Catalans brace for 'historic' election on independence

[Paladin]

"Barcelona (AFP) - Catalans braced Saturday for an election dubbed the most important in Spain's recent history, with polls pointing to a win by separatists who are vowing to declare the region independent.

After an emotional climax to campaigning on Friday, the rich northeastern region entered a quiet day of truce before Sunday's ballots, which Catalan leaders have framed as an indirect vote on breaking away from Spain.

Centre-right national newspaper El Mundo called them "the most important elections in the democratic era" since the death of the dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.

Moderate Catalan daily La Vanguardia called it "an unavoidable vote".

"These elections are special. They have aroused interest and great expectations in Catalonia and around the world," said Meritxell Borras, the regional government's top electoral official on Saturday."

http://news.yahoo.com/catalans-brace-historic-election-independence-154925275.html

I recall reading somewhere that Catalonia, specifically Barcelona, was the epicenter of Letftist activism during the Spanish Civil War.

[truth_seeker]

An adjacent small area in France is also part of historical Catalonia. If the province in Spain gains some degree of independence, what happens next door in France?

[truth_seeker]

I recall reading somewhere that Catalonia, specifically Barcelona, was the epicenter of Letftist activism during the Spanish Civil War.

Technically correct, for Barcelona was a stronghold of the "Republicans" which were the liberals or leftists, as opposed to the "conservative" fascists of Franco, with support from fascist Germany and fascist Italy (Hitler and Mussolini).

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/spanish-civil-war-breaks-out

[Paladin]

"BARCELONA, Spain (AP) -- Pro-secession parties pushing for Spain's northeastern Catalonia region to break away and form a new Mediterranean nation won a landmark vote Sunday by capturing a regional parliamentary majority, setting up a possible showdown over independence with the central government in Madrid.

With 99 percent of the vote counted, the "Together for Yes" group of secessionists Catalans are fiercely proud of their own distinct language and culture. Many who favor breaking away from Spain say their region, which represents nearly a fifth of Spain's economic output, pays too much in taxes and receives less than its fair share of government investment. Independence sentiment grew during Spain's near economic meltdown during the financial crisis.

If the secessionist alliance join forces with the radical pro-independence Popular Unity Candidacy party known as CUP, which won 10 seats, they will have more than the 68 seats needed to try to push forward their plan to make Catalonia independent from Spain by 2017.

CUP had insisted that it would only join an independence bid if secessionist parties won more than 50 percent of the popular vote, but analysts predicted it would drop the demand. The pro-independence parties got a majority in Parliament with only 48 percent of the vote because of a quirk in Spanish election law that gives extra weight to rural voters."

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_SPAIN_CATALAN_INDEPENDENCE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-09-27-15-39-43

[mountaineer]

World  |  Tue Sep 29, 2015 7:07am EDT
Catalan head indicted for calling referendum on split from Spain


Catalonia's Supreme Court indicted the acting head of the Catalan regional government on Tuesday after he pushed ahead with a referendum on independence from Spain last year despite such a vote being ruled unconstitutional by the courts.

The preliminary charges of disobedience, abuse of authority and usurping authority are leveled at Artur Mas, the most visible face of Catalan separatist aspirations, just two days after his party won a regional election.

Secessionist parties on Sunday secured an absolute majority in the regional parliament, although they won 48 percent of the votes cast.

Mas will testify in court in October for pressing on with a non-binding referendum on independence last November after it was suspended by the Constitutional Court, backed by Spain's national government.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's tactic over years of growing support for Catalan independence has been to stick doggedly to the letter of the law. With a general election set for December, Rajoy has ruled out the possibility of a referendum on the issue, despite polls which show most Catalans are in favor of having the choice.

He argues, supported by a vast majority of Spaniards, that one part of Spain cannot decide what happens to the whole. ...
Rest of story at Reuters

[Bigun]

The Spanish Basque and French Basque are really the same people and would get along just fine in their own country.