Catalan Separatists Determined To Hold Independence Vote
Faizan Hashmi Published September 30, 2017 | 11:50 AM
Catalan separatists were determined Saturday to press ahead with an independence referendum banned by Madrid, having occupied dozens of schools designated as polling stations to stop police from closing them down
BARCELONA, Sept 30, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 30th Sep, 2017 ) - Catalan separatists were determined Saturday to press ahead with an independence referendum banned by Madrid, having occupied dozens of schools designated as polling stations to stop police from closing them down.
"In these hugely intense and hugely emotional moments, we sense that what we once thought was only a dream is within reach," Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont told a crowd of cheering supporters on Friday evening, as he closed his campaign for Sunday's vote.
Over in the town of L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, though, a different scene played out in a large conference hall. There, some 2,000 people who oppose separating from Spain rallied at a meeting called by Ciudadanos, Catalonia's main opposition party.
The vote has stoked passions in the wealthy northeastern region, pitting Catalan leaders against the central government in one of the biggest crises to hit Spain since democracy was restored after the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.
It has also sown divisions among Catalans themselves, with the region deeply split on independence, even if a large majority want to be allowed to settle the matter in a legal vote. "There is nothing that justifies violating so basic a right as the right to vote," Omar Sanchis, a 29-year-old drama student, said from behind the railings of the Collaso i Gil school in Barcelona, which he and others had occupied.
Authorities in Madrid have instructed police to ensure no votes are cast in a referendum that the courts have ruled unconstitutional. For days, they have been seizing electoral items such as ballot papers while prosecutors have ordered the closure of websites linked to the vote and the detention of key members of the team organising the referendum.
A court on Wednesday ordered police to prevent the use of public buildings "for the preparation and organisation" of the referendum.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
PM arrives in Muzaffarabad on day-long visit
Imran Khan’s photo during SC hearing goes viral
Imran Khan appears before SC via video link in NAB amendment case
IHC registrar office responds to Vawda’s letter
Currency Rate In Pakistan - Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal Rates On 16 May 2024
Today Gold Rate in Pakistan 16 May 2024
KP Assembly to pass caretaker govt's budget to fulfill constitutional responsibi ..
No plans for taxation on solar net metering: Power minister
Musadik urges political dialogue to resolve past conflicts
Funerals held for victims of attack on DR Congo camp
Federal govt reduces petrol price by Rs15.39 per litre
CM Bugti announces Rs 50 bln tube-wells solarization project
More Stories From World
-
New Dutch coalition govt wants 'strictest' asylum policy
3 minutes ago -
Riyadh Deputy Governor attends Norway Embassy National Day Ceremony
3 minutes ago -
The Greatest, the Baddest and the Best: six undisputed heavyweight champions
13 minutes ago -
Putin says 'grateful' to China for Ukraine peace 'initiatives'
23 minutes ago -
KACST, Almarai Company unveil Almarai Prize for Scientific Creativity strategy & new identity
32 minutes ago -
Siemens to sell electrical motors business to KPS
32 minutes ago
-
Slovak PM in 'very serious' condition after assassination attempt
33 minutes ago -
Ukraine says halted Russian 'advance' in some Kharkiv zones
43 minutes ago -
Xi, Putin hail ties as 'stabilising' force in chaotic world
43 minutes ago -
Honda doubling investment in EVs to $65 bn
53 minutes ago -
Xi, Putin hail ties as 'stabilising' force in chaotic world
1 hour ago -
Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Airport welcomes first group of pilgrims from China
1 hour ago