Junts per Catalunya will hold its political congress in Calella (Barcelona) at the end of October to redefine the party’s strategy and to choose who will lead the party, once the pact between PSC and ERC has removed Carles Puigdemont from the presidency of the Generalitat and shattered the unity of the independence movement. Junts has reported that Puigdemont’s attendance at the Calella meeting “is not ruled out”, despite the fact that he remains based again in Belgium after escaping from Barcelona on 8 August to avoid the arrest that the Mossos d’Esquadra had planned. Puigdemont, who during the electoral campaign for the elections of 12 May announced that he would retire from “active politics” if he did not regain the presidency of the Generalitat, is considering what role he will adopt from now on.
The secretary general of Junts, Jordi Turull, recently stressed that “a relaunch of the independence strategy is unimaginable without the active participation of the president Puigdemont”. The former Catalan president has his seat as a deputy, but does not hold any position in the Junts organisational structure. A situation that could change as of the next party congress. The hypothetical duo formed by Turull and Puigdemont to control Junts would imply removing Laura Borràs from the presidency of the party.
In 2022, Junts ruled out holding its congress in Catalonia and called it in Argelers (south of France) to make it possible for Puigdemont to attend, without having to risk possible arrest for crossing the border. At the time he was a member of the European Parliament, a status he has now lost and which forces him to carefully measure his movements. This week, he did not attend an event at the Universitat Catalana d’Estiu in the French town of Prada, despite his presence having been announced.
Puigdemont is still waiting for the application of the amnesty law and Junts stresses that “it is not ruled out” that he may attend the congress. However, no one is overlooking the situation of judicial uncertainty surrounding the former Catalan president and the conditions that exist regarding his ability to move. In this sense, this time it has been decided to look for a place that, at least, facilitates the movement of the militants.
The congress, scheduled for 25, 26 and 27 October, is set to be a turning point in deciding the immediate future of Junts, at a time when the party has seen its influence decline: it only controls the Girona Provincial Council and some medium-sized town councils, such as Sant Cugat del Vallès, Figueres, Valls, Vic and Calella.
The congress regulations, which will be approved this Monday at the meeting of the party’s executive, highlight that “with the loss of the pro-independence majority in the Parliament and the break-up of the pro-independence bloc” it is necessary to rethink the strategy to “build an alternative” to the Government headed by the PSC, with the support of ERC and the Comuns. The premise is “to make Junts per Catalunya the pro-independence party of reference for all Catalans.” With this objective, the congress will promote the participation of pro-independence contributions “that go beyond the strict seams of the party.”
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