The Spanish government, together with Citizens (Cs) and the Socialists (PSOE), is ready to carry out the closest thing possible to a juridical coup d'état in order to prevent the publication of president Quim Torra's Catalan government in the official Catalan government gazette. In a decision without any legal basis, which could imply criminal responsibilities for anyone who executes it, the Spanish government has decided, by its actions, to assume powers that do not correspond to it, but are, rather, the exclusive competence of the president of Catalonia.
With or without article 155, the Spanish prime minister cannot take decisions that belong to the competence of either the Catalan president —that is, the Catalan ministerial nominations — or a judge — the suspension of the nominations if there is some illegality. Only in today's Spain, where those who govern, a great majority of its political classes and its media — the Spanish media and much of the Catalan media — have chosen unhesitatingly to break the law, is it possible that we are even arguing about this. And only in the mellifluous Catalonia that many dream of and wish for, can these historically-leading media blame Quim Torra for the maintenance of article 155 with the government he designated - a matter which, by the way, did not even rate a mention on some of their front pages.
A total of eight legal associations from within the Catalan juridical sphere, representing thousands of affiliates, have denounced the arbitrariness of the Spanish government and its article 155 parliamentary partners in this latest blunder. The pro-independence civil groups have announced protests, the non-aligned Commons group have said that they are against it and the Catalan Socialists (PSC) has distanced themselves a little. President Torra, incredulous, expressed his confidence that everything was just a threat and the nomination decree would end up being published - Monday being the day that it should appear, since the taking of possession is planned for Wednesday. And Carles Puigdemont has declared forcefully that "the 155 coup leaders think that democracy is like a light switch".
The institutional blockade that the Spanish government is once again seeking has no raison d'être. Not political, nor juridical. Three candidates to the presidency of Catalonia - Puigdemont, Jordi Sànchez and Jordi Turull - were blocked by Spanish justice in decisions that were very, very debatable, which international courts is bound to examine closely in the future. A fourth name was put on the table and from that moment on, the attempts to usurp Torra's functions have been constant. The gesture made by the pro-independence block to avoid going to new Catalan elections seems insufficient unless it is accompanied by a president who is politically humiliated like never before, subject to attacks and insults not only on himself but also on his family. A price that must not be paid.