Miquel Roca i Junyent (
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, 20 April 1940) is a Spanish lawyer and politician from
Democratic Convergence of Catalonia
The Democratic Convergence of Catalonia ( ca, Convergència Democrà tica de Catalunya; , CDC), frequently shortened as Convergence ( ca, Convergència; ) was a Catalan nationalist, liberal political party in Catalonia (Spain), currently still exist ...
. He is one of the
Fathers of the Constitution
The Fathers of the Constitution ( es, Padres de la Constitución, links=no) were the seven political leaders who participated in the writing of the Spanish Constitution of 1978.
Gabriel Cisneros, Miguel Herrero y RodrÃguez de Miñón and José ...
in Spain.
Early life
Miquel Roca i Junyent was descendant to two Catalan bourgeoisie families. His paternal grandfather, Ramon Roca Masferrer (1861-1932), was a prestigious personality in the world of Barcelona editors, arts and culture; his maternal grandfather,
Miguel Junyent Rovira (1871–1936), was a Barcelona publisher and
Carlist
Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalism (Spain), Traditionalist and Legitimists (disambiguation), Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the House of Bourbon, Bourbon dynasty ...
politician. He was born in Bordeaux as his father,
Juan Bautista Roca Caball (1898-1976) left Catalonia during the Civil War.
Career
In his youth, Roca joined forces with other future Catalan politicians, such as
NarcÃs Serra
NarcÃs Serra i Serra (born 30 May 1943) is a Spanish economist and politician, serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Spain from 1991 to 1995. Born in Barcelona in 1943, he was one of the leading figures of Catalan socialism during the Spanish tr ...
and
Pasqual Maragall
Pasqual Maragall i Mira (; born 13 January 1941) is a Spanish politician and former List of Presidents of Catalonia, President of Generalitat de Catalunya. He had previously been Mayor of Barcelona, from 1982 to 1997, and helped run the city's s ...
, in the
Front Obrer de Catalunya
The Workers' Front of Catalonia ( ca, Front Obrer de Catalunya, FOC) was a clandestine political movement in Catalonia, Spain, formed in 1961, and active during the Spain under Franco, Spanish State of caudillo Francisco Franco. It was the continua ...
, an illegal left-wing organization made up mostly by university students linked to the
Popular Liberation Front (FELIPE).
Later in his life, Roca turned to
liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
ideas. He was a founding member of
Democratic Convergence of Catalonia
The Democratic Convergence of Catalonia ( ca, Convergència Democrà tica de Catalunya; , CDC), frequently shortened as Convergence ( ca, Convergència; ) was a Catalan nationalist, liberal political party in Catalonia (Spain), currently still exist ...
in 1974, where he served as the adjunct to the Secretary-General. He was elected to the
first democratic parliament after the Francoist dictatorship for the district of Barcelona, where he held his seat from 1977 to 1995 in representation of
Convergence and Union
Convergence and Union ( ca, Convergència i Unió, CiU; ) was a Catalan nationalist electoral alliance in Catalonia, Spain. It was a federation of two constituent parties, the larger Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) and its smaller coun ...
. He soon became the leader and speaker of the Catalan Minority in
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
.
From 1982 to 1995, Roca represented the
Generalitat
Generalitat (, literally in English 'Generality') is the name of two major medieval and early modern political institutions and their modern-day analogues in Kingdom of Spain. The ancient Principality of Catalonia and the Kingdom of Valencia were ...
, Catalonia's
devolved
Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories h ...
regional administration, in the Committee for Bilateral Co-operation with the
Spanish government
gl, Goberno de España eu, Espainiako Gobernua
, image =
, caption = Logo of the Government of Spain
, headerstyle = background-color: #efefef
, label1 = Role
, data1 = Executive power
, label2 = Established
, da ...
. During this period,
he failed in his attempt to create a centrist party to act as a counterweight between the conservative
People's Alliance and the social-democratic
PSOE
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( es, Partido Socialista Obrero Español ; PSOE ) is a social-democraticThe PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources:
*
*
*
* political party in Spain. The PSOE has been in gov ...
, a plan known as
Operation Roca.
Roca was the CiU candidate to become the
Mayor of Barcelona
This is a list of mayors of Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. Wi ...
in 1995, a position he accepted on the advice of then-President of the Generalitat
Jordi Pujol
Jordi Pujol Soley (, born 9 June 1930) is a Catalan politician who was the leader of the party Convergència Democrà tica de Catalunya (CDC) from 1974 to 2003, and President of the Generalitat de Catalunya from 1980 to 2003.
Early life
Pujol was ...
. Despite his popularity,
he lost by a considerable margin against incumbent Pasqual Maragall, a former correligionary of Roca. He took a post in the insurance company Catalana Occidente soon thereafter. In addition, he runs his own law firm and works as an Associate Professor of Constitutional Law at
Pompeu Fabra University
Pompeu Fabra University ( ca, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, UPF, ; es, link=no, Universidad Pompeu Fabra) is a public university located in the city of Barcelona, Catalonia in Spain. The university was created by the Autonomous Government of Catalo ...
. He is also an honorary board member of various Spanish companies.
Later career
Roca was hired by the
Spanish Royal Family
The Spanish royal family consists of King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, their children (Leonor, Princess of Asturias and Infanta SofÃa of Spain), and Felipe's parents, King Juan Carlos I and Queen SofÃa. The royal family lives at Zarzuela Palace i ...
to defend
Cristina de Borbón in the judicial procedures against her in the
Noos case. In May 2016, judge
José Castro
José Antonio Castro (1808 – February 1860) was a Californio politician, statesman, and general who served as interim Governor of Alta California and later Governor of Baja California. During the Bear Flag Revolt and the American Conquest of ...
denounced pressures by Roca and his law firm to have a meeting in order to acquit Borbón from all charges pressed against her.
Other activities
*
ACS Group
ACS, Actividades de Construcción y Servicios, S.A. () is a Spanish company dedicated to civil and engineering construction, all types services and telecommunications. It is one of the leading construction companies in the world, with projects i ...
, Independent Member of the Board of Directors (since 2003)
Board of Directors
ACS Group
ACS, Actividades de Construcción y Servicios, S.A. () is a Spanish company dedicated to civil and engineering construction, all types services and telecommunications. It is one of the leading construction companies in the world, with projects i ...
.
References
External links
Despacho Abogados Roca Junyent
enciclopèdia.cat entry
(in Catalan)
BiografÃa por CIDOB
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roca, Miquel
Politicians from Catalonia
1940 births
Living people
20th-century Spanish lawyers
21st-century Spanish lawyers