Silvia Orriols on Junts: "Welcome to the far right"

BarcelonaA motion by the Catalan Alliance against the Islamic veil has shaken together, who has spoken out in favor of banning it in schools but will vote against the far-right text. And, incidentally, a can of worms has also been opened in the Catalan Parliament. The text generated a controversial debate in the chamber this Thursday, where a clash erupted between the leader of the far-right pro-independence party, Silvia Orriols, and Junts deputy David Saldoni, who accused her of resorting to "hatred" against Muslims in this debate. Aliança (the party) reproached the Junts members for having "plagiarized" their position—although Silvia Orriols's party wants to ban the veil everywhere, not just in classrooms—and for having become their "white label." On the left side of the chamber, the groups clutched their heads over a measure they consider contrary to religious freedom, while defending the need to fight discrimination against women.

Despite the announced failure of the motion, that does not have the votes to move forwardThe Catalan Alliance is still threatening a second round of confrontation with Junts over this issue. From the podium in Parliament, the mayor of Ripoll announced that she will modify the ordinance banning the Islamic headscarf in schools: "I hope your group votes in favor," she told them, in a speech laden with attacks on the Muslim community and immigration, and which concluded with accusations of "Cinco." "They've had years to position themselves against this element and they haven't said anything [...] What will they do with Colomines and the rest of the CUP members they have infiltrated?" she asked.

In what was his final plenary session as a deputy, Saldoni defended his vote against the motion but his position in favor of banning the Islamic veil in schools, as well as the burqa, niqab, and burkini in public spaces, and distanced himself from Silvia Orriols: "You are crossing a much more serious line; concrete." Therefore, he said that Orriols "hates" and that "Catalonia cannot be built this way," among other reasons because "it generates Catalanophobia." However, Saldoni justified the need to "provide solutions" to a debate that "was already opened in 2010" to avoid "impositions" on minors. He warned Orriols that they want "more Lamine Yamals" and that citizens, regardless of their religion, should make Catalonia their country.

However, ERC has been forceful in warning the regional council members, led by MP Joan Ignasi Elena: "A state party addresses these issues from a central perspective. A state party doesn't just copy the proposals you make," he told Orriols, urging Carles Puigdemont's party not to be "afraid." Elena recalled other forms of discrimination within other religions, while admitting that the oppression of women "is sometimes expressed through the veil." For her part, the PSC spokesperson in Parliament, Elena Díaz, stated that Orriols intends to "use women to sustain a racist and Islamophobic discourse." Similarly, Comunes MP Andrés García Berrio accused Alianza of acting "against coexistence, social cohesion, and democratic values" and of ignoring the range of discrimination against women. From the ranks of the CUP, Pilar Castillejo has stressed that she has never heard Orriols "say anything about the Haredi Jewish community or the Orthodox Jews" - the party is a staunch defender of Israel - and the "discrimination" against women, and has accused Junts of being "delighted to occupy the ideological world" that benefits this extreme.

Vox and PP, aligned with Alianza

Where Orriols has found allies has been in Vox, after intense negotiations, and in the PP on a dozen points. The far-right Spanish parliamentarian, Sergio Macián, even claimed the work of "seven centuries of expelling Islam from our land," since Jaime I. "We have made several amendments, we are grateful that you have accepted many of them," he told Orriols, to whom he only offered a rebuke. For his part, the PP spokesperson in the chamber, Juan Fernández, defended banning the veil in classrooms and the niqab and burka everywhere, and took a swipe at progressivism: "Where are the left-wing demonstrations defending these girls?" he said about the covered minors. After criticizing an alleged proliferation of veils and niqabs, he urged a choice: "An open and Christian Europe or a Europe of silenced and completely covered women."

Education defends the veil in the classroom

On the other hand, the Catalan government is already anticipating possible future attempts and warns that banning the veil in classrooms has no place within the current legislative framework. In statements to the press, the Minister of Education, Esther Niubó, warned that preventing Muslim students from wearing the veil violates religious freedom. She also urged a distinction to be made between this symbol, "protected by the regulatory framework," and the "full-face veil," such as the burqa and the niqab, recalling that regulations do not allow clothing or veils to hinder the development of teaching activities or communication with students. Juntos positioned itself in favor of banning all types of veils during compulsory school age and the full-face veil in public spaces for safety reasons.

Vox and Aliança are also calling for a further ban on headscarves in the Catalan Parliament, both for female members of parliament and chamber staff. This measure directly targets ERC member Najat Driouech, whom Silvia Orriols has singled out at least seven times in her plenary sessions, accusing her of representing "Islamic misogyny." The ERC group has asked the Statute of Deputies Committee to investigate whether the leader of the Catalan Alliance has violated the code of conduct. of the deputies with these interventions. Furthermore, the motion from the far-right pro-independence party also declares Islam "incompatible with Western values" and maintains that the "concentration" of Muslims in Catalonia "endangers coexistence and gives demographic strength to a political-religious ideology that clashes head-on with democratic values, freedoms, and principles."