Catalonia declares independence from Spain
Catalonia’s parliament has declared independence from Spain in
defiance of the Madrid government, which at the same time was preparing
to impose direct rule over the region.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy immediately
called for calm and said the rule of law would be restored. The motion
passed in the regional parliament in Barcelona which was boycotted by
opposition parties said Catalonia constituted an independent, sovereign
and social democratic state. It called on other countries and
institutions to recognize it.
The Catalan government said that of the 43% of potential voters who
took part in the referendum, 90% were in favour of independence. But
Spain's Constitutional Court had ruled the vote illegal. In all, the
motion declaring independence was approved with 70 in favour, 10 against
and two abstentions in the 135-seat chamber.
Immediately afterwards, Mr Rajoy called for all Spaniards to remain
calm, promising to "restore legality" to Catalonia. Spain's Senate is
still to vote on whether for the first time to enact Article 155 of the
Spanish constitution, which empowers the government to take "all
measures necessary to compel" a region in case of a crisis.
It would enable Madrid to fire Catalan leaders, and take control of the region's finances, police and public media.
No comments
Your comments and Encouragement are welcome