Analysts have said that an independent Catalonia would trigger a crisis the EU would find hard to manage as it would energise separatist movements in other European countries.
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“Defending the fundamental rights of Catalan citizens against a wave of repression from the Spanish state is also the same as defending the rights of Spanish and European citizens”.
Acting on court orders, police have confiscated about 10 million ballot papers and some 1.3 million posters advertising the referendum, and have blocked the distribution of ballot boxes.
AS the government in Madrid continues to block any website providing information on the upcoming Catalan referendum, hackers from across the globe are getting involved to help out the Catalans – most notably the Russians.
“We have to make it clear that there will not be a referendum”, said Dastis.
Hundreds of thousands of Catalans have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest Madrid’s campaign to suppress the vote.
They claim that some politicians have used the struggle for independence as a way to divert attention from corruption cases in Catalonia and mismanagement of the region.
The vote, which is fiercely opposed by Spain’s central government, comes as the country emerges from almost a decade of economic trauma.
“We believe that the situation in Catalonia is an internal affair of Spain”, Zakharova said.
“Regardless of the lawfulness of the referendum, the Spanish authorities have a responsibility to respect those rights that are essential to democratic societies”, the experts said, according to the United Nations statement.
Regardless of what result emerges on Sunday, the reaction of both sides in the days immediately following the vote is seen as more important, particularly whether Madrid may agree to provide the region with more autonomy.
Cue the hashtag #FreeTweety, which has become a worldwide trending topic on Twitter, the little yellow bird becoming an emblem of Catalans who want to vote. But Colau says she doesn’t think it can be considered a proper referendum because Spain has not agreed to the vote.
In Brussels, his minister in charge of external relations, Raul Romeva, said that separatists would declare the region’s independence within 48 hours if they won the referendum, but he also suggested that they were ready to discuss other options with the Spanish government.
“Much would depend on the financial and political terms under which Catalonia left, including how Spain’s debt burden would be split and whether Madrid would impose economic sanctions on Catalonia for withdrawing unilaterally”, The New York Times says.
Analysts say Blanco’s example is an illustration of the impact of various identity politics implemented in the wealthy region which for decades attracted immigrants from southern Spain, north Africa and Latin America.
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He was interrupted by the Scottish unionist and Daily Telegraph contributor Tom Gallagher, who yelled from the back of the room: “You have abused your constitutional rights to deepen the gulf between Catalonia and the rest of Spain”.
