Salvador Illa: "Can anyone imagine a Catalonia without Jordi Évole or Estopa?"

La Zarza/MéridaSalvador Illa has traveled to Extremadura to celebrate the Catalan National Day, seeking to extol the fraternity between the two territories and to vindicate the role of Extremadurans in the construction of Catalonia. The President of the Generalitat has lamented the years of the 'Procés'—in which "some spoke about others," but "some did not speak with others"—and has proclaimed the return of a "solidary" Catalonia that is favorable to understanding with Spain. However, the eternal tensions between the Principality and the rest of the State have resurfaced, and Illa has criticized in statements to the media the opposition of the vast majority of autonomous communities to the new financing, including that of the Junta of Extremadura governed by PP and Vox.

Unlike the frequent visits to Madrid—where the president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and he avoid each other—in Extremadura there was an institutional reception and a photo opportunity with the popular María Guardiola, although they skipped the joint press conference. The Junta's communication team preferred not to let reporters into the room where they met for about forty-five minutes to ensure that no statement that could spoil the visit would escape. The President of the Generalitat, as he himself recalled, has come to Extremadura to strengthen "bonds" and not to break them. "Thank you, Catalonia owes you a lot," Illa insisted to the Extremaduran immigrants. In the evening, at the official event in Mérida, the president recovered the message: "Catalonia owes an essential part of what it is to Extremadura. Can anyone imagine a Catalonia without Jordi Évole or Estopa? I cannot," he highlighted, appealing to the Extremaduran roots of the journalist and the musicians.

Even so, before greeting Guardiola, the Extremaduran press had already asked Illa if the meeting would serve to talk about the new financing model. "What we propose does not harm anyone, it benefits everyone," the Catalan president replied. "[Those who criticize it] would do well to look at the accounts and the concrete numbers to see that it benefits us all," he added immediately after. It was not the main topic, but sources consulted by ARA confirm that financing was discussed. In a statement, the Government limited itself to explaining that a "climate of cordiality and institutional collaboration" reigned at the meeting. "The president has highlighted the bonds of Catalonia with Extremadura, and his interest in these bonds remaining alive," they insist from the Palau de la Generalitat.

In turn, Guardiola thanked Illa on Twitter for his "kindness" and the gesture, but asserted that she opposes the financing model and has the "objective" of preventing a new migratory wave from "repeating" itself. "We need a system that takes into account the true cost of providing fundamental services in Extremadura. We want a united and cohesive Spain," tweeted the president of the Junta of Extremadura.

Tribute to the Extremaduran emigrant

The visit began in the town of La Zarza (Badajoz), where Illa met with the mayor, the socialist Francisco José Farrona, and visited the sculpture of The Emigrant, which is a tribute to the Extremadurans who had to leave, especially to Catalonia. It was from this town that the PSC leader claimed the "links" between Catalans and Extremadurans, and assured that the immigrants from Extremadura have made a "decisive contribution" to the construction of the country. "This is what we have come to recognize and thank," Illa indicated.

In turn, the mayor of La Zarza celebrated the visit of the "president of an autonomous community" to the town and assured that "the Catalonia we know is, in large part, the fault of the Extremadurans". In the same vein as the president, Farrona celebrated that the "times of dialogue" between Spain and Catalonia have returned, and that the stage in which "there was no speaking between one another, but rather about one another" has been overcome. "Long live Spain, long live Catalonia, long live Extremadura and long live La Zarza, and may all these cheers endure," concluded the Extremaduran mayor.

Homage to '47'

The Generalitat screened the film '47' and paid tribute to its protagonist, Manolo Vital, who was the founder and president of the first neighborhood association in Nou Barris. Illa, who was not present during the film's screening, once again championed him as an example of an Extremaduran immigrant who has "contributed decisively" to the construction of Catalonia. "Catalonia owes an essential part of what it is to Extremadura. Can anyone imagine a Catalonia without Jordi Évole or Estopa? I cannot," said Illa.

No high-ranking officials from the PP or Vox, who govern the Junta of Extremadura, attended the official Diada event in Catalonia—Illa met with the president, María Guardiola, at noon. In contrast, numerous Socialist leaders traveled to the Mérida Congress Palace, such as the Minister of the Presidency, Albert Dalmau, the President of the Barcelona Provincial Council, Núria Marín, the Mayor of Tarragona, Rubén Viñuales, and the PSC spokesperson and Mayor of Sant Boi de Llobregat, Lluïsa Moret.