Josep-Lluís Carod-Rovira
Encyclopedia
Josep-Lluís Carod-Rovira (ʒuˈzɛb ʎuˈis kəˈɾɔd ruˈβiɾə) (born May 17, 1952 in Cambrils
, Tarragona
, Spain
) was the Vice-president of the Catalan Government from 2006 to 2010. From 1996 to 2008 he was the leader of ERC Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya
(Republican Left of Catalonia).
ERC campaigns for Catalonia's independence
from Spain and, secondarily, extend it to the Catalan Countries
, the whole Catalan linguistic domain.
He is currently one of the two Vice Presidents of the current Catalan autonomous government formed after the 2006 Catalan regional election
. He is also vice president of the Ramon Llull Foundation
. In the previous 2003 cabinet, he was First Minister (Catalan: conseller en cap) of the Generalitat de Catalunya
. After his, at times, controversial style, eventually the other partners in the cabinet forced him to resign after his action culminated in a secret meeting with representatives of the Basque
separatist group ETA
, which was leaked to the press; this was followed by general political pressure asking for his resignation.
Philology
from the UB. He then enrolled as a teacher of the Catalan language
at the University School of Tarragona
(from 1978 to 1982). In the University world, he was also professor and vicepresident of the Catalan Summer University (Universitat Catalana d'Estiu) between 1986 and 1995. Before this, he also worked as Head Technician of Generalitat
's linguistic planning policy (1981-1988) and headed the Cultural Territorial Services of the Generalitat
at Tarragona
(1982 to 1984).
division), Llull-Federació d'Entitats dels Països Catalans (member of its board between 1991-1995), the castellers association Colla Jove Xiquets de Tarragona (colla means association), the Catalan Language Writers Association, the Pen Club and the Societat Catalana d'Onomàstica.
As a writer, he has published Rovira i Virgili i la qüestió nacional (1994), Marcel·lí Domingo, de l'escola a la República (1988), Tornar amb la gent (1997), Jubilar la Transició (1998), El futur a les mans (2003) and La nova Catalunya (2003). He also has contributed in the Catalans from America Dictionary and in the book America and Catalonia, as well as several encyclopedias and specialized magazines. He has won several awards for historical essays and journalism.
government of Franco
and was jailed in 1973 when the 113 members of the Permanent Board of Catalonia's Assembly were arrested and the board was dissolved. Before entering, in 1987, ERC
, he was an active member of the Socialist National Liberation Party (PSAN) between 1970 and 1977 and of the Left Nationalists (NE) between 1980 and 1986. Carod-Rovira also wrote the Resolution about the right to self-determination
of the Catalan Nation in 1989.
Carod-Rovira was first elected General Secretary of ERC
in November 1996, in the 21st National Congress of the party at Vilafranca del Penedès
. He was reelected in Girona
(22nd National Congress) by July 1998 and in Tarragona
(23rd National Congress) by March 2001.
Carod-Rovira is president of ERC
since its 24th National Congress, held in Lleida
the July 3 and 4 of 2004.
After the Catalan elections in 2003, he achieved the position of First Minister of the Catalan government between December 2003 and January 2004, when he was forced to resign over his secret meeting with ETA
. He subsequently became a candidate for the Spanish Congress of Deputies in the elections of March 2004 and his party got 8 seats and almost quadrupled its popular support. This represented a major boost for ERC, which had had at most one seat since the establishment of the Spanish modern democracy in 1979. After the elections, Carod-Rovira asked for its substitution as a Deputy and remained in the Catalan Parliament.
between December 2003 and January 2004. He was the Vice President of the Catalan Government in the eighth constituency.
Cambrils
Cambrils is a coastal town in the comarca of Baix Camp, province of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain. The town is nearby the tourist town, Salou and is frequently visited by those travelling by air using Reus Airport and major transport links such as the Plana Bus and the RENFE.-History:-Roman empire...
, Tarragona
Tarragona
Tarragona is a city located in the south of Catalonia on the north-east of Spain, by the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the capital of the Catalan comarca Tarragonès. In the medieval and modern times it was the capital of the Vegueria of Tarragona...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) was the Vice-president of the Catalan Government from 2006 to 2010. From 1996 to 2008 he was the leader of ERC Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya
Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya
The Republican Left of Catalonia is a left wing Catalan independentist political party in Spain. It is also the main sponsor of the independence movement from France and Spain in the territories known among Catalan nationalists as Països Catalans...
(Republican Left of Catalonia).
ERC campaigns for Catalonia's independence
Catalan independentism
Catalan independentism is a political movement, derived from Catalan nationalism, which supports the independence of Catalonia or the so-called Catalan countries from Spain and France...
from Spain and, secondarily, extend it to the Catalan Countries
Catalan Countries
The Catalan term Països Catalans refers to the territories where the Catalan language is spoken.The first mentions of the term date back to the late 19th century, but it never surpassed the limits of a small circle of Catalan authors until its strictly cultural dimension became increasingly...
, the whole Catalan linguistic domain.
He is currently one of the two Vice Presidents of the current Catalan autonomous government formed after the 2006 Catalan regional election
Catalan Parliament election, 2006
Elections to the Parliament of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, Spain, were held on November 1, 2006.-Background:The November 2006 Catalan parliament election was an early one...
. He is also vice president of the Ramon Llull Foundation
Ramon Llull Foundation
The Fundació Ramon Llull , also known by the acronym FRL, is an international organization constituted in 2008 in order to promote Catalan language and culture internationally...
. In the previous 2003 cabinet, he was First Minister (Catalan: conseller en cap) of the Generalitat de Catalunya
Generalitat de Catalunya
The Generalitat of Catalonia is the institution under which the autonomous community of Catalonia is politically organised. It consists of the Parliament, the President of the Generalitat of Catalonia and the Government of Catalonia....
. After his, at times, controversial style, eventually the other partners in the cabinet forced him to resign after his action culminated in a secret meeting with representatives of the Basque
Basque people
The Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...
separatist group ETA
ETA
ETA , an acronym for Euskadi Ta Askatasuna is an armed Basque nationalist and separatist organization. The group was founded in 1959 and has since evolved from a group promoting traditional Basque culture to a paramilitary group with the goal of gaining independence for the Greater Basque Country...
, which was leaked to the press; this was followed by general political pressure asking for his resignation.
Education and professional background
Carod-Rovira received a Bachelor's Degree in CatalanCatalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
Philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
from the UB. He then enrolled as a teacher of the Catalan language
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
at the University School of Tarragona
Tarragona
Tarragona is a city located in the south of Catalonia on the north-east of Spain, by the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the capital of the Catalan comarca Tarragonès. In the medieval and modern times it was the capital of the Vegueria of Tarragona...
(from 1978 to 1982). In the University world, he was also professor and vicepresident of the Catalan Summer University (Universitat Catalana d'Estiu) between 1986 and 1995. Before this, he also worked as Head Technician of Generalitat
Generalitat de Catalunya
The Generalitat of Catalonia is the institution under which the autonomous community of Catalonia is politically organised. It consists of the Parliament, the President of the Generalitat of Catalonia and the Government of Catalonia....
's linguistic planning policy (1981-1988) and headed the Cultural Territorial Services of the Generalitat
Generalitat de Catalunya
The Generalitat of Catalonia is the institution under which the autonomous community of Catalonia is politically organised. It consists of the Parliament, the President of the Generalitat of Catalonia and the Government of Catalonia....
at Tarragona
Tarragona
Tarragona is a city located in the south of Catalonia on the north-east of Spain, by the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the capital of the Catalan comarca Tarragonès. In the medieval and modern times it was the capital of the Vegueria of Tarragona...
(1982 to 1984).
Civic background
Carod-Rovira has been involved in several civic organisations, among which are Òmnium Cultural (member of its board between 1986 to 1995 and president of its TarragonèsTarragonès
Tarragonès is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is one of the three comarques formed in the 1936 comarcal division of Camp de Tarragona. It lies on the Mediterranean coast, between the comarques of Baix Penedès to the northeast and Baix Camp to the south. Over 60% of the population live in the...
division), Llull-Federació d'Entitats dels Països Catalans (member of its board between 1991-1995), the castellers association Colla Jove Xiquets de Tarragona (colla means association), the Catalan Language Writers Association, the Pen Club and the Societat Catalana d'Onomàstica.
As a writer, he has published Rovira i Virgili i la qüestió nacional (1994), Marcel·lí Domingo, de l'escola a la República (1988), Tornar amb la gent (1997), Jubilar la Transició (1998), El futur a les mans (2003) and La nova Catalunya (2003). He also has contributed in the Catalans from America Dictionary and in the book America and Catalonia, as well as several encyclopedias and specialized magazines. He has won several awards for historical essays and journalism.
Political background
He was actively involved in the fight against the authoritarianAuthoritarianism
Authoritarianism is a form of social organization characterized by submission to authority. It is usually opposed to individualism and democracy...
government of Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
and was jailed in 1973 when the 113 members of the Permanent Board of Catalonia's Assembly were arrested and the board was dissolved. Before entering, in 1987, ERC
Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya
The Republican Left of Catalonia is a left wing Catalan independentist political party in Spain. It is also the main sponsor of the independence movement from France and Spain in the territories known among Catalan nationalists as Països Catalans...
, he was an active member of the Socialist National Liberation Party (PSAN) between 1970 and 1977 and of the Left Nationalists (NE) between 1980 and 1986. Carod-Rovira also wrote the Resolution about the right to self-determination
Self-determination
Self-determination is the principle in international law that nations have the right to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no external compulsion or external interference...
of the Catalan Nation in 1989.
Carod-Rovira was first elected General Secretary of ERC
Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya
The Republican Left of Catalonia is a left wing Catalan independentist political party in Spain. It is also the main sponsor of the independence movement from France and Spain in the territories known among Catalan nationalists as Països Catalans...
in November 1996, in the 21st National Congress of the party at Vilafranca del Penedès
Vilafranca del Penedès
Vilafranca del Penedès, or simply Vilafranca, is the capital of the comarca of the Alt Penedès in Catalonia, Spain. The Spanish spelling of the name, Villafranca del Penedés, is no longer in official use...
. He was reelected in Girona
Girona
Girona is a city in the northeast of Catalonia, Spain at the confluence of the rivers Ter, Onyar, Galligants and Güell, with an official population of 96,236 in January 2009. It is the capital of the province of the same name and of the comarca of the Gironès...
(22nd National Congress) by July 1998 and in Tarragona
Tarragona
Tarragona is a city located in the south of Catalonia on the north-east of Spain, by the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the capital of the Catalan comarca Tarragonès. In the medieval and modern times it was the capital of the Vegueria of Tarragona...
(23rd National Congress) by March 2001.
Carod-Rovira is president of ERC
Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya
The Republican Left of Catalonia is a left wing Catalan independentist political party in Spain. It is also the main sponsor of the independence movement from France and Spain in the territories known among Catalan nationalists as Països Catalans...
since its 24th National Congress, held in Lleida
Lleida
Lleida is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital city of the province of Lleida, as well as the largest city in the province and it had 137,387 inhabitants , including the contiguous municipalities of Raimat and Sucs. The metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants...
the July 3 and 4 of 2004.
After the Catalan elections in 2003, he achieved the position of First Minister of the Catalan government between December 2003 and January 2004, when he was forced to resign over his secret meeting with ETA
ETA
ETA , an acronym for Euskadi Ta Askatasuna is an armed Basque nationalist and separatist organization. The group was founded in 1959 and has since evolved from a group promoting traditional Basque culture to a paramilitary group with the goal of gaining independence for the Greater Basque Country...
. He subsequently became a candidate for the Spanish Congress of Deputies in the elections of March 2004 and his party got 8 seats and almost quadrupled its popular support. This represented a major boost for ERC, which had had at most one seat since the establishment of the Spanish modern democracy in 1979. After the elections, Carod-Rovira asked for its substitution as a Deputy and remained in the Catalan Parliament.
Institutional background
Josep-Lluís Carod-Rovira has been deputy at the Catalan Parliament since 1988 and also was First Minister of the Generalitat de CatalunyaGeneralitat de Catalunya
The Generalitat of Catalonia is the institution under which the autonomous community of Catalonia is politically organised. It consists of the Parliament, the President of the Generalitat of Catalonia and the Government of Catalonia....
between December 2003 and January 2004. He was the Vice President of the Catalan Government in the eighth constituency.