If 30-40% of the people want to leave your country, you have a problem. Hiding behind legal strictures made 40 years ago ignores the core issue entirely.

The proper thing for the Spanish government to do is to sit down with the Catalans and engage in meaningful dialogue. Not kick in doors and jail people for participating in a non-binding referendum.

Just in case you didn’t read it right: 30-40% of Catalonia, which in whole is less than 20% of Spain’s population... so that’s like a 5-7% of Spanish population? The constitution is for all Spaniards.

If by "stops obeying the constitution" you mean "holds a referendum" I would be fine with it. What I am not ok with is a central government rounding people up because they want to hold an election.

Sure but now you’re deciding what parts of the constitution you obey and which ones you don’t. That just doesn’t scale.

If you want to modify the constitution you need 2/3 of the senate. There’s a procedure for that. There no excuse to break the constitution. If you think there is, you had no argument to defend your own constitutional rights.

The Spanish constitution recognizes the right to self-determination inasmuch as it explicitly enshrines the international treaties that define it.

Spain (executive and judiciary) is choosing to ignore that (unlike Canada, for example), and not letting Catalonia exercise that right in any way. According to polls 70%/80% of Catalans think a referendum about independence should take place. The current Catalan government has the mandate from last elections to find a way for the Catalans to exercise this right even if Spain opposes, given that Spain has also refused all previous proposals to find a solution.

Catalans literally have no other option. They either waive their right to self-determination or they exercise it.

Some relevant sources:

Referendum Law: http://dogc.gencat.cat/ca/pdogc_canals_interns/pdogc_resulta...

The Legitimacy of Catalonia's Exercise of its Right to Decide (a Report by a Commission of International Experts): https://www.unige.ch/gsi/files/9115/0461/7417/EXECUTIVE_SUMM...

The so-called "right to self-determination" doesn't exist in the Spanish Constitution, nor in the International Law, nor in Comparative Law.

https://elpais.com/elpais/2014/10/10/opinion/1412946101_9911...

Thats false. You'll find it usually in the first articles:

- Charter of the United Nations, Chapter 1 (Purposes and Principles), article 1.2: "To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace" [1]

- International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, article 1.1 (check out other points and article 2): All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development. [2]

- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, article 1.1: [pretty much same text as International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) [3]

- Spanish Constitution, part 1 (Fundamental Rights and Duties), Section 10.2: "Provisions relating to the fundamental rights and liberties recognized by the Constitution shall be construed in conformity with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international treaties and agreements thereon ratified by Spain." [4]

Though you only had to check Wikipedia: "The right of people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a jus cogens rule)" [5]

[1] http://www.un.org/en/sections/un-charter/chapter-i/index.htm...

[2] http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CESCR.asp...

[3] http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CCPR.aspx

[4] http://www.lamoncloa.gob.es/lang/en/espana/leyfundamental/Pa...

[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-determination

I think it is fine to not follow any part of any constitution that prevents democracy.

It’s not the central government rounding people up, the orders come from judges in Catalonia.

Purely out of curiosity: Who appoints those judges?

The High Court of Justice of Catalonia, if I’m not mistaken.

no, just a third are nominated by the Comunity

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tribunal_Superior_de_Justicia_...

I was talking about who appoints the judges in the lower courts (like the one in Barcelona behind the operations being discussed). But if your point is that the Catalan administration is part of the Spanish administration and the Catalan legality can be traced back to the Spanish constitution then I fully agree.