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Text of official English translation of Catalan President Puigdemont’s letter to the Prime Minister of Spain (Original was in Spanish; Screenshot of English translation at bottom of our blog post):
“His Excellency Mr Mariano Rajoy Brey President of the Spanish Government Palacio de la Moncloa 28071 Madrid
Dear President Rajoy,
On October 1st, the people of Catalonia decided its independence in a referendum endorsed by a high percentage of voters. A higher percentage than the one that allowed the United Kingdom to start the Brexit process, and with a number of voters in favour larger than the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia.
On October 10th, the Parliament held a session to assess the outcome of the referendum and its effects. There I proposed to suspend the effects of the popular mandate.
I took this decision to foster the dialogue that political and social institutions and leaders from all over Europe and the rest of the world have repeatedly been asking of you and myself. Similarly, in my letter on Monday, I proposed to hold a meeting with you and it has not yet been attended.
In the same way, the request to stop repression has not been met either. On the contrary, it has increased, resulting in the imprisonment of the president of Òmnium Cultural and the president of the Catalan National Assembly, social institutions of a renowned civic, peaceful and democratic trajectory.
This suspension is still in force. The decision to apply Article 155 of the Constitution corresponds to the State Government, with prior authorization from the Senate. Given all our efforts and our willingness to dialogue, if the only answer of the Spanish Government is the suspension of self-government, it shows that you are not aware of the problem and that you do not want to enter into dialogue.
Finally, if the State Government persists in blocking dialogue and the repression continues, the Parliament of Catalonia will proceed, if deemed appropriate, to vote on the formal declaration of independence, which it did not vote on October 10th.
Sincerely,
Carles Puigdemont Casamajó
Barcelona, October 19th 2017 ”
Original English translation in PDF here: http://premsa.gencat.cat/pres_fsvp/docs/2017/10/19/19/17/4afaa80c-8096-4a39-a542-371a75178c6d.pdf
19-10-2017 09.45 Carta del president de la Generalitat al president del govern espanyol Arxius adjunts: 5
http://premsa.gencat.cat/pres_fsvp/AppJava/notapremsavw/detall.do?id=302925&idioma=0&departament=19&canal=20 Translations in multiple languages at the link.
Recall that 5,313,000 should have had the right to vote. 770,000 could not vote simply because 400 polling stations had been closed and ballots seized by the Spanish police. Thus, only approximately 4,543,000 actually had the right to vote, but apparently risked injury at the hands of the Spanish police. 2,262,424 voted, meaning that the turnout was actually at around 50%. The above is our interpretation based on the facts presented here: Oct. 2nd 1.50 am update (and at their twitter account): http://premsa.gencat.cat/pres_fsvp/AppJava/notapremsavw/303468/ca/el-si-simposa-amb-un-90-dels-vots-2-262-424-catalans-que-han-pogut-votar.do
See: “Catalonia: 893 Injured By Spanish Police While Trying to Vote-Required Medical Care; 90% Vote for Independence; Party of Spanish PM was Founded by Francoist-Fascists.” (Note that the number injured increased after original posting so the title was changed: https://miningawareness.wordpress.com/2017/10/02/catalonia-referendum-at-least-844-injured-by-spanish-police-while-trying-to-vote-90-vote-for-independence-party-of-spanish-pm-was-founded-by-francoist-fascists/
“Spain to suspend Catalonia’s autonomy in response to independence threat Posted:Thu, 19 Oct 2017 17:01:26 -0400 MADRID/BARCELONA (Reuters) – Spain’s central government said on Thursday it would suspend Catalonia’s autonomy and impose direct rule after the region’s leader threatened to go ahead with a formal declaration of independence if Madrid refused to hold talks. ” http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/worldNews/~3/Vt6ztprxDr8/spain-to-suspend-catalonias-autonomy-in-response-to-independence-threat-idUSKBN1CN365
Click to access 4afaa80c-8096-4a39-a542-371a75178c6d.pdf
19-10-2017 09.45 Carta del president de la Generalitat al president del govern espanyol Arxius adjunts: 5
http://premsa.gencat.cat/pres_fsvp/AppJava/notapremsavw/detall.do?id=302925&idioma=0&departament=19&canal=20 Translations in multiple languages at the link.
Note that the reason we cut and past the text as well as posting the screen shot is that the text can be more easily searched within the blog and online, whereas a picture cannot.
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