The secretary general of Podemos, Ione Belarra, opened a can of worms a few weeks ago in an interview in the newspaper ARA when she reiterated the opposition of the purple party to the transfer of immigration powers in Catalonia because she considered that if the Mossos took over these functions they would do "racist raids"This isn't the first controversy Podemos has generated in Catalonia, despite its commitment to the plurinational state. One of the most notorious was when the then-Secretary General of Podemos, Pablo Iglesias, declared that the independence movement had awakened fascism in the wake of the Trial, just before the start of the 21-D campaign in 2017. "I seek to awaken the greatest threat to democracy: the specter of fascism." At an event in Sant Adrià de BesòsIglesias lumped together Espanyol supporters and separatists, accusing them of seeking "the vote of revenge." In an uncompromising speech, he criticized the separatist movement for making "grandiose promises that they knew were lies," refusing to admit that the state had refused to seek a democratic solution and had opted solely for the path of repression.

Statements by the general secretary of Podemos, Ione Belarra, In the interview conducted last Sunday by Núria Orriols in this newspaper They've been leading the way all week and have rekindled one of the most entrenched and unproductive feuds in the Catalan and Spanish political world. It's the one that pits the Catalan right against the Spanish left, with mutual accusations that are always the same and are basically based on prejudices and commonplaces. Ione Belarra herself is one of those figures who loves to express herself with slogans, and she feels reaffirmed when she spouts the clichés that the Catalan right is more or less a reproduction of the Spanish right, because apparently their capacity for observation and analysis of reality is incapable of going beyond it. It's true that the rancid, poor-strangling Catalan exists, and these very days we've seen the president of the employers' association, Josep Sánchez Llibre, almost squirming in his simultaneous bows to the PP, Vox, and Junts for having voted against the 37.5-hour workweek. But it is absurd and unfair for Belarra, and those who think like her, to deny the evidence that a significant portion of the Catalan right (unlike the Spanish) played a fundamental role in the anti-Franco struggle, and that it has also contributed decisively, for better and for worse, to the construction of Spain's battered democracy. On the other hand, and as she has been reminded, it is in poor taste for Belarra to venture into conjectures about what the Mossos d'Esquadra would or would not do in a hypothetical situation, when the Civil Guard and the National Police have such a disgraceful and real history of racism and repression. Even if Podemos managed to force Marlaska to resign, Belarra's voice was barely heard within the Cabinet.

The statements of the general secretary of Podemos, Ione Belarra, at the ARA The protests against the transfer of immigration powers to Catalonia, arguing that the Mossos d'Esquadra would carry out racist raids, have sparked widespread condemnation among pro-Catalan forces, from the CUP (Citizens of Catalonia) to Junts (Junts), and even Comuns (Comuns). It has been a long time since there has been such a broad consensus on an issue that affects Catalonia's self-government. In contrast, Podemos Catalunya, which sided with its leader in Madrid on Wednesday, is aligning itself on this issue with the PP and Vox, both of which are in principle opposed to any transfer of powers to Catalonia.

The statements by Podemos General Secretary Ione Belarra, in which she asserted that the transfer of immigration powers to the Generalitat would mean the Mossos d'Esquadra would carry out "racist raids," have scandalized most of the Catalan parliament. However, despite criticism from the PSC, Junts, ERC, and Comuns, Podemos Catalunya supports the words of its national leader and his opposition to the transfer of powers to the Generalitat agreed between Junts and the PSOE, which is currently being processed in Congress. At least, if it is not approved beforehand. regularizes more than half a million migrants undocumented people living in Spain, the immigration law is repealed, the CIE (Central Immigration Registry) is closed, and universal access to registration is guaranteed. "The text is racist," reiterates the leadership of Podem Catalunya—and, in particular, regarding the law's preamble, which links the saturation of Catalan public services to the arrival of newcomers to the country.

Yesterday an almost paranormal phenomenon occurred: President Isla, the Minister of the Interior Parlón, Carles Puigdemont and Oriol Junqueras all agreed to react in the same way and on the same topic: the interview in ARA of Ione Belarra saying that she is against Catalonia having the powers in immigration so that The Mossos d'Esquadra would carry out racist raids.

I read in the ARA an excellent one interview by Núria Orriols Guiu with the general secretary of Podemos, Ione Belarra. At one point in the frameable piece, he asks her if she's in favor of giving the Mossos d'Esquadra powers over immigration. "No one will defend the decentralization of powers more than I," she replies, "but not because of racist politics." And this is how she explains: "Part of the agreement implies that from now on the Mossos d'Esquadra can perform the functions that the National Police does, carrying out racist raids based on ethnic profiling, that is, stopping you for your skin color when you exit the subway, when you're on a bus, in the workplace... What the National Police does now, the National Police would do now."

The words of Podemos leader Ione Belarra in the ARA His opposition to the transfer of immigration powers because he believes the Mossos d'Esquadra would carry out "racist raids based on ethnic profiling" has provoked criticism from several pro-independence leaders, but also from the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa. "I will not allow anyone to question the professionalism of the Mossos d'Esquadra," he stated in a message to X. Hours earlier, the Minister of the Interior, Núria Parlon, had also replied to the leader of Podemos, who demanded that she apologize for "inciting hate crimes" against the Mossos d'Esquadra, saying in statements to TV3: "However, Belarra maintained her initial statements and stated that Isla "does not know the country and the reality that she governs," pointing to institutional racism.

I don't wish Montoro any harm, not even anything close to the harm he tried to inflict on this newspaper in 2018, but I wonder why the judge doesn't take away his passport or make him appear every week to sign it. At least. If you read what the newspapers are reporting on his case today, it's outrageous:

He PSOE-Juntos pact for the comprehensive delegation of powers in immigration In the Generalitat it is very important. It places a great weight on the shoulders of the Generalitat, a great responsibility that will not be easy to exercise. It is not absolute: the immigration law is and will be Spanish, but otherwise, a person who comes to live and work in Catalonia will have to go through the Generalitat's office, which will act in accordance with the legal regulations approved by the Parliament of Catalonia. Let's do it well, because it is a delicate and difficult competence.

The allegations of alleged sexual abuse against Juan Carlos Monedero have put Podemos in the spotlight, which maintains that its actions were correct when it "removed" him, in September 2023. "We activated the protocol immediately. From the moment we met the witnesses, we made ourselves available to the victims, who, for this reason, gave the media attention this Friday in reference to several witnesses they received a year and a half ago against one of the co-founders of the party. Faced with criticism for not continuing the investigation of the cases that had reached them and for not publicly denouncing Monedero, Belarra has used the scarecrow of the Íñigo Errejón scandal to defend itself.

Spain's historic turnaround on the Western Sahara conflict has once again laid bare the usual differences between the two coalition partners. However, for Unidas Podemos it has provided an opportunity to explore once again the lost unity and to heal the wounds opened in the last days after the public clash between second vice-president Yolanda Díaz and Podemos ministers Ione Belarra and Irene Montero as a result of the arms shipment to Ukraine. The distance between the second vice-president and Podemos has been increasing since Pablo Iglesias's departure, whether due to tactical or communicative discrepancies. Aware, however, that the image of division weakens their political space and the coalition government, as well as being beneficial for the right, the two sides have conspired to improve coordination and to avoid airing their dirty laundry in public.

In the midst of the controversy over the granting of pardons to political prisoners, the Minister of Social Rights, Ione Belarra, of Unidas Podemos, has gone further and has defended that "normalizing" the situation in Catalonia also implies that the exiles can return. Belarra said that "it is not normal" that they are not in the Spanish state and stressed that the fact that they left was "derived from the process of judicialization" of the conflict. In an interview this Thursday with RAC1, the minister and next leader of Podemos has argued that pardons are a way to "move forward", since "the freedom of prisoners is a condition of the possibility for dialogue to bear fruit" and to be able to "solve a problem that is eminently political". But she added that it would be an "incongruence" to support "ending the judicialization" and at the same time defend the arrest of Carles Puigdemont, Clara Ponsatí and Toni Comín if they returned.