Alain-G. Gagnon: Intimidation and democratic backsliding in Catalonia

On 25 March 2018, German police arrested Catalan independence leader Carles Puigdemont. The next day, 2010 Foundation fellow Alain-G. Gagnon stated in an article (French only) in Le Devoir that the arrest constitutes intimidation by Mariano Rajoy’s government and is doomed to fail, given the massive popular mobilization it stirred. Gagnon also warned against the "odious" behavior of the Spanish government: impeding Catalans to freely choose their president puts democracy at risk and moves Spain towards a regime where Catalans are no longer free to express an opinion contrary to the central government’s. The international implications of this democratic backsliding must also be considered: "If we tolerate this of Spain, which claims to be an advanced democracy, what can we expect from less democratic countries? How can democratic countries position themselves as models if we are the first not to respect the rules of the game?” asked Gagnon (translation ours).

Alain-G. Gagnon is a 2010 Foundation fellow and a full professor of political science at UQAM. He has held the Canada Research Chair in Quebec and Canadian Studies since 2003 and has headed the CAP-CF at UQAM since 12 March 2018. Read the article here.