How the University Responded

2018/04/01

October 1st of last year, the day of the referendum on independence. As usual, I went out for breakfast in the neighborhood with my family, but helicopters were flying over Barcelona from the morning, creating a tense atmosphere. It was the Civil Guard. The central government, which deemed the vote "illegal," had deployed the National Police and Civil Guard to Catalonia, strictly cracking down on all movements related to the voting. My husband seemed hesitant about whether to go and vote this time, but he lost his patience with the central government's unreasonable attitude and headed to the polling station, saying, "I am ashamed to be part of such a country." There were long lines at the polling station. It seemed many people had made the decision to vote with thoughts similar to my husband's.

The university became one of the stages where the movement supporting this series of independence efforts was most actively developed. Under the slogan 'Buidem les aules, omplim els carrers' ("Empty the classrooms, fill the streets"), demonstrations and large-scale strikes were carried out in major Catalan cities, centered around student syndicates and a new organization called Universitats per la República (Universities for the Republic), which asserts the role of the university in the movement demanding a referendum. In Barcelona, the University of Barcelona, located in the city center, became the stage. Before October 1st, they supported the referendum on independence, and after the central government applied Article 155 of the Constitution (suspension of autonomy), they demanded opposition to it and the release of key independence movement figures who had been detained. Literally, the main boulevard in front of the university was filled with students (incidentally, September 20th, the day of a large-scale demonstration, happened to be the day Uniqlo's first store in Spain opened, and some people unaware of the situation might have mistaken the commotion for a line to enter Uniqlo).

The Faculty of Translation and Interpreting at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, where I work, belongs to the "quiet" category within the university. Students from other faculties went on strike for various reasons and took flashy actions such as property damage, sit-ins on campus, and blocking train tracks and public roads. This independence support movement had a major impact even on our faculty, which usually does not cause trouble. Due to demonstrations and strikes, classes had to be canceled several times, and there were days when I couldn't even reach the university because the demonstrators stopped the trains. On days of student-led strikes, barricades were built with containers at the faculty entrance, and not a soul was to be seen. The entire university also suspended all activities on campus for 15 minutes, and faculty, staff, and students gathered in front of each faculty building to express strong opposition to the central government's methods. In the corridors lined with research offices, posters saying 'Democràcia' (Democracy) and 'Llibertat presos polítics' ("Free the political prisoners") were posted, along with posters and symbols expressing support for detained regional government officials. Graffiti (though in this case, perhaps it should be called "messages") was also seen on the campus walls. Especially in our faculty, Oriol Junqueras, the former Vice President of the Generalitat who is currently detained in Madrid, used to teach as a colleague, so it is by no means someone else's problem. It feels painful when I remember him coming out of the classroom leisurely a few years ago, never worrying about going over time in the slot before my class.

The reason the university became such a major scene for the independence movement is also an expression of anxiety and dissatisfaction regarding the future of university education and the academic world. Significant cuts to the education budget by the central government have squeezed university budgets, and as a result, continue to deal a heavy blow to both faculty and students through staff reductions and significant increases in tuition fees. Full-time positions have also been left unadvertised for years. The dissatisfaction and distrust accumulated over many years by university stakeholders toward these central government policies reached a limit, leading them to a means that might even seem like an extreme view: supporting "independence." In fact, all public universities in Catalonia except the University of Lleida expressed support for the referendum on independence. However, it is also true that even if independence were achieved, the future is opaque and full of concerns. Research funding received from the central government and Europe would likely be cut off, and it is not hard to imagine chaos in university education due to further financial difficulties. What supports the firm stance of supporting independence despite these anxieties and risks? "Independence"—the establishment of a new Catalan Republic—is likely a ray of hope that could resolve years of dissatisfaction with the central government. In other words, it is a kind of "gamble."

People who take a pro-independence stance do not necessarily support independence itself. It is a case where people who were initially opposed or indifferent to independence became angry and dissatisfied with the central government's methods, which reminded them of the era of the dictatorship, and this linked them to "supporting independence."

Finally, while the series of movements regarding the independence of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia has been reported in Japan, it cannot be denied that depending on the media, the content remains quite one-sided or superficial. I sincerely hope that the essence of the problem is correctly conveyed.

*Affiliations and titles are those at the time of publication.