Spain has seen sudden, violent confrontations in Catalonia in the past—occasionally with far more dramatic consequences than the chaotic scenes at voting stations on Sunday. But the ugly images emanating from Barcelona and elsewhere suggest it has lurched into a moment of deep crisis. Are five centuries of coexistence really under threat?
The task of clearing up the mess began on Monday, but there is no obvious way forward and nobody who looks capable at the moment of healing the wounds.
It may all get rapidly worse. Separatists in the Catalan parliament threaten to declare independence within 48 hours, even though the results of a referendum held in such circumstances may be widely deemed invalid. A unilateral declaration of independence might, in turn, lead to the regional government being taken over by Madrid.
90% of the 2.26 million Catalans who voted on Sunday (October 1) voted in favor of independence, according to preliminary results released by the region’s government. The region has 5.3 million voters. Officials said 770,000 votes were lost due to disruption, which resulted in polling stations being raided by Spanish police.
Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia’s leader, announced in a televised statement that the region had earned the right to become an independent state and that results would be passed to the region’s parliament in the coming days.
In a press conference shortly before Puigdemont’s, a defiant Mariano Rajoy, the Spanish prime minister, said no referendum had been held today and blamed unrest on the Catalan government.
According to the Catalan department of health, 761 people were injured in the unrest. Two were seriously injured and remain in hospitals in Barcelona. At least 10 police officers are said to have been injured.
Videos from earlier in the day show police hitting people in the crowd with batons while voters hold up their hands, police dragging voters from polling stations by their hair, and Spanish police attacking Catalan firefighters. Rajoy praised the police and said they acted with “firmness and serenity.”
Socialist leader Pedro Sánchez urged the Spanish government to negotiate with Catalonia and said Spanish and Catalan leaders had failed so far.
There have been several calls by Catalan politicians and opposition MP’s for the Spanish prime minister to resign over the hardline police response.
The UK Labor leader, Jeremy Corbyn, asked Prime Minister Theresa May to intervene “to find political solution to the crisis.” Whatever the solution, politicians with an ability to compromise are needed. They are thin on the ground.
