Annoyance is growing in the Pyrenean district of La Cerdanya because the Spain-France frontier which runs through the middle of their community is still being kept closed. Local mayors are complaining that "distortions" are being created due to the many ties, from commercial to cultural, that are part of everyday life for the cross-border district, according to Northern Catalonia's Ràdio Arrels.
Currently, professional people and a series of special cases have been allowed to cross the border since it was closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. But different criteria are used depending on the police on duty at each checkpoint. "With the same document, some police authorize a journey and others will not," says the broadcaster, which notes that Spain has opened its border at another point in the Pyrenees - that with Andorra - without any problems.
The mayor of Estavar (Alta Cerdanya, under French administration), Laurent Leygue, expressed his displeasure and demanded that the two states speed up the opening of the border. "Those in Madrid and Paris, when they talk about opening borders, are only thinking of tourists, not cross-border districts and they really don't worry about us or know what is happening," he said.
In the radio interview - in the Catalan language, another of the aspects that unites La Cerdanya - Leygue asks for the authorities to at least set a clear date. "Some are talking about July 15th, others July 21st and others July 1st," he lamented. He also recalled that there is the complex case of the enclave of Llívia, a Spanish enclave surrounded by territory under French administration, and called for the immediate opening of the small border crossing through this town. The direct route from Leygue's village Estavar to the largest nearby town of Puigcerdà, running through Llívia, crosses the border three times.
The 8.5km route from Estavar to Puigcerdà, which crosses the French-Spanish border 3 times. Base for map: Google Earth
“People are getting a little annoyed,” warned the mayor of Estavar. "Why are they opening the border in Andorra and not here?" he asked.