Launch of the Parliamentary Network of Friendship Groups of Catalonia
Press release from EFA MEPs J-M Terricabras and Jordi Solé
With the support of EFA MEPs Josep-Maria Terricabras and Jordi Solé, a group of Members of Parliaments from the United Kingdom, Denmark, Estonia and Flanders, together with MEPs from the European Union-Catalonia Dialogue Platform, have established the Parliamentary Network of Friendship Groups of Catalonia.
The members, as expressed in the founding manifesto, are “deeply concerned by the repressive response of Spain to the legitimate and democratic claims of a significant majority of Catalan citizens and institutions”.
This is why they ask "both the EU institutions and the Spanish Government to make a gesture of responsibility towards pushing for dialogue and amending the wrongdoings committed along the way".
The actions that the network will carry out have the following main objectives:
• Calling for the release of elected members and social leaders who are in pre-trial detention, some of them for more than a year now, and for the safe return of the exiled.
• Insisting on the urgent need to find a political solution to the Catalan situation, which is of a political nature
• Urging the European Institutions to mediate in the conflict, which has a clear EU dimension
• Calling for the respect of the right to self-determination of the Catalan People which should be realized through an agreed and binding referendum
• Ensuring the respect, guarantee and full protection of Human and Fundamental rights in Spain and Catalonia, and the normal functioning of the parliamentary work.
• Emphasizing the importance of the separation of powers in order to fight for justice and against the abuse of public power
• Informing our respective public opinion to reinforce awareness of the Catalan cause and promoting solidarity among civil societies
