THE GUARDIAN
Letters
21-09-2017.-
We, the undersigned peers and MPs, have a range of opinions on whether Catalonia should be independent or remain part of Spain (
Report, 21 September). However, we all agree that the issue should be decided by the people of Catalonia in a democratic and peaceful way. We are extremely disturbed by the measures taken by the Spanish government to prevent the referendum, agreed to by the Catalan parliament, taking place on 1 October.
These measures include: taking to court 700 Catalan mayors for allowing preparations for the vote to go ahead, seizing campaign material and ballot papers, threatening to cut off power to polling stations, arresting and charging a newspaper editor accused of aiding the preparations for the referendum and banning a public meeting called in Madrid to discuss the issue. The Spanish government has now sent in the Civil Guard to occupy government buildings, with ministers and officials arrested, and has taken control of the Catalan government’s finances.
Both King Felipe and the prime minister of
Spain, Mariano Rajoy, have publicly called on Catalans not to vote.
We believe, however, that the democratic way to proceed would be for opponents of Catalan independence to campaign for their position in the referendum. That was the stance of the UK government in respect of the Scottish independence referendum in September 2014.
This referendum was democratically agreed to by the Catalan parliament. To attempt to impede or stop it through sanctions, criminal charges and direct action by the Spanish state is an affront to democracy and threatens to embitter relations between
Catalonia and the rest of Spain. We call on the Spanish government to allow this democratic test of Catalan opinion to go ahead without further hindrance.
Hywel Williams
Plaid Cymru, chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Catalonia
Tony Berkeley
Labour, House of Lords
Deidre Brock
SNP
Douglas Chapman
SNP
Joanna Cherry
SNP
Ronnie Cowan
SNP
Martin Docherty-Hughes
SNP
Neil Gray
SNP
Drew Hendry
SNP
Ben Lake
SNP
Chris Law
SNP
Stewart McDonald
SNP
Angus B MacNeil
SNP
Carol Monaghan
SNP
Gavin Newlands
SNP
Chris Rennard
Lib Dem, House of Lords
Andrew Rosindell
Conservative
Tommy Sheppard
SNP
Chris Stephens
SNP
Martin Vickers
SNP
Dafyyd Wigley
Plaid Cymru, House of Lords
Patricia Gibson
SNP
• As academics working in the fields of law, human rights, politics, sociology, history and related subjects in the UK and Ireland, we write to draw attention to the political repression that is being conducted by the Spanish government and national police to prevent the Catalan government holding a referendum on independence.
We support the demands by constitutional lawyers in Catalonia and Spain to cease all action disrupting the referendum there. Section 155 of the Spanish constitution states that the government can only compel an autonomous community (state or regional government) to carry out legal actions with the prior consent of a majority of the Spanish senate. No such vote has taken place.
We are concerned that the level of political repression in Catalonia is of a severity and arbitrary character not experienced since the Franco dictatorship. We demand that Spain immediately ceases the political repression in Catalonia and enables the people of Catalonia to be allowed to freely express their political views.
Dr Vickie Cooper
Open University
Dr Robert Knox
University of Liverpool
Dr Michelle Farrell
University of Liverpool
Professor David Whyte
University of Liverpool
Professor Imogen Tyler
University of Lancaster
Professor Keith Ewing
King’s College London
Professor Steve Tombs
Open University
Professor Sian Moore
University of Greenwich
Professor Penny Green
Queen Mary, London
Professor Terry Eagleton
University of Lancaster
Professor Andrew Watterson
Stirling University
Professor Michael Lavalette
Liverpool Hope University
Professor Hugo Radice
University of Leeds
Professor Phil Scraton
Queens University Belfast
Professor Paddy Ireland
University of Bristol
Professor J Magnus Ryner
King’s College London
Professor Tim Newburn London School of Economics
Professor Bill Bowring
Birkbeck
Professor Joe Sim
Liverpool John Moores University
Professor Sol Picciotto
University of Lancaster
Professor Gilbert Achcar
SOAS
Professor Miguel Martinez Lucio
University of Manchester
Professor Vincenzo Ruggiero
Middlesex University
Professor Tony Ward
Northumbria University
Professor Paul Stewart
Strathclyde University
Professor Ronnie Lippens
Keele University
Professor Peter Willetts
City University of London
Professor Gabe Mythen
University of Liverpool
Professor Alex Law
Abertay University
Professor Alfredo Saad Filho
SOAS
Professor Benjamin Selwyn
University of Sussex
Dr Andrew Henley
Keele University
Dr John Reynolds
Maynooth University
Dr Lynn Hancock
University of Liverpool
Dr Paul O’Connell
SOAS
Dr Rachel Seoighe
Middlesex University
Dr Illan Rua Wall
University of Warwick
Dr Jon Burnett
Swansea University
Dr Monish Bhatia
Birkbeck
Dr Tom Slater
University of Edinburgh
Dr Niall Whelehan
University of Strathclyde
Dr Kanchana N Ruwanpura
University of Edinburgh
Dr Julia Downes
Open University
Dr Adam Hanieh
SOAS
Dr Joshua Curtis
University of Liverpool
Dr Kathryn Chadwick
Manchester Metropolitan University
Dr Jonathan Dean
University of Leeds
Dr Paul Reynolds
Edge Hill University
Dr Jeffery R Webber
Queen Mary, London
Tor Krever
University of Warwick
Dr Ashok Kumar
Queen Mary, London
Dr Daniela Tepe-Belfrage
University of Liverpool
Dr Chris Hesketh
Oxford Brookes University
Dr Adam Fishwick
De Montfort University
Dr Úna Barr
Liverpool John Moores University
Dr Emily Luise Hart
University of Liverpool
Caroline Metz
University of Manchester
Dr Roberto Roccu
King’s College London
Dr Samantha Weston
Keele University
Dr Andrew Henley
Keele University
Hannah R Wilkinson
Keele University
Dr Andrew Davies
University of Liverpool
Dr Alex Colas
Birkbeck
Dr Ben Whitham
De Montfort University
Dr Clare Frances
Moran Edinburgh Napier University
Dr Ciaran Gillespie
University of Surrey
Dr Cristina Delgado-García
University of Birmingham
Dr David Pattie
University of Birmingham
Dr Diana Miranda
Keele University
Dr Elizabeth Cobbett
University of East Anglia
Dr Emma L Briant
University of Essex
Dr Feyzi Ismail
SOAS
Dr Gregory Schwartz
University of Bristol
Dr Grietje Baars
The City Law School
Dr Hazel Cameron
University of St Andrews
Dr Ian Mahoney
Liverpool Hope University
Dr Ioannis Kalpouzos
City University of London
Dr Jim Phillips
University of Glasgow
Dr John Moore
Newman University
Dr Juan Grigera
University College London
Dr Lena Wånggren
University of Edinburgh
Dr Lisa White
University of Lincoln
Dr Louise Kowalska
Ruskin College, Oxford
Dr Mark Hayes
Solent University
Dr Mary Corcoran
Keele University
Dr Matthew Donoghue
University of Oxford
Dr Liam Campling
Queen Mary, London
Dr Ian Bruff
University of Manchester
Dr Michael Harrison
University of South Wales
Dr Mike Gordon
University of Liverpool
Dr Oscar Berglund
University of Bristol
Dr Peter North
University of Liverpool
Dr Phil Edwards
Manchester Metropolitan University
Dr Rafeef Ziadah
SOAS
Dr Richard Wild
University of Greenwich
Dr Rizwaan Sabir
Liverpool John Moores University
Dr Rumyana Grozdanova
University of Liverpool
Dr Shane Darcy
National University of Ireland, Galway
Dr Sofa Gradin
King’s College London
Dr Stephen Bowman
University of the Highlands and Islands
Dr TJ Coles
University of Plymouth
Dr Will Jackson
Liverpool John Moores University
Michael Philip Bridgewater
Newcastle University
Jack Copley
University of Warwick
Dr Lindsey Metcalf
Liverpool John Moores University
Dr Féilim Ó hAdhmaill
University College, Cork
Dr Camille Stengel
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Dr Ewan Gibbs
University of the West of Scotland
Dr Bertie Russell
University of Sheffield Urban Institute
Dr Lisa Tilley
Queen Mary, London
Dr Aoife Daly
University of Liverpool
Dr Gareth Dale
Brunel University
Dr Thomas MacManus
Queen Mary, London
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