of their assets to fulfill their obligations? Could you put at risk, are you
willing to put at risk the Catalan workers whom the General Treasury of the
Social Security does not recognize the contributions made by them to the
Catalan Social Protection Agency? How do you plan to pay pensions? Which is not
only and no longer a problem of economic viability, but a problem even of
unfeasibility of management thereof.
By the way, why you do not explain that the social
security system, if it is territorialized, will be born with an annual deficit
of 4,000 million euros, approximately? Why not explain this? How is it paid,
that deficit? I do not know, Rufián. Well, let's continue with this "I do
not know". How do you think managing pensions, if you do not have social
security databases? Are you thinking about stealing them? No, you are thinking
about agreeing with the State from which you have seceded unilaterally. How to
do it? "I do not know."
CATALAN COURTS
And then we continue: courts. You say: "We
will replace the Spanish courts by the Catalan ones." Well, you will tell
me how many judges are willing to comply with this law. And, by the way, as [the
friend Xavier Arbós], who has already been quoted, told you, with a model of
judicial power much less independent than what we already have today. Perhaps
you will build a new country, but a state infinitely worse from this point of
view. How to do it? How to make judges and magistrates decide to enforce the
law that you say is superior, thanks to this divine command you give them? I do
not know, Rufián. Well, well, and all the same continuously.
In court matters, are you thinking about putting in
risk the investigation of the National High Court on the attacks of Barcelona
and Cambrils, entering into conflicts of competence, because you say that the
National High Court will be replaced by a Catalan court? Do you really think
doing this? Maybe yes. How? I do not know. It is incredible and difficult to
understand that political forces that have been installed for decades in the
system structures - I am referring to you - and others, which legitimately,
like the CUP, pretend to build an alternative political, social and economic
system, could be setting up a law that is wet paper. Does it make sense to
approve this? No. Because it will not be applied even if the Constitutional
Court did not annul it.
I am finishing. How is it possible that so many
people from the party Junts pel Sí, who consider this law a great political
error -and they explain it so even if they are not asked to- have not been able
to stop its processing and have gone ahead with the frivolity and the
incompetence of these days?"
Carme Forcadell: "Mr. Coscubiela, your time is
exhausted".
Joan Coscubiela: "I am finishing; two
paragraphs. Are you aware that the great mistake made during these forty-eight
black hours of the Rufián ‘I do not know’ strategy is weakening the goals you
want to achieve? This is the reason for our democratic belligerence during
these forty-eight black hours. We have not managed to explain them here and now.
I hope - I hope – that real life will explain them; unfortunately, it will be
at the expense of everyone. Thank you very much".
https://www.elperiodico.com/es/politica/20170908/discurso-coscubiela-siqueespot-pleno-parlament-catalunya-6273547
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