Approaching a September 11th which is once again exceptional, we, Catalan political prisoners and exiles, once again call on Catalan society to lead an exceptional mobilization. Facing the verdict of the Supreme Court, and with the repression against human, civil and political rights continuing, we are convinced that we will manage to make the demonstration on the upcoming Diada, the National Day of Catalonia, into a clamour for perseverance and confidence in the future. We won't let them take away from us the hope of making the country that we want.
Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, has to offer the world the clear and unquestionable message of streets full of commitment and transversality. The Diada demonstration has always been a great example of how, together, respecting the differences and nuances of each one, we have been able to grow and internationalize the collective cause of self-determination, of deciding our political future in democracy and freedom. Everyone is welcome, no-one will ever be vetoed.
October 1st, 2017, was possible because our common goals and determination to assert our rights added up to more than the violence of the state. We know that one of the main objectives of the repression is division. For this reason, the democratic strength of the sovereignist movement, election after election, can only be understood from this clear will to build a shared future. Thus, against the frustration, we must return to the serenity, generosity, maturity and determination of the 1st October.
The success of the Diada will be the best prelude to the response to the Supreme Court's verdict, the best opportunity to display the strength and potential of the sovereignist movement
Let's do our utmost to turn this 11th September into a new indisputable milestone of the democratic will of the people of Catalonia. The success of the Diada will be the best prelude to the response to the Supreme Court's verdict, the best opportunity to display the strength and potential of the sovereignist movement, to say loud and clear that the only just sentence is the acquittal of all those accused in the different courts and an end to all judicial and police proceedings against all those people who are persecuted for their commitment to the full freedom of our people. Peaceful and democratic mobilization has allowed us to move forward as a society.
On 11th September, we have to say, loud and clear, that the only just sentence is the acquittal of all those accused in the different courts. The violation of the political rights of the deputies, senators, MEPs, thousands of activists and, by extension, millions of voters, as well as the dehumanization of the more than one thousand who were wounded and the more than two million who voted on 1st October, they are two sides of the same coin: repression.
The acting Spanish government continues to reject dialogue, a constructive dialogue without repudiations, and Pedro Sánchez is imitating Mariano Rajoy in the irresponsibility of rejecting a political resolution to a political problem
The acting Spanish government continues to reject dialogue, a constructive dialogue without repudiations, and Pedro Sánchez is imitating Mariano Rajoy in the irresponsibility of rejecting a political resolution to a political problem. The state, therefore, continues to ignore the violation of fundamental rights denounced by, among others, the United Nations, while we are on the verge of criminally punishing fundamental rights and freedoms.
Catalan society rejects the repression and wants to decide its future freely. And we are convinced that it will not remain impassive. Because this democratic recession goes well beyond the independence movement and affects all citizens, and especially any political or social movement that wants to freely exercise fundamental rights. That is why we once again call on all democrats in our country, in the Spanish state as a whole and in the international community to join in this defence of rights and freedoms.
In Mas d'Enric, Puig de les Basses and Lledoners, in Brussels, Geneva and St Andrews, we are fortunate to have had and felt, every day, the support of hundreds of thousands of Catalans who also denounce the injustice, who do not give up their yearning and who work stubbornly to live in a more just and better country.
That is why, despite the walls or the distances, we speak to you from serenity and determination. We entrust ourselves to the spirit of dignity and courage of all the Diades, that each one of you entrusts to us at all times. With the serenity of knowing that we are doing all of this together and we will never leave anyone behind on the path. These are the two conditions which will lead us to the full freedom of all the citizens of this country, wherever they were born, wherever they come from and whatever they think.
On 11th September, let's fill Barcelona with democratic dignity and freedom, with no fear about continuing to defend independence and the Catalan Republic as the best project for the present and future, and as the best democratic alternative, in the face of a state that has no proposal for the citizens of Catalonia and that only responds with repression and a permanent "no".
With the memory of those who are no longer with us and for the future of those who have yet to arrive, sharing this struggle with all of you is an honour. In order to do it again, we must be there again.
Dolors Bassa, Antoni Comín, Jordi Cuixart, Carme Forcadell, Joaquim Forn, Anna Gabriel, Oriol Junqueras, Clara Ponsatí, Lluís Puig, Carles Puigdemont, Raül Romeva, Josep Rull, Marta Rovira, Jordi Sànchez, Meritxell Serret and Jordi Turull
8th September, 2019
Prisons of Lledoners, Mas d’Enric and Puig de les Basses; Brussels, Geneva and St Andrews