Laura Borràs i Castanyer
President
Mr Henrik Dam
Speaker of the Danish Parliament
Dear President,
Parliaments are the seat of popular sovereignty and tasked with debating the concerns and needs
of the society they represent with the aim of turning the conclusions of these debates into
regulations and laws. For this to be possible, MPs must be able to speak freely and without
hindrance. That is why in democratic systems parliaments are considered inviolable and Members
of Parliament are afforded special legal protection.
However, none of this is respected in Spain today. A few days ago we learned of the ruling of the
Spanish Constitutional Court overturning the decisions of the Presiding Board of the Parliament of
Catalonia of 25 September 2019 in which motions for resolutions calling for self-determination and
amnesty for political prisoners were admitted for consideration.
Far from pursuing a solution to the open political conflict with Catalonia, all the Spanish authorities
have chosen to deny reality and crack down on opposition. When a majority of the Catalan
Parliament calls for the right to self-determination and demands amnesty, the Constitutional Court
tries to muzzle the popular will expressed by the democratically elected representatives of the
people.
As
The Economist
has noted, democracy in Spain is flawed. The rights of the Catalan national
minority are systematically flouted. The Spanish courts seek to decide which issues can be debated
in the Parliament of Catalonia, and even which MPs can continue to take part in these debates
given that there have already been two cases of seats being taken away by these Spanish courts.
The first is that of a President of the Generalitat (Catalan Government) for hanging a banner
advocating freedom of speech on the balcony of the Palace of the Generalitat, while the second is
that of a secretary of the Presiding Board of the Parliament for two yellow ribbons hung outside his
office. I have no choice but to bring this to your attention before the violation of our parliament
becomes irreversible.
Yours faithfully,
Palau del Parlament, 11 February 2022