Nationalities and Regions of Spain - Current State of Affairs

Current State of Affairs

The "autonomic process", that is, the process whereby the nationalities and regions would accede to autonomy was partially concluded in 1983 when 17 autonomous communities covering the entire Spanish territory were created. (It was finally completed with the creation of two autonomous cities in Northern Africa, Ceuta and Melilla). All autonomous communities follow the provincial limits established in the 1833 territorial division of Spain, that is, no province has been partitioned between communities. Moreover, many communities roughly coincide with the pre-provincial historical regions of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, which in turn reflected to some extent some of the historical medieval kingdoms or administrative regions of the past.

On the other hand, some autonomous communities are new creations. For example, autonomy was granted to Cantabria and La Rioja, both of which were historically part of Castile. Despite the lack of historical base for both communities, and the fact that the Spanish government favored their integration in the larger Castile-León, the local population overwhelmingly supported the new entities. In Cantabria, one of the leading intellectual figures in 19th century Spain, Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo, had already rejected a Castilian identity for his region as far back as 1877, while he favored integration with its western neighbor, Asturias:

The province of Madrid, was also separated from New Castile and constituted as an autonomous community, in a way in recognition of its status as the capital of the nation, but also because it was originally excluded from the pre-autonomic agreements that created the community of Castile-La Mancha, to which it naturally belonged. Some peripheral nationalists still complain that the creation of many regions was an attempt to break down their own ‘national unity’ by a sort of gerrymandering thus softening the impact of the distinctiveness of their own nationalities.

As competences were eventually transferred to all communities in roughly the same degree, some nationalists view that there is a vanishing practical distinction between "nationality" and "region", regardless of how the autonomous community defines itself, a dilution that is welcomed by some political parties at the national level. In fact, other communities have chosen to be identified as "nationalities" besides the "historical three" (such as Andalusia, Aragon, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and the Valencian Community). Also, most communities that do not enjoy fiscal autonomy — the "common regime communities"— typically tend to follow Catalonia's lead in their demands for more competences or self-government. This has caused a movement for a further recognition of the distinctiveness of the "historical nationalities" as "nations" resuscitating oftentimes the debate between "nationality" and "nation" or the concept of a "plurinational State". In the Basque Country in 2003, the regional government proposed a plan whereby the autonomous community would become a "free associated State" of Spain, which was later rejected by the Spanish Parliament. In 2006, the Catalan Parliament, in approving a new Statute of Autonomy, chose to define Catalonia, not as a "nationality" but explicitly as a "nation", by a large majority. Similar proposals were made in Andalusia. The Spanish Parliament, which has to eventually ratify all Statutes of Autonomy, removed the article that defined Catalonia as a "nation", but made a reference in the Preamble of the document to the "fact" that the Catalan Parliament had chosen to so define Catalonia, but that the constitution recognizes her "national reality" as a "nationality". Finally, the distinction of two chartered communities with fiscal autonomy has led to discontent in Catalonia, which demands the same privilege and transparency, being one of the main net contributors of fiscal equalization to which only communities of common-regime are subject to — that is, it has a large fiscal deficit — whereas in Galicia and Andalusia, which are among the biggest net beneficiaries of such centrally managed funding, no such demand has been made.

The "nationalities" have also played a key role in national—"State-wide"—politics. In the few occasions where no major party has achieved absolute majority in the Congress of Deputies, there have been agreements with the so-called "nationalist" (i.e. "regionalist" or "peripheral nationalist") parties therein present. (It should be noted that in these occasions, no coalitions for government have been made, but rather a minority government is formed that receives support from the "nationalist" parties to approve the budget and other laws). This has led in some instances to further concessions to the peripheral nationalities.

The new framework of "autonomies" has served in legitimizing the Spanish state even within the "nationalities", more so in Catalonia and Galicia than in the Basque Country. (Legitimacy is still a question amongst some Basque nationalists; the Basque Country was the only community where the Spanish Constitution in 1978 was not approved by the majority of its constituents in the national referendum). In practical terms, the majority of the population has been satisfied with the framework of devolution since the restoration of democracy, even if there are still aspirations for further recognition of the distinctiveness of the nationalities or for the expansion of their self-government. In all three "historical nationalities", there is still a sizable minority, more so in Catalonia than in the Basque Country and Galicia, expressing its voice in one way or another, that proposes for the establishment of a true federal State in Spain or advocate for their right to self-determination and independence.

The economic crisis in Spain that started in 2008, has produced different reactions in the different communities. On one hand, politicians in some communities that are not "nationalities", mostly governed by the centre-right Popular Party, are considering a return of some devolved powers back to the central government. On the other hand, in Catalonia, the strenuous fiscal situation and the severe austerity measures enacted by the regional government have caused a large discomfort in the population, many of which view the "unfairness" of the large fiscal deficit as aggravating the situation. This, in turn, has led many who are not necessarily separatist but who are enraged by the financial deficit to support secession. In recent polls, support for independence has doubled from the mid-20% since the recession started to around 50% by September 2012, even though support for independence drops to the mid-30% if more options are given, with an almost equal percentage opting for the establishment of a true federal system in Spain. This surge in support for independence was evidenced during the celebration of the National Day of Catalonia on 11 September 2012, when about 600,000 - 2 million people marched on the streets of Barcelona rallying for independence; one of the largest demonstrations in Spanish history.

Following the rally, the president of Catalonia, Artur Mas, in a previously scheduled meeting with the prime minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy, requested and was denied on the basis of its purported unconstitutionality, a change in the taxation system in Catalonia that would have made it similar to that of the two communities of chartered regime. The week after the meeting, Mas called for the dissolution of the Catalan Parliament and for early elections to be held on 25 November 2012. Before its dissolution, the Catalan parliament approved a bill calling for the next legislature to let Catalonia exercise its right of self-determination by holding a "referendum or consultation" during the next four years in which the people would decide on becoming a new independent and sovereign State. The parliamentary decision was approved by a large majority of deputies: 84 voted affirmative, 21 voted negative and 25 abstained. The deputy prime minister of Spain, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, declared that the central government would exercise all "legal instruments" — current legislation requires the executive government or the Congress of Deputies to call for or sanction a binding referendum — to block any such attempt. The leaders of the opposition, both in the Catalan Parliament, as well as in the Cortes Generales, and both from the Socialist Party, do not support Catalan secession, but rather propose a change in the constitution that would create a true federal system in Spain, to "better reflect the singularities" of Catalonia and to modify the current taxation system.