Filipe Vasconcelos Romão - Espanha e Catalunha

The Spanish Constitution, approved in a referendum in 1978 during a period of transition to democracy, enshrines Spain as a nation capable of encompassing multiple nationalities. At the time, this was the legal and constitutional formulation found to accommodate the different aspirations for autonomy or independence (as in the case of the Basque Country) of various regions, especially Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Galicia. For decades, these aspirations lay dormant, with the obvious exception of the Basque Country, where a radical faction, ETA, sought to impose its independence project through armed struggle.

It was the economic crisis, along with a gradual revolution in the Spanish two-party political system, that revived the Catalan aspiration for independence, culminating in the events of 2017: a referendum (considered illegal under the Constitution) and the unilateral declaration of independence (the DUI). The Spanish state, dominated by some nationalist factions, reacted, Catalan society became divided, and events unfolded rapidly.

This work aims to provide the reader with the necessary historical and political context to understand the evolution of events.