Secessionist Catalan President Carles Puigdemont on Saturday stood defiant against Madrid’s moves to depose him, urging “democratic opposition” to direct rule forced on the region to stop it splitting from Spain.
In a televised statement, Puigdemont accused the central government of trampling on the will of independence-seeking Catalans.
Madrid’s decision to seize Catalan powers in response — the first curtailment of regional autonomy since Spanish General Francisco Franco’s brutal 1939-to-1975 dictatorship — constituted an “aggression,” he added.
The separatist leader said “democratic opposition” was the only way forward, without specifying what form this could take.
Spain remains on a knife edge as it grapples with the worst constitutional crisis in its contemporary history, triggered by the unlawful Oct. 1 referendum.
Throwing down the gauntlet in the escalating standoff, Catalan lawmakers on Friday passed a motion, by 70 votes out of 135 in the regional parliament, to declare a Catalan republic.
Opposition MPs refused even to vote on the issue and walked out.
The central government’s intervention was “contrary to the will expressed by the citizens of our country at the ballot box,” Puigdemont said. “In a democratic society, only parliaments can appoint or dismiss presidents.”
The central government declined to comment on his speech.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy responded to Friday’s independence declaration by axing the Catalan government and parliament, and calling for elections to be held on Dec. 21 to replace them.
Josep Lluis Trapero, the highest-ranking officer in Catalonia’s Mossos d’Esquadra police force, was also dismissed.
Rajoy drew sweeping powers from a never-before-used constitutional article designed to rein in rebels among Spain’s 17 regions, which enjoy varying levels of autonomy.
In an official government notice published on Saturday, Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria was put in charge of administering the region.
However, Puigdemont did not seem to be going anywhere soon, signing his speech as “President of the Generalitat [government] of Catalonia.”
In Madrid, thousands rallied under a giant Spanish flag on Saturday, in anger at Catalonia’s unilateral declaration of independence.
Yesterday, a Spanish unity rally was planned in Barcelona, with organizers hoping for a large turnout not least from Catalans opposed to the independence move.
Prosecutors on Friday said they would file charges of rebellion against Puigdemont next week.
He risks 30 years in jail.
However, his lawyer, Jaume Alonso Cuevillas, described the threat as “craziness.”
“The crime of rebellion requires a violent public uprising to take place,” he told reporters.
Pledging “to work to build a free country,” Puigdemont insisted this must be done “without violence, without insults, in an inclusive way,” urging supporters to respect the views of pro-unionists.
Analysts said, though, that upheaval is likely.
“We are likely to see more sustained unrest, possibly including strikes, as well as more serious clashes between national police and pro-independence activists,” said Federico Santi, an analyst at Eurasia Group, a US-based think tank.
The region of 7.5 million people accounts for about 16 percent of Spain’s population, one-fifth of its economic output, and attracts more tourists than anywhere else in the country.
Before the crisis, it enjoyed considerable autonomy, with control over education, healthcare and police.
The Spanish government has received unwavering support from the US and its allies in the EU, increasingly weary of nationalist and secessionist noises since Britain’s shock decision to leave the bloc.
Many are worried about the economic effects as the standoff drags on, with about 1,700 companies having moved their legal headquarters out of Catalonia so far.
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