Undergraduate Social Science, Business, and Law Bachelor of Arts Abstract ID# 685
BACKGROUND AND QUESTIONS • • •
Catalonia and Scotland are considered naDons, with their own cultures and histories, though they are part of larger states Both naDons have had recent votes on independence and growing support for secession – why? Scholars look to naDonalism, history, and poliDcs as explanatory factors – while these are all important, we look mainly at poliDcs and the interacDons between these naDons and their states
Megan Carroll and Caroline Coughlin Department of PoliDcal Science
Secessionism in Europe has recently become a hot topic of debate in internaDonal relaDons circles. Two of the most well-‐known and contenDous cases, Scotland and Catalonia, held referenda in the past year. Most of what has been wriKen in academia and the media has characterized these two secessionist movements as quite similar. However, as we learned through our co-‐op experiences in Edinburgh and Barcelona, these movements are markedly different. Drawing upon our experiences and further research, we provide a comparaDve case study of the independence movements in Scotland and Catalonia, and explain the Dming and increased strength of secessionism. While much of the research aKributes the recent increase in support for independence to economics or naDonalism, we argue that the main reason for this increase is the acDons of the Spanish and UK states. We argue that the acDons of the Spanish government have fueled the Catalan separaDst movement, while the acDons of the UK government led the ScoTsh people to vote “no” on independence. We use polling data, governing documents on autonomy, as well as scholarly arDcles on the subject to build our case. We also look to civil society organizaDons to further explore how the independence movements have evolved. We fill a gap in the literature by showing that the evoluDon of the independence movements has been heavily influenced by state responses to secessionism. While Scotland and the United Kingdom are working on cooperaDve devoluDon, Catalonia and Spain conDnue to struggle to find common ground.
Legal Status
CONCLUSIONS
The secessionist movements in Catalonia and Scotland are influenced by a variety of factors, but the most important and most ocen overlooked factor is the acDons that the state governments have on these movements. REFERENCES
Catalan Center for Opinion Studies YouGov Opinion Polling ScoTsh Government Ipsos MORI
SCOTLAND CATALONIA ParDally devolved assembly – “autonomous community” ScoTsh Parliament within Spain
Devolved Powers SUPPORT FOR SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE 60% 50%
Edinburgh Agreement officially sets up referendum
40% 30% 20% 10%
ScoTsh NaDonal Party presents drac Referendum Bill
September 18, 2014: Scotland rejects independence
Health, educaDon, local Some governmental government and law, housing, authority, but no taxaDon some aspects of welfare and powers, limited power over taxaDon educaDon Cultural Differences Mostly historical, although Catalan is first language, stressed as an SNP Spanish second; different campaigning tacDc norms – no bullfighDng Independence Movement
0%
Important Figures
Led by ScoTsh NaDonal Party, Led by Catalan NaDonal which holds power in ScoTsh Assembly, other civil society Parliament organizaDons, and regional government Alex Salmond, First Minister Carme Forcadell, Muriel Nicola Sturgeon, Jim Murphy, Casals, Catalan President Prime Minister David Cameron Artur Mas
Support for an Independent Catalan State 50 40 30
Spanish ConsDtuDonal Court rejects key components of Catalan Autonomy Statute
Catalans vote in unofficial independence referendum
20 10
Catalan NaDonal Assembly Established
0
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014