Full Catalan Perception

As the whole world has been watching the events taking place in Catalonia,
Erasmus students of Fall 2017 in Barcelona all had a supplementary exclusive culture
experience; the Catalan independence case. No matter how worried my parents were, I
still assume myself lucky to be here in Barcelona in such history defining days; I get to
live the adventure of a province with split communities arguing about going
independent from, or holding on to, Spain.
The Independence case is very complex and its hard for a non-native Spanish or
Catalan to understand, but for readers with no background it could be briefly explained
as a major number of Catalans opting for complete Independence from Spain as they
think their rights as a province are not fulfilled, while on the other hand, others think
that independence is not the solution at this
time as it will hinder the areas economic and
political power. Without going into details and
political opinions left aside, I think there is no
place to be better that in the capital of Catalonia
to get a full hands on experience.
Just a few weeks after coming and
settling in Barcelona, the world news had
nothing to talk about except the Catalan
Referendum and the violence associated by the
police against the voters. Afterwards, strikes began to unfold, and mega protests filled
the streets on weekends. Politics began taking its place for a few days and then the
Catalan government announces independence. Short afterwards, the majority of the
government gets arrested and until this moment in time, the fate of Catalonia is still
unknown.
I come from the other side of the Mediterranean, particularly from Egypt where
politics and democracy arent in their best situations. Just 6 years ago, Egypt started a
series of revolutions on 2 different presidents, leaving the country in an unnatural
political condition. Ive taken part in some protests, strikes and even celebrations back
in Egypt, so living the same here in Catalonia was a must do for me. On a weekend, I
bought a Catalan flag and went down the streets of Barcelona where a massive protest
took place. Although I couldnt understand any chants, the vibe was still the same;
fighting for the freedom of speech and real democracy is a right, and we the whole
world should fight for it.
The experience of being in a country with so much going on obliged me to try to
follow the case. I followed political accounts on social media that regularly posted about
the situation, and as much as possible tried to know the opinions of the few Catalan or
Spanish people I get to deal with. For the first time, I got hooked up into the matters of
a country other than my own; this alone was for me a unique experience. I think Ill
never be as ignorant as I used to be, living this experience has moved me to be much
more aware of universal politics.
Before coming to Barcelona, I was the only one in my group of friends that knew
Catalonia has its own language, just because Im a fan of FC Barcelona. Now with just a
few days ahead of me, Im still in denial whether I will tell my kids my Erasmus
semester took place in Spain or in the Independent Republic of Catalonia.

By: Omar Ezzeldin