In Breakaway Catalonia, Corruption Scandal Complicates Bid For Independence

Jordi Pujol was president of Catalonia for more than two decades. As Catalonia finally comes close to independence, he is being investigated in a massive corruption case - coming at an awkward time for independence supporters.

On September 27, Catalonia voted in a regional election which some saw as a referendum on independence. Separatist parties gained a narrow majority in parliament. But two months later, they are at loggerheads over how to form a government.

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The biggest winner in the regional election was Junts pel Sí (Together for Yes), which won 62 seats - 6 short of a working majority.

The other pro-independence party is the CUP (Popular Unity Candidacy), which won 10 seats. But although CUP supports Catalan independence, they have so far refused to form a government with Junts pel Sí.

CUP is the most left-wing party in Catalonia. In addition to independence, they support withdrawing from NATO and leaving the euro.

At stake is whether CUP will support another term for president Artur Mas, who has led the Catalan government since 2010.

Mas is not only a key figure in Junts pel Sí, he was the chosen successor of Jordi Pujol.

Pujol is embroiled in scandal over a reputed €500 million fortune hidden from authorities.

Via periodistadigital.com

He led Catalonia's regional government for 23 years, from 1980 to 2003.

Prior to serving as president, he founded the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia party (CDC) in 1974, shortly before Spain began the transition to democracy. He is the godfather of modern Catalan nationalism. The party he founded is now part of Junts pel Sí, the largest pro-independence group in parliament.

The case against Pujol began in 2012, when he publicly announced that he had kept secret foreign bank accounts inherited from his father. Since then, revelations have followed of more hidden accounts in Switzerland, Andorra, Jersey, and the Cayman Islands, with hundreds of millions of euros moved between them.

The case has broadened to include alleged bribe-taking, extortion, and government contracts awards to companies with connections to the Pujol family and its associates.

In one example, the clothing brand Kappa made payments totalling €390,000 into Pujol's Andorran bank account around the time that it began outfitting FC Barcelona.

Not everyone agrees that independence is right for Catalonia. In the September election, separatist parties won a majority in parliament - but with less than half the vote.

The central government in Madrid has pledged to prevent Catalonia from gaining independence and Spanish president Mariano Rajoy threatened to suspend Catalonia's rights as an autonomous region if the drive towards independence continues.

"Spaniards demand that equality and the rule of law prevail against those who would impose their will outside of democratic rules and the wishes of the majority," Rajoy said in a press conference.

The current dispute between Catalonia and the central government dates to 2010, when the Catalan parliament passed a law giving itself fiscal autonomy from Madrid. The law was later found unconstitutional.

Since Junts pel Sí has begun negotiating with the left-wing CUP to form a government, alarm has grown within Catalonia over the region's future.

Josep Bou, president of the influential Catalan Business association, appealed to the central government to save Catalonia from what he said would be an economic tragedy.

"This has to be stopped," he said in a TV interview after the election, adding that independence would "bring ruin to Catalonia."

If separatist parties are unable to form a governing coalition, one possible outcome may be new elections in the spring.