The Justice for the Civil Guard (JUCIL) association has called for the resignation of the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, whom they see as an "accomplice" in the attempt by the pro-independence movement to "annihilate" and "dismantle" the armed institute in Catalonia, where they have lost a thousand agents since the procés.
This has been denounced at a press conference in Barcelona by the general secretary of JUCIL, Ernesto Vilariño, and his manager in the Catalan capital, Milagros Cívico, who have warned that since the process the agents of the Civil Guard "do not survive" in Catalonia because of the "hate" of the independentistas, who want to "throw" them out of this community, with the complicity of the Government, which accepts their dismantling as a "political toll to stay in power."
As an example, they have regretted that in recent years the Ministry of the Interior has allowed the transfer of powers from the Civil Guard to the Mossos d'Esquadra in matters such as the maritime service, or that they have been excluded from the operational center of the emergency service 112 and the Lleida Explosive Deactivation Group and the Puigcerdà Mountain Rescue Group have been dismantled.
"We are witnessing an underground dismantling of the Civil Guard in Catalonia," Vilariño has denounced, while Cívico has remarked that it is a process of "annihilation."
According to those responsible for JUCIL, the "sneering" and "hatred" towards the Civil Guard agents and their families in Catalonia, together with the loss of powers, have meant that since the procés nearly a thousand agents have sought new destinations where they can live and work "without the stressful atmosphere" they endure in this community.
Specifically, from the 3,549 troops that the Civil Guard had in 2019 in Catalonia, in the first two years of the Government of Pedro Sánchez the armed institute had 256 casualties in this community, which have been increasing to a thousand, according to JUCIL.
Faced with this situation, Vilariño has revealed that Minister Marlaska made a personal commitment to him, in January 2022, to shortly agree on the conversion of Catalonia as a Special Singularity Zone -as is the case in the Basque Country, which entails economic and labor improvements for agents-, with the aim of making the destination of Catalonia more attractive and recovering troops.
However, since then the minister has not taken any step forward in this regard, which is why they have called for his resignation today in Barcelona, since they consider that Marlaska is like a "boxer who has been knocked out" and that he has "lost control "of the ministry.
According to Cívico, the situation in Catalonia for Civil Guard agents is "a bit dramatic", which is why it is not a "desirable destination" for other classmates, among other reasons due to the "imposition" of Catalan at school, where As highlighted, the Generalitat has reiterated that it will not comply with the 25% sentence.
He has also denounced the "harassment" suffered by the children of the agents in their schools due to the fact that their parents are civil guards or the delay with which the Generalitat vaccinated them for the coronavirus, in a case that is under judicial review, which It has created a "hostile environment" that has caused only agents to arrive in Catalonia, and with "forced" transfers, agents leaving the academy.
For Cívico, if Marlaska does not fulfill her commitment and help make the destination of Catalonia more attractive, the Civil Guard "little by little" will "disappear" from this community.
Vilariño has indicated that, "saving the differences", if Catalonia were decreed a zone of special singularity, as happened with the Basque Country during ETA's "years of lead", the thousand missing agents could be covered, since currently Only those who have roots in this community remain.
