The president of the Catalan government, Carles Puigdemont, will not accept a disqualification from Spain's Constitutional Court (TC). "Only the Parliament can suspend me," said the leader in an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro, and in which he has shown his impassiveness to the attacks from the Spanish government in the last days.
In the interview, the president assured that the Spanish government will not stop the referendum of 1st October under any circumstances and regardless of the pronouncements made by the TC.
[INTERVIEW] du Président de la #Catalogne, Carles Puigdemont @KRLS. Propos recueillis par @mdetaillac au @Le_Figaro pic.twitter.com/lUf89FRm0Z
— Catalan Gov. France (@delgovfrance) 24 of July 2017
Puigdemont recalled that there is a majority of Catalans who are committed to a referendum on self-determination, a will that will be reflected in the vote of the 1st October, regardless of whether the TC decides to remove it. "Suspending or expelling me from my office, Madrid will not annul this will," said the president, who added that there is no "strong enough power" to stop "the great electoral college" that will be Catalonia on 1st October.
Ignoring the TC
The president has not only opened the door to challenging the TC in the event of a disqualification, but has assured that the referendum will be made even if the court decides to suspend the law of the referendum, which is the one that has to allow the vote on 1st October. "No suspension, no threat will prevent the Catalans from deciding their future in a democratic way," Puigdemont warned, in a clear challenge to the Spanish government.
Independence in 48 hours
The president has once again insisted on the idea that if the result is favourable to independence in the vote on 1st October, then independence will be proclaimed 48 hours after the publication of the results.
Puigdemont has explained that the results can take between seven and ten days to be published, a count that would therefore be slower than other polls. According to the president, once the date has arrived, they will explain that Catalonia will be "transformed in to an independent State."
After this proclamation, a transition period will be opened that will culminate with constituency elections, which will allow the drafting of the Catalan Constitution, which will then have to be ratified by the Catalan citizens. It will be then, Puigdemont explained, when Catalonia will be able to act as an independent State.
Request for participation
Participation is one of the key factors to the success of the referendum, according to Puigdemont. Following the last survey by the Centre of Opinion Studies, which estimated a participation of 67.5%, Puigdemont asked that Catalans go to the polls on 1st October to give legitimacy to the results. The president has stressed that a "ridiculous participation would amount to losing the referendum".
However, in order to achieve it, Puigdemont explained that the Catalan government will not take a stand in favour of independence, but will maintain a "scrupulous neutrality", which will also be monitored by several international observers, as established by the law of the referendum.