Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The situation in Catalonia is complex and divisive. We, in this country, have a certain understanding of that. I welcome the opportunity to put on the record the position of the Labour Party on the situation in Catalonia.

First and foremost, when a large proportion of citizens on both sides have strong views on identity or constitutional preference in the same geographical area, that needs to be addressed respectfully while having respect for the different sides of the argument.

We have learned form our own painful history that violence and conflict only make any constitutional situation worse and all the harder to heal wounds and engage all sides in dialogue to find a way forward.

The Labour Party condemns the violence that has arisen in the Catalonia region and calls on all sides, including the police, to exercise more restraint and increase their efforts to calm the situation through dialogue which is the only way to solve the problem. Politics is about finding solutions to problems but can only work if those involved engage lawfully. We do not believe it is acceptable for any democratic politician to lead citizens into unlawful behaviour.

During the constitutional crisis that erupted in 2017 and 2018, more than 1,000 civilians were injured, alongside up to 111 agents of the security forces. This was a serious crisis that rocked the whole of Spain and it is only a matter of luck that people were not killed in some of the incidents. We simply do not know how many people have life-changing injuries.

Whatever we may think about the case, we must respect the role of the independent Spanish court system. It is just a fact that we must respect the independent role of the courts. We also recognise that the politicians were found guilty of a range of offences by those courts and, in fact, were subject to very severe sentences. We believe that anyone who breaks the law should be held to account but I do not think that lengthy jail sentences are a constructive way to deal with pro-independence politicians. That is a comment on the courts.

The constitutional crisis grew and came to a head under the conservative government of Mariano Rajoy who was Prime Minister until June 2018. He was inflexible and his rigid approach to the separatist movement undoubtedly inflamed the way in which events developed into a major constitutional crisis. I am conscious that the Labour Party's sister party, the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, is now in government in Madrid under Pedro Sánchez. The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party has always had a different approach to regional autonomy and it is important to allow Sánchez's Government to renew a democratic and measured approach to the crisis that has arisen. The socialist Spanish Government naturally must accept the ruling of the independent courts in their country but they also have expressed determination to heal the fractures caused by recent events.

Society in Catalonia was, and remains, deeply divided on the issue of independence. Successive opinion polls have confirmed that, while full independence is preferred by a large minority, the majority of citizens are opposed to independence but favour regional autonomy within Spain. In fact, support for independence in opinion polls is lower now, at less than 40%, compared to its peak of 48% support in 2013.

Self-government of autonomous communities in Spain enjoy the strongest level of regional devolution in the world and that was delivered by socialist governments.

Resolution of the Spanish crisis is now a matter for politics. Some kind of amnesty process, or a reduction in sentences for pro-independence politicians, can only be negotiated through the political system. Part of this must require all sides to agree to be fully bound by the rule of law and not to lead their communities into unlawful behaviour. From the Labour Party's perspective, I urge Deputies to support the efforts of Pedro Sánchez's Government to take a different approach to the issue of Catalonia, based on engaging all sides in Catalonia in dialogue about a way forward that can command a large majority of the population. Like in Northern Ireland, compromise on constitutional preferences is difficult for those with strongly held views on one side or the other. It is the only way, however, to ensure peace and stability. Our message should be one of solidarity to all the people of Catalonia, along with the genuine hope that respectful dialogue can triumph over division to reach a stable compromise that can command the support of a large majority of the population of Catalonia.

See this speech in context