Yet, paradoxically, the parallel that was systematically drawn between the Scottish and the Catalan cases also highlighted the main, crucial difference between them, which was that London had agreed to the Scottish referendum, while Madrid has strongly opposed the holding of a Catalan independence referendum and has repeatedly brought the matter before the Spanish Constitutional Court. Outside observers often imagine the SNP to be a small, single-issue party going up against the two big British parties the Labour and Conservative parties.
That is to misrepresent both the political platform of the SNP, which is more than a pro-independence party, and its place in the Scottish party system, where it is one of the two major political parties the other one being Labour. One cannot make sense of the Scottish independence referendum without understanding the differences in party systems and party competition in Scotland and in the UK as a whole.
These two reasons led to the matter being swiftly settled by a political deal between Edinburgh and London, signed in October , two years before the actual referendum was held. This again clearly marks the Scottish case out from the Catalan one, which is characterised by constitutional conflict. On the contrary, it was noted that:. Outside the colonial context, the principle of self-determination is controversial.
Generally speaking, theories of secession are divided into two categories: those which present secession as a primary right, and remedial-right-only theories, according to which secession is only justified in cases where it can be a remedy in an unjust situation. In this independence White Paper, Catalan nationalists invoked both types of theories.
However, the SNP Government did not give any philosophical, moral or any other type of justification for that claim beyond the argument of historical precedent:. The Union between Scotland and the other nations of the UK did not remove from the people of Scotland their fundamental political right to determine their own constitutional future. The Republic of Ireland and the countries of the former British Empire chose to move to independence from similar constitutional arrangements.
The people of Scotland remain sovereign and have the same right to choose the form of their own Government as the peoples of other nations that have secured independence after periods of union with, or in, other states. Self-determination developed during the 20 th century and has been codified in the fundamental and universal documents of the international system, such as the Charter of the United Nations in and the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of The referendum, and becoming an independent country, would be an act of self-determination by the people of Scotland.
However self-determination is permanent and that principle would continue to be respected following independence by the on-going democratic nature of Government in Scotland. By contrast, in the Catalan case, the nationalist argumentation on self-determination was made in order to convince the Spanish authorities of the legitimacy of a Catalan independence referendum.
This is a belief that all British parties including the SNP share and that is arguably at the very heart of the British political system. All the Unionist parties then agreed that a Scottish independence referendum was both legitimate and inevitable.
The following three quotes, from the same debate in the House of Commons and from representatives of the three major Unionist parties, clearly demonstrate this, as well as being evidence of a shared belief in the doctrine of the mandate. The SNP won the right, through its election manifesto, to ask the question of the Scottish people. Until then, nobody had expected any one political party to be able to win a total majority of seats in the Scottish Parliament, due to the mixed and therefore partly proportional electoral system used for Scottish elections.
However that may be, what is unusual about the Scottish case is that the holding of an independence referendum was governed by a belief in a political doctrine the doctrine of the mandate , rather than by the upholding of a constitutional rule. As a consequence, Catalan nationalists have tried to build their case on constitutional and legal arguments, as opposed to political ones.
To that end, in January , the Catalan Parliament submitted to the Spanish Congress a motion 34 demanding that an independence referendum be organised under article The holding of a consultation must be considered a normal scenario that is fully comparable with that of countries with a democratic tradition and nature, such as Canada and Great Britain which, faced with demands made by a national community linked to a territory that is clearly delimited politically and administratively Quebec and Scotland, respectively , consider that the best form of expression of this collective will is a referendum.
On 19 September , it endorsed a law allowing a non-binding consultation. As argued by two Barcelonan academics:. As a result, the resort to courts has become a key instrument to deal with the conflict and, ultimately, preserve the unity of Spain. The main point made by this article still stands.
Comparing the Scottish and Catalan cases makes the Scottish case appear quite remarkable. A Scottish independence referendum was allowed by the British Government even though it could have blocked it by legal and constitutional means. Moreover, the Clarity Act voted in Canada in allows for the possibility that in the future, a simple majority vote in a Quebec referendum will not be enough to launch the secession process and that a qualified majority will be needed.
So it seems that in the Scottish case, the main obstacle on the road to secession was the Scottish people, a majority of which remained unconvinced of the merits of independence in September This hurdle could be rather easier to overcome in the near future than the legal and constitutional obstacles that the Catalan nationalists still have to face.
The Referendum Experience. Scotland Aberdeen: Aberdeen University Press, The Downing Street Years. London: HarperCollins, Official publications by governments, parliaments, commissions and political parties. The National Transition of Catalonia.
September Programa Electoral Catalunya Scotland in the Union. A Partnership for Good. Inquiry into the Referendum on Separation for Scotland. Paralelamente, incrementaremos las becas universitarias para que nadie se quede sin estudiar por falta de recursos y revisaremos los plazos para que siempre lleguen a tiempo. Aprobaremos un Estatuto del Personal Docente Investigador PDI para asegurar su estabilidad en su carrera profesional y fomentar su actividad innovadora.
Apoyaremos la excelencia y acabaremos con la precariedad de nuestros investigadores. Eliminaremos el copago para dependientes severos y grandes dependientes. Fomentaremos la compra centralizada de medicamentos para reducir costes e impulsaremos convenios a tal efecto entre las CCAA.
Queremos garantizar el derecho a cuidados paliativos a los ciudadanos, vivan donde vivan y mueran donde mueran: que se respeten las voluntades recogidas en sus testamentos vitales y se eviten sufrimientos en caso de enfermedad no tratable con consecuencia irreversible de muerte o en fase terminal. Acabar con las listas de espera Crearemos un Portal de Transparencia del Sistema Nacional de Salud para mejorar la calidad de los servicios sanitarios. Acabaremos con la precariedad, el abuso de la temporalidad y la interinidad que sufren los profesionales sanitarios.
Estableceremos medidas para reducir la siniestralidad laboral y los accidentes de la flota. Revisaremos la Ley de Montes para facilitar el aprovechamiento sostenible de nuestros montes y generar fuentes de recursos para nuestros pueblos. En Cs defendemos la caza y la pesca sostenibles como actividades tradicionales y generadoras de riqueza y empleo en nuestros municipios rurales. Despolitizaremos el Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear para garantizar su independencia y credibilidad.
Reduciremos los descartes y desperdicios alimentarios. Flexibilizaremos los bonos de AVE y Avant para aliviar el bolsillo de quienes se desplazan a menudo y adecuaremos las frecuencias para atraer nuevos viajeros. Revisaremos el sistema de tasas judiciales para que nadie se vea privado de defender sus derechos por falta de recursos y liberaremos a las pymes de pagar estas tasas.
Un alivio fiscal para las familias Bajaremos el Impuesto sobre la Renta a las familias. La mejor bajada de impuestos es la que puede llevarse a cabo. Eliminar el impuesto en las herencias y donaciones entre parientes directos, igual que proponemos para el Impuesto de Sucesiones y Donaciones. Volveremos a presentar nuestra Ley para Acabar con la Morosidad para asegurar el cumplimiento efectivo de los plazos legales de pago y acabar con la impunidad de los deudores morosos.
Eliminaremos todas las barreras regulatorias que frenan el crecimiento empresarial. Reformaremos con urgencia el delito fiscal para hacer cumplir las sentencias. Endureceremos las penas y limitaremos los supuestos en los que se pueda rebajar la pena del delito mediante el pago.
Extenderemos la lista de morosos con Hacienda, reduciendo su umbral a Estudiaremos permitir que puedan beneficiarse de este programa otros colectivos que tienen dificultades para hacer turismo, como las familias numerosas. Ampliaremos las modalidades de mecenazgo reconocidas para incluir otras como el micromecenazgo.
Garantizar unas pensiones dignas ahora y en el futuro Garantizaremos el poder adquisitivo de las pensiones de nuestros padres y nuestros hijos. Recuperaremos el Pacto de Toledo para buscar el consenso en torno a reformas para mantener el poder adquisitivo de las pensiones presentes y futuras y garantizar la sostenibilidad del sistema.
0コメント