International coverage of the Barcelona Referendum

International press and media organisations around the world responded more with curiosity than with in-depth-analysis on the issue of self-determination for Catalonia in their coverage of the Barcelona Referendum on Catalan Independence of 10 April 2011.

Internacional / 18 d'abril de 2011
In many cases, this was the first time that these media have ever reported on political issues in Catalonia, meaning that the tone tended toward a sense of “who are they, and what could they possibly want?” rather than a sober and balanced view of the political issues involved. On the downside, it’s clear that Catalonia has a long way to go before the aspirations of her people are widely known in the world, but on the positive side, this 10A referendum provided an excellent “first step” toward making Catalonia known both culturally and politically as an entity in itself, and not simply a “Spanish region” as has been the case until now.
 
The most widely-read report was the Associated Press wire story, which was reproduced in many world newspapers and websites. AP reported from Barcelona that “Pro-independence activists are asking citizens of Spain's second largest city in an informal, nonbinding referendum whether the northeastern region of Catalonia should seek to break away and become a wholly autonomous nation.” The report comments on previous referendums held across Catalonia, in which “94 of voters favoured independence”. In a sunny spring morning of voting, they interview a typical voter, Maria Garcia, a 79-year old retiree, who “said she voted yes to independence to allow Catalans greater control of their own finances”.
 
The UK’s leading quality newspaper, The Guardian, carried a brief but balanced story on the voting and the underlying issues. It quoted the Barcelona Decideix spokesman Alfred Bosch’s declaration on declaring the turnout results: We could never, even in our wildest dreams, have imagined a turnout like this". Apart from reporting accurately the turnout and the 90% approval by voters for independence, the report notes the importance of the fact that Catalan President Artur Mas voted in favour of independence in the 10A vote. It also provides analysis from Catalan Government minister Felip Puig quoted in the Barcelona newspaper Ara: "This marks a change in the political cycle”. For balance, the reporter Giles Tremlett also notes that: “Non-separatists pointed out that the weekend referendum in Barcelona showed the vast majority of Catalans were not interested enough in independence to take part,” but finishes his report with a reminder to readers that pro-independence sentiment “has been on the increase in Catalonia ever since the constitutional court last year struck out parts of a new autonomy charter for the region that had been approved at a legal referendum.”
 
The influential political and cultural blog MonstersAndCritics, one of the world’s most popular websites on current affairs with more than a million hits per day, also carried an analysis of the 10A referendum. Apart from providing the results noted in other reports, showing a 90% support from voters and a 1-in-5 turnout, the report gets to the heart of the underlying issues in the Barcelona referendum and the votes which preceded it: “Since the Spanish government does not authorize official referendums on independence, the Catalan votes were organized privately by volunteers. Organizers said they wanted Catalans to express their opinion on a question that Spain did not want out in the open”.
 
Deutschlandfunk, Germany’s radio station, reported in detail from the streets and polling stations of Barcelona. Their reporter interviews 10A member Lluís Vila, who comments on the unofficial nature of the vote and the lack of support from municipal authorities and others: “We have no access to electoral registers.” In solving this problem, reports Deutschlandfunk , the organisation has had to develop an innovative IT system which prevents voter duplication.
 
The report quotes the central question in the referendum: “Do you agree that the Catalan nation should be an independent, democratic and social constitutional state, and part of the European Union?" and goes into some detail on the underlying issues of what makes people wish to vote in the 10A referendum:  “The [political] parties have betrayed the Catalan civil society. The idea of ​​a federal Spanish multinational state, has proven to be an illusion. They deceive us, they don’t respect the rights of Catalonia, do not keep their promises. Therefore, we should have a separate state within the European Union.” "The deficit from what we pay to Spain, and what we have received, can easily be calculated. It is between 20 and 22 billion [Euros] a year.” 
 
The French speaking media has also covered the news. The influential French newspaper Le Monde opened its European section with the referendum. The article reports on the results and highlights that the referendums attracted more than 850,000 voters in Catalonia. The report notes the importance of the fact that Catalan President Artur Mas voted in favour of independence.The main theme of the article is the possibility that CiU, the Catalan nationalists, backs independence in the near future.
 
The Belgian French Radio (RTBF) reports in detail from Barcelona. The reporter, Henry de Laguérie, interviews Elisenda Paluzie, who explains that the objective of this movement is to have an official and binding referendum organized by Catalan institutions. He also interviews Jan Jambon, spokesman of N-VA, the Flemish independentist party that won last Belgian election, who comments on the good organization of the referendum and the importance of the participation results that cannot be denied by politicians.

Vince Ballai reported from Barcelona on behalf of Hungarian daily Origo Nagyvilág that “A movement which started in a small Catalan town on Sunday reached its climax in Barcelona” The report quotes Spanish PM José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero’s comment whwen he learned about the 2009 Arenys de Munt vote: "I don’t think that the epidemic will spread", but, comments Ballai, Zapatero was wrong.
 
Ballai charted in detail the process whereby the Arenys de Munt referendum has led to a wave of similar votes across Catalonia: “despite Zapatero's prediction, a broad social movement has grown.” The political background is examined in detail: In January, Jordi Pujol, Catalan veteran politician said that there was no other way the Catalan nation to survive, except through independence, and more than 20 years he was president of the autonomous region […] Pujol announced in early April, that he has already cast an advance vote in advance of the next separation. He was joinedby a number of members from the majority group in the Catalan parliament, Convergencia i Union.” Beyond the political scene, Ballai determines that the main issue is self-determination: “the Catalans themselves must determine their future”.
 
Sources

The Guardian
Associated Press (through Winnipeg Free Press)
MonstersAndCritics.com
Radio Deutschlandfunk (in German)
Le Monde
Origo Nagyvilág

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