The Catalan foreign minister, Alfred Bosch, has said the decision by the High Court of Justice of Catalonia to provisionally suspend the opening of the Catalan government's new delegations in Argentina, Mexico and Tunisia is "one of the worst attacks since the 155". Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution was the one used in 2017 by Mariano Rajoy's then government in Madrid to oust Carles Puigdemont's government and take direct control over Catalonia.
The minister has said the government will study the case and defend itself. "It's an attack against freedom of expression and the freedom of action of a democratically constituted government," he said.
L’ordre de tancament contra tres delegacions del @Govern és un dels pitjors atacs a l’autogovern de Catalunya des del 155. Estan prejutjant intencions. Ens defensarem.
— Alfred Bosch🎗 (@AlfredBosch) November 27, 2019
Following what Bosch describes as an "unacceptable" suspension, the Catalan government will appeal. He says that the decision "jumps to conclusions about the creation of three delegations protected by the current competences framework and which have hardly started to work."
The government approved the decrees creating the delegations at the end of June and nominated its delegates at the start of October: David Poudevida in Argentina, Lleïr Daban in Mexico and Ahmed Benallal in Tunisia.
With the new offices, the Catalan government has increased to 15 its delegates around the world, in charge of delegations covering a total of 39 countries. Bosch insisted that "the internationalisation of Catalonia is essential in a global world" and that Catalonia's foreign policy is not only "legitimate" but also "necessary".