Col·lectiu Praga

Col·lectiu Praga is a Catalan legal initiative driven by around forty law professors and university lecturers, created to contribute juridical arguments to the debate on the exercise of the right to decide in Catalonia. It was presented on 19 September 2013 and initially comprised 15 professors and more than twenty university lecturers; today it brings together more than 45 professors. The collective operates as an academic and legal advocacy platform rather than a commercial enterprise, publishing statements, communiqués, institutional documents, jurisprudence and bibliography through its official website, collectiupraga.cat. The group's public activity has focused on constitutional and international-law arguments concerning Catalonia's political process. In March 2017 it promoted a manifesto in favour of a self-determination referendum in Catalonia, recalling that the Spanish Constitution of 1978 could accommodate such a consultation; the manifesto was signed by more than 500 law professionals and professors. In November 2017, together with the association Drets, it promoted the filing of two appeals before the Supreme Court against the application of Article 155 of the Constitution to Catalonia — one for the alleged violation of the rights of deputies and another for the dissolution of the Parliament of Catalonia by a non-competent body. The appeals were admitted for processing by the third chamber of the contentious-administrative jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on 27 November. Also in November 2017 the collective presented a manifesto demanding the release of Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez, arguing that the Audiencia Nacional was not the competent body, that their imprisonment showed an "ideological use of law" and that fundamental rights were being violated; the manifesto was also signed by the Drets association and various lawyers and professionals. On 19 July 2019, together with the Drets association, it denounced the Spanish State before the United Nations for police violence during the 1 October 2017 referendum on Catalan independence, the use of hate crimes to deter criticism and protest against government action, the use of the gag law as a punitive measure against criticism of state security forces, and the judicial blocking of the normal functioning of Catalan public institutions as well as the violation of the right to a fair trial during the trial of the Catalan independence process. The collective's website also highlights reports from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Spain dated 17 December 2019 and a press release from the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EuroMed Rights) regarding the observation report on the judicial process in Madrid against Catalan politicians and associative leaders dated 9 October 2019. As a brand-like entity, Col·lectiu Praga functions as a named academic-legal collective with a public-facing website, a defined membership structure (including a permanent commission), and a stream of published declarations and communiqués. It is not a commercial company, and no ownership, parent company or listed status is known. Its identity is tied to Catalan civil-society and legal debate rather than to products or retail markets.

Col·lectiu Praga was presented on 19 September 2013 as an initiative driven by around forty law professors and university lecturers to contribute juridical arguments to the debate on the exercise of the right to decide in Catalonia. Initially it was formed by 15 professors and more than twenty university lecturers; currently it comprises more than 45 professors. The collective maintains a permanent commission and publishes declarations, communiqués, joint communiqués, constitutive declarations, media materials, specialized publications, institutional documents, jurisprudence and bibliography through its website. In March 2017 the collective promoted the signing of a manifesto in favour of a self-determination referendum in Catalonia, recalling that the Spanish Constitution of 1978 could accommodate such a consultation. The manifesto was signed by more than 500 law professionals and professors. In November 2017, together with the association Drets, it promoted the filing of two appeals before the Supreme Court against the application of Article 155 of the Constitution to Catalonia. One appeal concerned the alleged violation of the rights of deputies and the second concerned the dissolution of the Parliament of Catalonia by a non-competent body. The appeals were admitted for processing by the third chamber of the contentious-administrative jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on 27 November. Also in November 2017 the collective presented a manifesto demanding the release of Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez, arguing that the Audiencia Nacional was not the competent body, that their imprisonment showed an "ideological use of law" and that fundamental rights were being violated. The manifesto was also signed by the Drets association and various lawyers and professionals. On 19 July 2019, together with the Drets association, it denounced the Spanish State before the United Nations for: police violence during the 1 October 2017 referendum on Catalan independence; the use of hate crimes to deter criticism and protest against government action; the use of the gag law as a punitive measure against criticism of state security forces; and the judicial blocking of the normal functioning of Catalan public institutions, as well as the violation of the right to a fair trial during the trial of the Catalan independence process. The collective's website also features reports and press releases from international human-rights bodies, including the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights report on Spain dated 17 December 2019 and a press release from the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EuroMed Rights) dated 9 October 2019 regarding the observation report on the judicial process in Madrid against Catalan politicians and associative leaders.

• Col·lectiu Praga is presented, initially formed by 15 professors and more than twenty university lecturers.

• The collective promotes a manifesto in favour of a self-determination referendum in Catalonia, signed by more than 500 law professionals and professors.

• Together with the Drets association, it promotes two appeals before the Supreme Court against the application of Article 155 to Catalonia.

• The appeals are admitted for processing by the third chamber of the contentious-administrative jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.

• The collective presents a manifesto demanding the release of Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez.

• Together with the Drets association, it denounces the Spanish State before the United Nations for police violence, hate crimes, gag law and judicial blocking.

• FIDH and EuroMed Rights press release regarding the observation report on the judicial process in Madrid.

• Communiqué stating that the prohibition of estelades, yellow ribbons and other symbols in public buildings violates fundamental rights.

• Communiqué on the political and legal situation.

• UN High Commissioner for Human Rights report on Spain highlighted on the collective's website.

Academic-legal advocacy collective providing juridical arguments on the exercise of the right to decide in Catalonia.

• Legal communiqués

  Public statements on political and legal situations.

• Manifestos

  Signed declarations on referendums and rights.

• Institutional documents

  Documents related to institutional and legal matters.

• Jurisprudence

  Compilation of legal precedents.

• Bibliography

  Specialized publications and bibliographic resources.

1. 1Col·lectiu Praga |collectiupraga.cat
2. 2Col·lectiu Pragawikidata.org
3. 3Col·lectiu Pragaca.wikipedia.org