Lluís Llach's journey to become president of the ANC was very difficult. In the most tumultuous assembly in its history, the singer-songwriter It took two full houses to take the throne of the organization In a situation that had never occurred before and that highlighted the internal division, Llach, while awaiting confirmation of whether he will run for reelection, has, during his two years in office, quelled dissent and worked tirelessly to revive the independence movement, which he has admitted is in a state of "absolute depression."

For thirteen years, Marisol Schulz (Mexico City, 1957) has been at the helm of the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL), which a few months ago Barcelona was received as guest of honorSchulz received the Gold Medal for Cultural Merit from the Barcelona City Council this Wednesday. She was accompanied on this trip, which she describes as "very special," by her partner, daughter, and two grandchildren, who move about the hotel with enviable freedom. "I brought them all here because it's the first time I've received an honor like this," she says, ready to reminisce about her past as an editor—she directed Alfaguara Mexico for almost a decade—and her Valencian family roots.

The commuter rail system is not working. The delays of between 20 and 60 minutes recorded on the lines this Saturday, coinciding with the day of demonstrations called in Barcelona, ​​are a prime example. However, after weeks of rail chaos, the expectations generated by the demonstrations have not been fully met. In the morning, the pro-independence demonstration brought together some 8,000 people in the center of Barcelona, ​​according to the Guardia Urbana (Barcelona's municipal police), along a route that made it clear it was not just a protest about the trains (between the Rafael Casanova monument and Plaça Sant Jaume). In the afternoon, the Barcelona police estimated the number of demonstrators, called by commuter rail user groups, at 3,000. Much of the indignation of the users, which is evident day after day in stations across the country, has remained at home. The organizers, who were unable to coordinate a single, unified demonstration, have inflated their figures, estimating 30,000 protesters in the morning and 40,000 in the afternoon. The Catalan government reacted to the mobilizations from Tremp, where the Minister of the Presidency, Albert Dalmau, guaranteed that they would "take the bull by the horns" and work to "fix once and for all" the commuter rail service in Catalonia. "This isn't about trains, it's about dignity and our future, and that of our nation." The independence movement is looking for opportunities to regain the strength it has been losing since the fall of 2017, and the rail chaos of recent weeks has opened one. The president of the Catalan National Assembly (ANC), Lluís Llach, made no secret of the fact that the commuter rail service "disaster" is merely the tip of the iceberg of a demand that extends far beyond infrastructure. The chants this morning, in fact, were primarily focused on independence and criticism of Spain. Like the 2007 demonstration, this Saturday's protest used rail transport as its central theme, but the core slogan was "independence." The difference compared to 19 years ago was the number of demonstrators: back then, the Barcelona City Police estimated the attendance at 200,000, while the organizers, the Platform for the Right to Decide, put the figure at 700,000. At the end of the march, in front of the Palau de la Generalitat, Llach described Salvador Illa's government as "collaborative" and urged pro-independence parties to overthrow the socialist governments, both in Catalonia and in Spain, to force elections "of a plebiscite nature."

It's no surprise that Lluís Llach dislikes Aliança Catalana. The singer-songwriter and president of the ANC takes every opportunity to make this clear: this Wednesday, he was interviewed on La 2, where he stated that the party led by Sílvia Orriols is nothing more than "a creation to block the independence movement." With Aliança Catalana in the equation, a pro-independence majority in the Catalan Parliament becomes more complicated, because neither ERC, nor the CUP, nor Junts are willing to form a coalition. "There are many people who might be interested in Aliança," he continued. Besides avoiding parliamentary alliances, Llach also cited the polls. "Everything Aliança gains either comes from Vox or Junts, and damaging Junts is very profitable," he emphasized, referring to the political, economic, and media elites of the Spanish state—and of Catalonia, he added—who, in his opinion, are working to stifle the independence movement. Llach's interpretation is very similar to that of other political leaders: the president of ERC, Oriol Junqueras, has even gone so far as to suggest that Aliança Catalana It could be a creation of the Spanish secret services.

Lluís Llach returned to the stage of the Palau de la Música to participate in the opening of the 31st edition of the Barnasants festival. It wasn't just any concert, but a tribute to the recitals that Llach performed at the Sports Palace in Barcelona on January 15, 16 and 17, 1976when the dictator Franco had not yet been dead for two months. Despite being the guest of honor, and despite singing some songs, Llach maintained a secondary role, applauding and acknowledging the formidable work done with his songs by the singers, Gemma Humet and Joan Reig (the drummer from Els Pets), as well as the band led by Manel Camp on piano.

Lluís Llach was 27 years old when he starred in the first major political event in Catalonia after Franco's death: his legendary concerts on January 15, 16, and 17, 1976, at the Palau d'Esports in Barcelona. Half a century later, Llach—now 77—is the second guest in this interview series. 2 x 100Two people talking and 100 readers and subscribers of ARA in the audience. In this conversation, Lluís Llach compares the concerts of January 1976 with October 1, 2017, explains why he got angry with Serrat, and admits that perhaps he himself has already become like Grandpa Siset.

We thought we'd never see the Sau reservoir full again, but it turns out that, between the rains of these past months and the snow that will fall in spring, they'll have to release some water. Just a year ago it was at 12% of its capacity, and now it's over 86%. The Susqueda reservoir is nearing 90%.

If the Diada is measured in thousands of protesters, theToday's independence movement cannot compete with that of ten years ago, but we already knew that.Those million-dollar Diadas belong to the past and won't return for a good while yet. Just remember which party currently represents the president of the Generalitat. Therefore, the number of people who took to the streets is directly proportional to the confidence they have in the strategies and leadership of Esquerra (Republic of Catalonia), Junts (Junts), and the CUP (with the deterrent influence of the rain, which in Barcelona this morning took the form of a downpour). Underlying this attitude is an indisputable reasoning: if when two million people came out to fill the entire Gran Via and Diagonal, all that accumulated strength didn't serve to make the struggle in Spain more likely to succeed, going out today or not going out won't make a difference. But, I insist, we already knew this.

The Diades are long gone from the massive pro-independence demonstrations, those that ultimately marked the political course and generated a turning point in the Catalan and state paradigm. Catalonia has been in a post-independence period for at least a year and a half—since the independence movement lost the Catalan government after the March 12 elections—and this year's Diada certifies this. However, while it's true that the mobilization this September 11th had even lower participation—some 41,500 people in Barcelona, ​​​​Girona, ​​and Tortosa—than a year ago (70,000 across Catalonia), the streets continue to fill with unconditional supporters, proving that the movement has not disappeared. It doesn't have the institutional power it held a year ago, with the Generalitat as its leading exponent, but the pro-independence parties continue to influence the Catalan and state legislatures. In fact, they hold the key. And as was the case before 2010, when the Process was barely getting started, now the political agenda is no longer set by the path towards a state of its own, but by everyday issues that also structure a nation. Catalan is the clearest example and has become the spearhead of this Diada.

It seems like it's all about to start this week. This is the case with the school year, which in Catalonia will be held without cell phones, which may not even be used for educational purposes. This correction is welcome, even if it brings us back to the pendulum law. There were years when, if there were no screens in schools, we were missing the boat on educational modernity, and now, frightened by the consequences of screen dependence, we ban them. That's fine, but everyone knows the problem is deeper: if screens devour the students' parents (which is what happens), they end up devouring the students.

A few days before the celebration of the Diada, the president of the National Assembly of Catalonia, Lluís Llach, emphasizes the need for civil society to take the initiative in pressuring political parties to achieve independence.

Hello, how are you?

Another departure from the leadership of the ANC. And not just any departure. The man who was the second most voted candidate by members after Lluís Llach is also leaving the ship. The former vice-president of the Parliament, Josep Costa, has ceased to be the national secretary of the organization. most members of the critical sector have already done so after the approval of the reform of the statutes that reduces the majorities when making decisions. In a letter signed with other secretaries who have already resigned, and which ARA has had access to, Costa does not mince his words when criticizing the management headed by Lluís Llach and disassociates himself from the entity. Costa, who had called for a vote against the reform of the statutes that was approved by the partners in an incontestable manner, had already had several clashes in recent weeks with Llach's standing committee, the Assembly's reduced governing body.

The ANC leadership has gotten its way. The leadership, led by Lluís Llach, wanted to reform the statutes to prevent the critical sector from continuing to block Decision-making and the election of officials, and the members have validated the modification with 73% support, according to ARA. The endorsement of the management, which required a two-thirds vote, is incontestable: 2,496 members voted in favor of the reform and only 859 voted against it. Participation, however, was very low.

Lluís Llach has said enough. On the last Saturday of April, the ANC leadership approved, in an extraordinary plenary session, the partial modification of the entity's statutes and internal regulations to prevent the critical sector from imposing its views and continuing to put obstacles in the way of the organization's members' approval over the last few terms. So much so that a fourteenth of the critical sector's secretaries have challenged the statute reform process because they argue that it was activated by the permanent committee without the endorsement of the national secretariat. The ANC is not a party to the statutes, nor does it support a candidate for the elections, as advocated by the former leadership headed by Dolors Feliu, and which the members rejected. by the minimumFearing that the civic list will be put back on the table due to the paralysis of the Process, the leadership wants the statutes to prevent the Assembly from launching an electoral campaign at all costs. The proposed wording, to which ARA has had access, stipulates that the ANC will remain independent of any electoral option and that, furthermore, "it will not promote, instigate, or get involved in it, nor will it present itself, either directly or indirectly, in any type of election."

It's been more than a decade since Lluís Llach reinvented himself as a novelist, and since he published Memory of painted eyes (Empúries, 2012), thousands of readers have faithfully followed him book after book. "Stop, stop, don't exaggerate from the beginning," Llach urged, while the audience gave him a standing ovation as soon as he appeared in the large hall of the modernist complex of the Hospital de Sant Pau where his new novel was presented, The Golden Book, in an event organized by the ARA and the publishing house Universo.

Lluís Llach (Girona, 1948) has been practicing "the craft of contradicting" for decades. He has done so through songs like The stake and various challenges to the Franco regime. Since leaving music, Llach has shifted his iconoclasm towards literature, with novels such as The women of the Principal (Empúries, 2014) and The boy from Maravillas (Empúries, 2017), while He has been deeply involved in the civic and political struggle for the independence of Catalonia.. He has found a gap in his busy schedule as president of the Catalan National Assembly, which he has led since last June, to talk aboutThe Golden Book (Universe, 2025).

The Consell per la República (CxR), which has played a central role in these last hours in the public break between Reublican Left of Catalonia (ERC) and Together for Catalonia (JxCat), has denied on Monday it seeks to oversee the presidency of the Generalitat. After the vice-president, Pere Aragonès, has assured that JxCat wants to subordinate the Government to the CxR, former MP and member of CxR Lluís Llach has wanted to dissociate the entity from the negotiations to form a new executive, He claimed CxR is not seeking to direct autonomic politics. In any case, he has made himself available to pro-independence parties should they reach a "consensus" on the specific role to be played by the Consell. In the meantime, he has assured that the entity presided over by Carles Puigdemont has its roadmap defined - the so-called Let's prepare for unilateralism - and that they will continue to work on this line.