Fear and censorship in Catalonia

Julio Valdeón, writer

Julio Valdeón is a Spanish writer. He kept a daily record of the trial of the Catalan secessionists in Madrid and thought that it would be a good idea to publish them as a book to coincide with the verdict, expected in October. On the recommendation of a friend he approached the Barcelona publishing company Carena. He received this encouraging reply:

For us it would be a pleasure and an honour to receive your proposal. Our publishing house has 27 years of history and we are expanding.

A little later he received this, confirming a schedule:

Thank you, Julio, The project looks very good and very attractive. [We would like the complete text to be] finalised in the last week of August so that we can start the presses in September. I’ll be up to it. We’ll keep in touch. Many thanks.

And now, with the book completed and with an introduction and epilogue by other well-known writers, there is this:

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I have received your book and, while I am basically in agreement with it, publishing it like this would mean putting the company at risk, given the way things are here. It is complicated for any publisher in Catalonia to take on the publication of the book like this, if you like I can approach some publisher in Madrid. Even within the publishing team we have we have made an agreement of moderation and encouragement of dialogue.

I will offer to look for some publisher who isn’t based here who can publish it without the demonstrations and siege that it would receive.

With my best regards and personal support in anything that I can do.

Carena deny having received any pressure to reject the book. There is no reason at all to doubt them, but that is not the point. Everybody in Catalonia who opposes independence knows that acting in a way that is counter to the policies of the regime is a recipe for trouble. In a general climate of fear, nobody needs an explicit warning to keep their mouth shut. Crónica Global, the online news site that reports this story, was the victim of an attack on its HQ by nationalist thugs in January 2018.

Crónica Global criticised the Catalan government

Valdeón has received an offer from Roger Domingo, editorial director of Ediciones Deusto, saying that the book “must be published so that the truth and freedom can prevail over any attempt to hide it or skimp on it.” However, Deusto is a part of the giant Planeta media group, which moved its corporate HQ from Barcelona to Madrid in protest at the bid for Catalan independence. They can afford to upset the Catalan government. However, it is all too easy to understand that a small publisher like Carena should perceive a threat that could literally ruin the company.

Sources (Spanish)

Julio Valdeón’s website

Crónica Global

Una editorial veta un libro sobre el juicio del 'procés' por miedo al "asedio" independentista

(A publisher vetoes a book about the trial for fear of the secessionist “siege”)

Dircomfidencial

Planeta cambia su domicilio social de Barcelona a Madrid

(Planeta moves its company HQ from Barcelona to Madrid)

ABC

Tres encapuchados atacan con martillos y 'sprays' la fachada de Crónica Global

(Three hooded people attacked the façade of Crónica Global with hammers and paint sprays)