L'emblemàtica plaça informa de la denúncia de la fiscalia mostrant la internacionalització del procés
Xavier Lladó
La querella de la fiscalia interposada contra el president Mas i les conselleres Ortega i Rigau ha arribat al cor de Nova York. Times Square, la plaça per excel·lència de la ciutat que es caracteritza per les desenes d'anuncis lluminosos publicitaris oferia fa unes hores la informació de la querella de la fiscalia.
I ho deia així: "Espanya presenta una querella criminal per la votació de la independència de Catalunya". La imatge s'ha difós a través de les xarxes socials i és una prova més de la internacionalització del procés.
Crítiques d'Israel al tracte que la UE dóna a Catalunya
El diari 'Jerusalem Post' retreu a la comissió europea que es declari neutral i ho titlla d'"hipòcrita", i l'ambaixada espanyola s'irrita
Lluís Bou
El 9-N està començant a impactar en l'escenari internacional. A Israel han aparegut crítiques a la forma com la UE tracta el procés català, pel criteri de mantenir-se neutral, no donar-li suport i considerar-ho un simple fet intern espanyol.
El diari Jerusalem Post, en llengua anglesa, ha tillat literalment d'"hipòcrita" la forma de parlar de la comissió europea respecte Catalunya, en un article que es titula "De Gaza a Catalunya, la hipocresia insofrible d'Europa". L'article carrega contra la cap de política exterior de la UE, Federica Mogherini, i el diferent tracte que dóna a catalans i a palestins. En una recent visita a Gaza i Ramallah, Mogherini no va dubtar a deixar de banda qualsevol neutralitat i va fer propostes com la de la partició de Jerusalem.
"Anem a explicar un exemple recent de la hipocresia europea, que està més a prop de casa seva i es pot trobar en el propi pati del darrere d'Europa: Catalunya. Diumenge passat, milions d'homes i dones en tota la regió del nord-est espanyol va fer un crit històric per la llibertat. Desafiant amb valentia amenaces de mà dura i la intimidació de Madrid, prop de dos milions [sic] de catalans van participar en un referèndum sobre la independència, l'exercici pacífic del seu dret humà bàsic de decidir sobre el seu propi futur", assenyala Jerusalem Post.
"I els resultats van ser taxatius. Més del 80 per cent dels votants va donar suport a la independència de Catalunya d'Espanya [en la segona pregunta], cosa que va provocar el líder català Artur Mas declarés que la votació "ha deixat molt clar que volem governar-nos a nosaltres mateixos". "Ens mereixem a votar en un referèndum legal i vinculant", ha dit Mas, i ha afegit, "i això és el que farem". Curiosament, però, rugit dels catalans per la independència no sembla interessar a la resta d'Europa tant com el dels palestins, tot i que els primers tenen una molt millor oportunitat per tenir el seu propi Estat", afegeix.
Segons 'Jerusalem Post', per començar va existir un Estat català fins al segle 17, mentre que no hi ha hagut mai una Palestina independent en tota la història. "Encara que un no pensi que els palestins han estat vivint sota ocupació des del 1967, Espanya ha ocupat Catalunya durant 300 anys, per la qual cosa és una disputa de més temps, i la justícia en retard és justícia denegada", indica. També remarca que, mentre que els catalans poden legítimament pretendre ser una nació amb la seva pròpia llengua i la cultura diferent, els àrabs palestins no poden perquè no tenen un idioma específic.
"No obstant, tot això no sembla molestar Europa ni una mica, ja que ignora per complet el cas català per esdevenir un Estat, mentre que la defensa el dels palestins. I afegim a la ironia que el Parlament espanyol a Madrid - el mateix que no tolera la llibertat de Catalunya- es disposa a votar el reconeixement de Palestina com un país independent", conclou.
L'article del 'Jerusalem Post' ha provocat irritació a l'ambaixada espanyola a Israel, que ha enviat una carta al director intentant desmentir la visió de Catalunya que dóna el rotatiu.
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Article in English:
Fundamentally Freund: From Gaza to Catalonia: Europe’s insufferable hypocrisy
"As the continent where more Jewish blood was spilled over the past 2,000 years than any other, Europe has a special responsibility and a moral obligation to support Israel."
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Perhaps it is time for someone to pull Mogherini aside and whisper into her ear: before you start offering unsolicited advice to Israel, you might want to get your own hypocritical house in order.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini (C) visits a UN-run school in Gaza.. (photo credit:REUTERS)
This past Saturday, European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini set a world record for diplomatic duplicity and haste. Barely seven days after assuming her new post, the former Italian foreign minister rushed to pay a visit to Gaza and Ramallah, where she managed to call for the division of Jerusalem, denounce housing construction for Jews in Judea and Samaria, and insist on the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Mustering up all the moral bluster that European diplomats are so fond of, she did not hesitate to lecture Israel, as if she knew better than the Jewish state what its own national interests might be. Dead Syrians may be littering the streets of Aleppo while Islamic State is busy beheading Kurds and Christians in Iraq, and Saudi women might be struggling to be allowed to drive cars, but Mogherini appears to have a one-track mind when it comes to the Middle East. And it revolves only around Israel.
This is European hypocrisy of the highest order. It is sickening in its scope and magnitude. And it is time for it to stop.
As the continent where more Jewish blood was spilled over the past 2,000 years than any other, Europe has a special responsibility and a moral obligation to support Israel.
Yes, that’s right. You read that correctly: Europe owes Israel.
They have an eternal debt to pay to the Jewish people for the slaughters, massacres, blood libels, anti-Semitism, forced conversions, expulsions, Crusades and Inquisitions which they inflicted upon our ancestors for two millennia.
All of this might sound like ancient history to Mogherini and her colleagues, who probably don’t see what it has to do with compelling Israel to create a Palestinian state. So just in case, let’s highlight a more recent example of European hypocrisy, one that is closer to home and can be found in Europe’s own back yard: Catalonia. This past Sunday, millions of men and women across the northeastern Spanish region made an historic cry for liberty. Bravely defying heavy-handed threats and intimidation from Madrid, some two million Catalans took part in a referendum on independence, peacefully exercising their basic human right to decide on their own future.
And the results were decisive. Over 80 percent of voters backed Catalonia’s independence from Spain, prompting Catalan leader Artur Mas to declare that the ballot “made it very clear that we want to govern ourselves.”
“We deserve to vote in a legal and binding referendum,” Mas said, adding, “and this is what we are going to do.”
Curiously, however, the Catalonians’ roar for independence doesn’t seem to interest the rest of Europe as much as that of the Palestinians, even though the former have a much better case for having their own state.
To begin with, there actually once was a Catalonian state, albeit briefly, in the 17th century, whereas there has never been an independent Palestine in all of history. Even if one does think the Palestinians have been living under occupation since 1967, Spain has occupied Catalonia for 300 years, making it a longer-running dispute, and justice delayed is justice denied.
And whereas Catalans can legitimately claim to be a nation with their own distinct language and culture, the Palestinian Arabs cannot.
Nonetheless, this doesn’t appear to bother Europe one whit, as it completely ignores the Catalan case for statehood while championing that of the Palestinians.
Adding to the irony is that the Spanish parliament in Madrid – the same one that will not countenance freedom for Catalonia – is set to vote on recognizing “Palestine” as an independent country. This only goes to prove that when it comes to Israel, Spain’s policy amounts to “do as we say, not as we do.”
I’d like to think that the new European push to recognize a Palestinian state stems from naiveté, from some misguided belief that doing so will somehow dull the threat posed by Islamic extremism. Or that perhaps they are simply wallowing in ignorance and truly believe the Palestinians to be the aggrieved party in the conflict with Israel.
But I know better – and I hope you do as well. The hypocrisy is so egregious and so blatant that it cannot and must not be ignored.
Sadly, what we are witnessing now is little more than a continuation of Europe’s mistreatment of the Jews, but with a new twist. After all, for 2,000 years, Europeans told the Jews to leave and “go to Israel.” Now that we are finally here they want us to abandon it and hand it over to our foes.
And yet when it comes to a long-running dispute in the heart of Europe, they don’t even think of suggesting a division of Barcelona or the creation of a Catalonian state living side-by-side with Spain in peace and security.
So perhaps it is time for someone to pull Mogherini aside and politely whisper into her ear: before you start offering unsolicited advice to Israel, you might want to get your own hypocritical house in order.
The straw poll held last Saturday was an absolute fraud. Not only it lacked the most basic procedures and measures to be expected in such a process but the ballots were counted only by members of the separatist association (...some of them at home!). Even if we consider the suspicious figures they gave, only 30% of the people addressed to vote (including 16-year-old kids or foreign migrants passing by) took part in the fake poll, among them around 80% chose secession. A logical result since it was made by the separatists for their faith colleagues. If we take data as whole only 1.800.000 from the 7.500.000 official residents in Catalonia. One may think that the large majority of Catalan society turned its back on this separatist demonstration.
Surely after two years of goebbelian propaganda from the regional government any reasonable person could deduce that the results are quite poor. It is something to consider but It looks like a scarce support to promote a separation from Spain.
But as usual with the independentist kind, they don't let reality turn them off their fantasies. They keep claiming it was a "total success" and demand their leaders to declare independece as soon as possible. A sad show.
Moreover, Catalonia is one of the regions in Europe which have been enjoying a large autonomy for more than 30 years, keeping one of the highest income per capita in Spain and in Europe. It's funny way of "occupying" a territory as suggested by the author.
Finally, I don't think the comparison between Gaza and Catalonia a lucky one. Even for Israeli interests.
I almost completely agree, and I say almost because indeed there is a lot of hypocrsiy in Europe regarding these issues, but Palestinians, as well as Catalans and Israelis, have the right to self-rule and the right to self-determinate. I'm pro a Catalan independent state, but also pro an Israeli independent state and pro a Palestinian independent state. Most of Arabic independent countries where created out of nothing few years ago and Israel was created as a state in modern terms on a paper in some office and not because of that is less legitimate.
Toda raba, We really apreciate the understanding of our "problem" with Spain from Israel. In fact we share a lot with Israel,Population, size, GDP, innovation, and above all roots. Most of us (including me), have Jewish ancestors and will always feel at home in Israel. Erev Tov.
I'd like this article could be seen by many people, all over Europe, America and everywhere. I hope Israel will be the first country to acknowledge Catalonia as the new state of Europe and of the world. I completely agree with the whole article.
The EU states will recognize the independence of a people who use violent means, instead of recognizing an european people who wants it's independence peacefully? Yes, of course, that's hypocrisy: for the EU countries, better are rockets than votes
Sig. Freund or may I call you Michael, without all the formalities since I have known you for nearly 5 years through JPost when I started to read this prestigious media. The fact of the matter is that this woman Federica Mogherini was almost totally unknown inside Italy, let alone within the EU and had no government experience, who is ambitiously stepping into a potentially HUGE job which is much bigger than her, being elected by the tyrants of the failed and corrupted institution, the EU, who ironically is the new sick man of Europe and playing their "game of thrones" on the skin of their subjects. Rest assured that she will fail in her mandate like her predecessor, Baronass Ashton, as she has failed in her "homework" in bringing our marò home from India in the "Enrica Lexie" incident. So we hope she is just a "storm in a teacup"- she came, she saw and she went without conquering any land.
Truly I do believe that whoever tries to divide Jerusalem is doomed as Italy is currently suffering a disastrous calamity in many regions with heavy floodings for many days. Surely, we haven't forgotten Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy. Please, God, please forgive Mogherini for she does not know what she is doing.
I am not sure why the writer is so surprised, this lady is simply following traditional, smokescreen politics, "when there is a problem "at home", just point somewhere else, shout about the problems, sins of others, take the floodlights away from your own shame".
We are looking at a world where everybody is pointing fingers towards others, blames everybody else, demands corrections somewhere else while their own house is flooded with sewage.
Unfortunately we are doing the same. We are always blaming others, pointing at everybody possible as the main reason for our misfortune, while at home we use every given opportunity to stab each other at the back, to try to suffocate those who have different opinions, we argue and argue until another external threat wakes us up which unites us for a short while and then we start again.
Just imagine Jews, the State of Israel, with all of their talent, unique capabilities, resources bundled together, used in unison. Imagine a truly united Jewish nation what it could achieve, especially in a collapsing global world that resembles a desert, a chaotic, barbaric background, where even the most respected leaders, public figures run around like headless chicken!
What do we expect from others when we, who are supposed to be "light for the nations" cannot rise above our differences, hatred, when we actually have the method and the experience to do so? We can afford to focus on ourselves instead of always looking outwards as everything starts and ends with the unity within the nation of Israel.
Smokescreen politics? Perhaps. European hypocrisy? Absolutely. We, Western Europeans, are free to support or foster independence abroad, including Eastern Europe when falling the CCCP. But independence in Western Europe? That is still a taboo for historically cultures like the Catalan
