For the victims it is the “largest mass espionage case in history”, for the perpetrators a legitimate operation, carried out under judicial control. In between is a government that must defend the actions of some and provide valid justifications for the others. The so-called “Catalangate” has wreaked havoc in Spanish politics, and the consequences put the current executive at risk.
History of the Catalangate
On April 18, the New Yorker published a research by the Canadian study center The Citizen Lab, destined to cause a sensation: 67 leading figures of Catalan independence have been the subject of cyberespionage attempts, most of which through the Pegasus software of Israeli company Nso, already known for a large illegal surveillance scandal involving several governments.
In at least 51 cases, according to the survey, some devices have actually been hacked and their owners actually “controlled”, thanks to the possibility of geolocating them, reading their conversations, listening to their phone calls and stealing data and photographs. Probably, the real victims are many more, since the use of the software is much more traceable on iOS operating systems, but it also acts effectively on Android ones.
The confirmed victims are activists linked to the world of Catalan separatism, lawyers and above all politicians of the separatist parties. Among them are the current president of the Generalitat de CatalunyaPere Aragonès, and Laura Borràs of the Catalan parliament, both spied on before taking up their respective posts.
But also the other protagonists, past and present, of the procésthe attempted secession culminating in the declaration of independence from Spain in 2017: the former president Quim Torra, put under control while he was in office, the former president of parliament Roger Torrent and Artur Mas, historical Catalan leader, creator of the referendum on independence.
Carles Puigdemont, president of the Generalitat at the time of the attempted secession and now a member of the European Parliament, is not missing: in this case, however, the phones of his wife, his lawyer and members of his staff. The same “indirect espionage” hit MEP Clara Ponsatí, while colleagues Toni Comín, Diana Riba and Jordi Solé were intercepted directly on their devices.
“Knowing that they have overheard my private conversations leaves me feeling completely helpless. I don’t know to what extent my privacy has been violated, ”Marcel Mauri, one of the targets of espionage, tells Linkiesta. His cell phone, according to research, was hit three times by Pegasus. “It was a suspicion we had been harboring for some time, but being sure is another matter entirely.”
Mauri was vice-president of Òmnium cultural, an association for the defense of the Catalan language and culture during the independence period. His superior, Jordi Cuixart was sentenced to nine years in prison for sedition, before benefiting from the government pardon: while he defended himself at the trial, his wife’s phone was included in the surveillance.
«It is very serious for a state to spy on political leaders, even more so if it does so with activists and members of civil society. But it seems that everything is valid in the persecution of the separatists », says Marcel Mauri, convinced that the espionage may still be ongoing. “Maybe they’re listening to this conversation too …”.
On balance, the last four presidents of the regional government and all current separatist Catalan MEPs have been, in one way or another, subjected to surveillance. The Citizen Lab study center does not definitively identify the perpetrators of the operation, even if “strong indications suggest a link with the Spanish authorities”.
“Sherlock Holmes is not needed to identify those responsible,” said President Aragonès in an interview, directly accusing the Centro Nacional de Inteligencia (Cni), the Spanish secret services. Who cannot respond in public, but have let the press filter out a partial confirmation: the espionage took place, but in an individual way and always under judicial control, monitoring the subjects with the Pegasus program to follow their movements abroad and communications on social network.
Government in crisis
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and his Defense Minister Margarita Robles moved on the same defensive line in the fiery session of the Madrid Congreso on April 27, in which the government was called upon to explain the incident. The first ensured that every Cni operation was carried out in accordance with the law, the second even counterattacked: “What should a state do when someone violates the Constitution and declares independence?”
Definitely unwelcome words to the pro-independence deputies who, representing three different political forces, sit in the hemicycle. The biggest problem for Sánchez’s executive, however, are the 13 of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, the party of Pere Aragonès (who asked for Robles’ immediate resignation after his statements), currently in government in Barcelona and decisive in the balances in Madrid.
Thanks to the abstention of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, in January 2020, Sánchez obtained the investiture and his precarious government is based on this “neutrality”, given that his PSOE holds less than half of the seats together with the allies of Unidas Podemos . In exchange for this position, the national executive maintains a “soft” approach to independentism: it is carrying out with difficulty a process of reconciliation based on a “dialogue table” with the Generalitat and has guaranteed an indult to those sentenced for the declaration of independence.
But now this fragile understanding creaks. Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya calls for a thorough and independent investigation into Catalangate, otherwise it clearly threatens to “break down the legislative agenda of the PSOE”, as he has declared his Congreso spokesperson, Gabriel Rufián. Sánchez’s government partner, Unidos Podemos, joins the call for transparency, while the opposition demands the president’s head.
“Sánchez must resign,” Aleix Sarri, head of foreign affairs of the Junts party for Catalunya, which he governs in Catalonia together with Esquerra Republicana, tells Linkiesta. On a national level, he argues, a profound reflection of the independence parties is needed: “They cannot approve the laws of a government that spies on us.”
The first test is the vote on the “economic decree”, a package of measures aimed at limiting the impact of the war in Ukraine. A defeat by the government on what is considered a key measure would not have immediate concrete consequences, because in Spain an executive can fall with the resignation of its president or with a “motion of censure”, approved by a relative majority of deputies, which provides replacement. But it would undoubtedly undermine their credibility: it is difficult to continue to govern without the numbers to approve even the most urgent initiatives.
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