The king continues his exile in Sant Boi de Llobregat, near Girona.

BarcelonaSince Girona declared Felipe VI person persona non grataThe monarchs have not set foot again to present the awards of the Princess of Girona Foundation, a private entity but linked to the royal family. The King's speech on October 3, 2017 This prompted the pro-independence parties in the city council, then governed by Marta Madrenas (Together), to form a united front to express their rejection of the Spanish monarchy from within the City Hall. Since then, the Princess of Girona Foundation has had to scramble to find a venue to present these awards to young talent or to organize related activities. This Tuesday, the King and Queen stopped in Sant Boi de Llobregat, where they announced the winner of one of the categories, the 2026 Princess of Girona Social Award. It was awarded to Hatim Azahry, a Catalan born in Morocco and president of the Poble-sec United Youth Association, who has defended the idea of ​​genocide—in fact, he has spearheaded humanitarian aid efforts. Awarded for his social work with strong youth involvement in the streets and for conveying citizens' needs to the City Council, Azahry also embodies the integration of new Catalans and was applauded. In statements to the media, the 27-year-old noted that the organization allocates part of its budget to on-the-ground aid in Palestine, which he defined as "the cause of humanity." The event coincided with the King's visit to Barcelona this morning to present judicial appointments to a new class of judges, where the speech of the The king has focused on encouraging new professionals. In the afternoon, he declined to say a word to the residents of Sant Boi, surprising some of the monarchist attendees. After delivering speeches deemed controversial by some on the right regarding immigration and political tensions, the king maintained a low profile at an event conducted exclusively in Spanish, which included a musical performance by Alfred.

The King and Queen's presence in Sant Boi is part of the Princess of Girona Foundation's Talent Tour, which includes various activities related to the awards and talks for young people. It travels through several provinces of Spain and, for the third consecutive year, will begin in Catalonia. In 2024, the chosen city was Lleida, while in 2025 the event kicked off in Hospitalet de Llobregat. No location, therefore, remotely close to the Girona region. The Foundation's major annual event, the Princess of Girona Awards ceremony, will take place in Sant Boi. Awards in all five categories – Art, CreaEmpresa, Research, Social and International – have also stayed away from Girona, and last year the Liceu hosted it, with the entire royal family and Calls from Felipe VI to "strengthen" ties between Catalonia and Spain.

Actual reception

The monarch was received by the acting president of the Catalan Parliament, Albert Dalmau, and by local Socialist leaders and the state government delegate, Carlos Prieto. Accompanied by the Minister of the Presidency and Justice, Félix Bolaños, Felipe VI greeted councilors Mònica Martínez Bravo and Núria Montserrat, as well as the hostess, the mayor of Sant Boi and president of the Barcelona Provincial Council, Lluïsa Moret. The Socialist mayors of Viladecans, Olga Morales, and Gavà, Gemma Badia, showcased the strength of the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC), with the support of the mayor of Castelldefels, Manu Reyes, who is also a member of parliament.

There were also several businesspeople present, such as José Creuheras, president of Grupo Planeta, as well as others from the Sant Boi automotive sector, including Toni Mora, president of Citimob, which represents the city's dealerships and boasts the highest concentration of them in Spain. Political representatives were also in attendance, such as former PDECat leader Marta Pascal, who last year was granted an audience at the Zarzuela Palace as a member of Agenda Pública. Members of parliament like Pere Lluís Huguet of the People's Party were also present.

Lluc Salellas reaffirms the rejection

The exile of the kings from Girona will continue, because the city's current mayor, Lluc Salellas (Guanyem-CUP), has already stated that he does not intend to grant them access to the Auditori, the usual venue for the awards. Salellas is thus maintaining the policy applied by Mayor Madrenas in 2018, at the first awards ceremony after the application of Article 155 and the king's speech. The initial argument was that renovations were necessary, so permission was denied to the Foundation, which is based in the city. Subsequently, the mayor argued that until the king apologized, no municipal facilities should be made available to him. That year, the Foundation had to organize the awards at Mas Marroch in Vilablareix, owned by the Roca brothers. Salellas, who was a city councilor at the time, had asked the family of restaurateurs not to accept the venue so as not to normalize the "repression," words that deeply offended the Rocas. The following year, in 2019, the awards were presented for the first time in Barcelona, ​​at the Palau de Congressos. Madrenas didn't attach much importance to it: "It's a private entity, and they can go wherever they please. [...] I will never pay tribute to someone who has encouraged the repression of citizens," he added. The 2020 and 2021 awards were presented together, due to the pandemic, at the CaixaForum in Barcelona, ​​while in 2022 the chosen city was Cornellà de Llobregat. The holding of a minor event in December in Girona—in this case, an award for Young Athletes' Values ​​was presented, without the King and Queen—also stirred controversy. Salellas criticized Isla for attending and for holding the event at the Generalitat headquarters in the capital. There were also protests.