Aureli Argemí, founder of CIEMEN, secretary of Abbot Escarré and a prominent figure in the independence movement for decades, has died.

Aureli Argemí, founder of the Centre Internacional Escarré per a les Minories Ètniques i les Nacions (CIEMEN) and a staunch advocate for the rights of the Catalan Countries, has passed away.

Born in Sabadell, Argemí spent almost two decades as a student and monk at the Montserrat Abbey. In the 1960s, he served as secretary to Abbot Escarré, accompanying him into exile imposed by the Francoist authorities. It was during this exile, near Milan, that he became an advocate for independence.

With degrees in theology from Rome and Paris, he was part of the monastic community of the Sant Miquel de Cuixà Abbey.

Argemí was always involved in the cultural and political defense of the Catalan Countries. He was an tireless fighter who knew how to rally younger generations around him. He was instrumental in founding the Crida per la Solidaritat in 1981, the Coordinadora d’Associacions per la Llengua Catalana (CAL), the Plataforma pel Dret de Decidir in 2005, of which he was president, and the Assemblea Nacional Catalana.

However, his legacy will always be linked to the International Centre Escarré for Ethnic and National Minorities (CIEMEN), a pioneering entity in the defense of the rights of peoples worldwide, which he founded in 1974 and continues to function today as a major international reference.

In 1985, he left monastic life to devote himself fully to CIEMEN. In 2016, he was awarded the Creu de Sant Jordi. He was also honored with the Gold Medal of Barcelona.

Argemí had just published a memoir titled “La llavor sembrada” where he recounts his decades of activism for the country and language.