Sumar's parliamentary group in Congress is evaluating what vote it will cast on Junts' bill that seeks to prohibit the use of the burqa, which arrives this Tuesday at the Plenary. Within the coalition there are currents that contemplate abstention as a political gesture in the midst of negotiations to push through the housing decree, in which the support of the post-convergents is decisive.
Sources from the government's minority partner indicate that the group's leadership will meet shortly to set a definitive position, as there is not yet a closed criterion and they admit that the internal debate on what stance to adopt remains open.
In February, faced with a similar initiative promoted by Vox, Sumar chose to vote against it, considering the text from Santiago Abascal's party "retrograde." Now, although Junts' proposal does not convince them either, they recognize that it includes aspects that deserve a more unhurried reflection.
A part of the group assumes that not blocking the admission for processing of the post-convergent proposal could facilitate dialogue with Junts so that they support the extension of rents, which will be voted on at the end of the month. "There is water," they point out from this sector.
However, other voices reject linking the meaning of the vote on Junts' law to the conversations about the housing decree. At the same time, there are members of the coalition willing to lean towards abstention if there are "guarantees" that Puigdemont's party will act responsibly regarding the extension of rents, recalling that what is being debated now is only the taking into consideration.
Internal debate between abstention and rejection
In no case does Sumar contemplate voting in favor of the proposition, so that even so the law would not pass. In a press conference, Sumar's spokesperson, Verónica Martínez Barbero, has referred the decision to the group's next meeting, while the co-spokesperson for the Comuns, Aina Vidal, has made it clear that they are not considering supporting Junts' text, so the dilemma is limited to abstention or a negative vote.
Furthermore, if PP and Vox finally position themselves against Junts' initiative, which also foresees transferring powers in immigration matters to the Generalitat, an eventual abstention by Sumar would not be enough for the proposal to overcome the initial procedure. Especially when the PSOE has already advanced its rejection of prohibiting garments for religious reasons.
Vidal recalled the debate last February to ironize that Junts was uncomfortable with Vox's proposal for "Spanish and not right-wing" and that it made them feel ashamed to vote alongside the "Spanish far-right". In his opinion, the post-convergent proposal should be read in terms of "anxiety" given the growth of Aliança Catalana.
The leader of the Comuns has wanted to separate the debate about the burqa from the negotiation of the housing decree, considering that "exchanges of rights" should not occur and that the discussion must focus on whether or not it is appropriate to prohibit this type of clothing.
"There are elements that are, I believe, reasonable that can be studied, others that are clearly racist and that we do not want to consider. We have doubts, and we have said it from the beginning, not because we like a mechanism. We understand that it is about the submission of women, but we do have doubts about whether the prohibition is the opportune path and that it truly helps," Vidal has stated.
Sumar insists on human rights and denounces a "deceptive" debate
For his part, the Compromís deputy and deputy spokesperson for Sumar in Congress, Alberto Ibáñez, has also referred the decision to the group meeting and has stressed that the vote will be set "respecting human rights and being coherent", in line with the rejection they already expressed to Vox's text.
Ibáñez has defended that the left should not avoid the debate on security, but neither accept that it is raised "deceptively marked by a reality similar to that of unicorns". He has explained that he is from Vila-real and that he has never seen any woman with a burqa on the street.
"Perhaps starting to talk about security from this end is a bit clumsy and a smokescreen. And I believe that the lefts should cooperate, understanding each other that they don't set the agenda for us and in setting it ourselves," he/she concluded.