The Pressure Rises In Catalonia

Separatists clash with authorities in advance of an Oct. 1 vote on independence

- Esteban Duarte

As the Spanish region of Catalonia edges closer to a referendum on independence that the government in Madrid has declared illegal, both sides are raising the stakes in Spain’s gravest constitutional crisis in decades. With separatists deep into meticulously planned, but covert, preparations for an Oct. 1 vote on whether Catalonia should go its own way, Spain’s Civil Guard on Sept. 20 raided Catalan government offices and other sites across the region. “The government is doing what it has to do,” Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy told Parliament in Madrid as the raids unfolded. “We will keep doing so until the very end.” Catalan separatist lawmakers walked out of the chamber in response to his comments.

In Barcelona, thousands of angry protesters gathered outside the Catalan government finance office as police searched the premises. The demonstrators chanted that the crackdown was a return to the authoritarian tactics of dictator Francisco Franco and set up improvised security checks to control access to the building. “I’ve been waiting all my life for freedom,” said Jordi Adroer, a 58-year old economics professor at the protest. “We are here to stop the forces of Spanish repression.”

If the vote is blocked, Catalans seeking to force a rupture with the state are threatening even bigger demonstrations, potentially targeting export industries. “The Spanish government has crossed the red line that separated it from repressive authoritarian regimes,” Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, flanked by his top officials, said in a televised statement. Insisting that the vote will go ahead, he said Spain “has become a disgrace to democracy.”