Everywhere you look there are signs that Europe is coming apart at the seams. Just a month after the crisis in Greece abated, the influx of refugees fleeing the war-torn Mid-East finally overwhelmed the Balkans leading directly to border closures and precipitating a spat in Brussels regarding how best to handle the people flows.
In short, not everyone agrees with Angela Merkel’s open door policy and indeed, Hungary’s Viktor Orban has led the push for the preservation of what he calls Europe’s “Christian heritage” by keeping asylum seekers out. Now, there’s a serious rift developing and further efforts to force recalcitrant countries to accept migrants they don’t want could well spell the end of the Schengen project.
Meanwhile, Portugal is on the brink of a political crisis as Costa’s Socialists move to align with the Communists and the Left Bloc in an effort to overthrow the government and roll back austerity, presaging a debt showdown with Brussels and Berlin.
As if all of this weren’t enough – and we didn’t even mention the potential for “Brexit” – the Catalan black swan is back on the heels of what amounted to an independence referendum in September (see here).
On Monday, Catalonia’s parliament approved a “democratic disconnection” resolution which will see the region push to separate from Spain and establish an independent republic. Here’s WSJ with some color:
Catalonia’s parliament approved a resolution Monday to take steps to establish an independent republic, vowing it would begin ignoring Spanish institutions and setting up a potential standoff with the government in Madrid.
The proposal to commence a “democratic disconnection” passed by a vote of 72 to 63, after a two-hour debate. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who has said the separatist push represents Spain’s major challenge ahead of Dec. 20 national elections, pledged Monday to use all of the authority of his office to halt the secession bid.
Mr. Rajoy said his government would petition the Constitutional Court this week to have the resolution declared void.
Legal experts say the court will almost certainly bar Catalonia from taking any steps to put the resolution into effect, paving the way for a test of wills. The resolution singles out the Constitutional Court as being “delegitimized and without authority.”
The nine-point resolution calls on Catalonia’s parliament to start within 30 days to prepare laws to create independent social security and tax authorities. Pro-independence parties have said they hope to complete the separation process within 18 months.
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