Scandals about royalty? Catalonia is more interested in Scottish independence

Columnist

Sunday 15 April 2012

TV3, the Catalan public broadcaster, has come under fire for having too much coverage of the Scottish independence issue.

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by Tom Shields in Barcelona

The Consejo Audiovisual de Cataluña, the TV industry watchdog, expressed concern that TV3 devoted more minutes to Alex Salmond and Scottish politics than it did to a major scandal involving the king of Spain's son-in-law.

The regulator believes TV3 is using Scotland as a means of promoting pro-independence sentiment in Catalonia, a process which the Spanish government is determined to suppress.Matthew Tree, a Barcelona-based author and commentator on Catalan politics, told the Sunday Herald: "The media here are watching Scotland like a hawk. There is a huge amount of interest from journalists and opinion-makers in the newspapers, on television and online."The large section of the Catalan population who favour independence or a federal state have a considerable amount of sympathy and empathy with the Scots. They feel as if they are in the same boat. The main thing they have in common with Scotland is that Catalans, even those who are not sure about independence, have no doubts they are a country, a nation. They do not live in a Spanish region."Tree – who is a Londoner but has been a long-term resident in Catalonia and writes in the Catalan language – added: ''As in Scotland, a major focus in Catalonia is getting more control of finances. Catalonia is a cash cow for Madrid. It is the most heavily taxed area in Europe."Tree said that while Catalans have their own language and substantial financial and industrial muscle, there is one aspect of national life which Scotland has and they do not: "Scotland is recognised, and always has been, across the world as a country. People have definite images in mind when they talk about Scotland, even if some of those images are clichéd. Catalonia by comparison has virtually no international projection. The vast majority of people across the world have no idea of Catalan language and culture."He added: "It is a constant struggle for Catalans abroad explaining their identity. People say Barcelona, that's in Spain. When Catalans make the point that Catalonia is not Spain, they are painted as fanatic xenophobic nationalists."Another similarity between Scottish and Catalan pursuits of self-determination is the flow of scaremongering stories emanating from the big neighbours next door. ABC, a traditionalist right-wing newspaper, has been running a campaign with the slogan "There is a problem in our country. The problem is Catalonia." ABC's front page news last week was that "an independent Catalonia will be poverty-stricken".Matthew Tree is the author of Com Explicar Aquest País als Estrangers ("How To Explain This Country To Foreigners"), now published in English as Barcelona, Catalonia: A View From The Inside

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Scandals about royalty? Catalonia is more interested in Scottish independence

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