Albert Botran i Pahissa (born 14 January 1984) is a Spanish historian and politician from

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

and a former member of the

Congress of Deputies The Congress of Deputies () is the lower house of the , Spain's legislative branch, the upper house being the Senate of Spain, Senate. The Congress meets in the Palacio de las Cortes, Madrid, Palace of the Parliament () in Madrid. Congress has ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. He was previously a member of the

Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia (, ; ; ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 members, known as Deputy (legislator), deput ...

Early life

Botran was born on 14 January 1984 in

Molins de Rei Molins de Rei () or Molins de Rey in Spanish is a municipality located 18 km from Barcelona's city centre, in the ''comarca'' of Baix Llobregat in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated on the left bank of the Llobregat river, on the A-7 ''aut ...

. He has a degree in history and a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

comparative history Comparative history is the comparison of different societies which existed during the same time period or shared similar cultural conditions. The comparative history of societies emerged as an important specialty among intellectuals in the Enlight ...

from the

Autonomous University of Barcelona The Autonomous University of Barcelona (; Spanish: ; ; UAB) is a public university mostly located in Cerdanyola del Vallès, near the city of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. , the university consists of 57 departments in the experimental, lif ...

Career

Botran has been active in the leftist

Catalan independence movement The Catalan independence movement (; ; ) is a Social movement, social and political movement with roots in Catalan nationalism that seeks the independence of Catalonia from Spain. While proposals, organizations and individuals advocating for Ca ...

since 2002 and helped found the Molins de Rei branch of

Popular Unity Candidacy The Popular Unity Candidacy (, CUP) is a left-wing to far-left pro-Catalan independence political party active primarily in Catalonia, where it has political representation, but also in other autonomous communities in Spain it considers to be part ...

(CUP) in 2007. He was a member of the CUP's national secretariat from 2009 to 2013 and from 2018 to 2019. Botran works for the

Òmnium Cultural Òmnium Cultural () is a Spanish association based in Barcelona, Catalonia. It was originally created in the 1960s to promote the Catalan language and spread Catalan culture. Over the years it has increased its involvement in broader political i ...

. In 2010 he won the 24th Francesc Carreras i Candi Award for his work ''Pensar Històricament els Països Catalans. La Historiografia i el Projecte Nacional dels Països Catalans (1960-1985)''. Botran contested the 2011 local elections as a Popular Unity Candidacy–Active People (CUP-PA)

electoral alliance An electoral alliance (also known as a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral pact, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc) is an association of political parties or individuals that exists solely to stand in elections. E ...

candidate in

and was elected. Botran was one of the signatories of the October 2014 ''Nous Temps, Noves Eines - Per la Independència, pel Socialisme, pels Països Catalans: Ni un pas Enrere’, '' manifesto by leftist Catalan nationalists. The manifesto led to the formation, in November 2014, of

Poble Lliure Poble Lliure ( English: ''Free People'') is a Catalan socialist and pro-independence political organisation, which is part of the Pro Independence Catalan Left. Poble Lliure was founded in November 2014 from historical militants of the Movement f ...

of which Botran is a member. He did not seek re-election at the 2015 local elections. Botran contested the 2015 regional election as a CUP candidate in the

Province of Barcelona Barcelona (; ) is a province of eastern Spain, in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia. The province is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, and by the Mediterranean Sea. Its area is .Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia (, ; ; ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 members, known as Deputy (legislator), deput ...

. In February 2017 Botran attended an event in

Castelló de Farfanya Castelló de Farfanya () is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Noguera in Catalonia, Spain. It has a population of . It is home to remains of a medieval castle owned by the Counts of Urgell This is a list of the counts of Urgell, a co ...

marking the 30th death anniversary of Catalan independence activist Julià Babia, a member of the Movement for Defence of the Land. As a consequence, in September 2017 the

Spanish Attorney General The Attorney General of the State ''(')'', or also, Prosecutor General, is the head of the Public Prosecutor's Office (''Ministerio Fiscal''), the independent body within the Judiciary, that is tasked with promoting the operation of justice in def ...

started an investigation on charges of extolling terrorism against four members of Poble Lliure: Botran, Toni Casserras, Ferran Dalmau and Guillem Fuster. In December 2018 the

Audiencia Nacional The Audiencia Nacional (; ) is a high court in Spain with jurisdiction over all of the Spanish territory. It is specialised in certain kinds of crime, having original jurisdiction over major crimes such as those committed against the Crown and i ...

started investigating the case against the four and three others - Marcel·lí Canet, Marcel Casellas and Josep Maria Cervelló. At the 2017 regional election Botran was placed 81st on CUP's list of candidates in the Province of Barcelona but the party only won three seats in the province and as a result he failed to get re-elected. He contested the 2019 November general election as a Popular Unity Candidacy–For Rupture candidate in the

Province of Barcelona Barcelona (; ) is a province of eastern Spain, in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia. The province is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, and by the Mediterranean Sea. Its area is .Congress of Deputies The Congress of Deputies () is the lower house of the , Spain's legislative branch, the upper house being the Senate of Spain, Senate. The Congress meets in the Palacio de las Cortes, Madrid, Palace of the Parliament () in Madrid. Congress has ...

. In 2023 general elections he wasn't reelected.

Works

* ''Les Proclames de Sobirania de Catalunya 1640-1936'' (2009, Farell Editors, co-authors Adrià Cases and

Oriol Junqueras Oriol Junqueras i Vies (; born 11 April 1969) is a Spain, Spanish politician and historian from Catalonia. A former mayor of the municipality of Sant Vicenç dels Horts in Catalonia, Junqueras served as Vice President of Catalonia from January 2 ...

) * ''Pensar Històricament els Països Catalans. La Historiografia i el Projecte Nacional dels Països Catalans'' (1960-1985) (2010) * ''Unitat Popular. La construcció de la CUP i l'Independentisme d'Esquerres'' (2012, Edicions El Jonc) * ''Introducció a la Història dels Països Catalans'' (2014, Ediciones del 1979, co-authors Carles Castellanos and Lluís Sales; )

Electoral history

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Botran, Albert 1984 births Autonomous University of Barcelona alumni Historians from Catalonia Writers from Catalonia Living people Members of the 14th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 11th Parliament of Catalonia Municipal councillors in the province of Barcelona People from Molins de Rei Popular Unity Candidacy politicians