El fracaso internacional del independentismo catalán: causas jurídicas y políticas

Abstract

The unilateral secessionist process of Catalonia, promoted by the autonomic powers and supported by a part of society, was developed during 2017 following a political strategy that tried to repeat the model of unilateral independence declaration of Kosovo, in which the support and international recognition were the key to its success. However, the Catalan international initiative made important legal and political mistakes that were decisive for its failure. In the legal field and with the purpose of avoiding the Spanish system, it wanted to impose an interpretation of self-determination right opposed to establish by the international norms and the practice of States. In international politics, its foreign projection was based on a combination of media propaganda and public diplomacy to pressure the governments of great powers and European institutions, devaluing the importance of their commitments and interests established with the Spanish State. Finally, an attempt was made to base internationally the secessionist aspiration by resorting to a democratic legitimacy that political reality of Catalonia does not endorse electorally. The result has been a failure of secessionist process that has generated an increase in social tension and political instability in Spain and Catalonia, thus delaying the solution of a political problem that cannot be ignored although it still cannot be resolved.