Spain braces for protests as Catalan leaders at odds
BARCELONA: A member of Catalonia’s separatist-led government has called for a “ceasefire” with Spain to decrease tensions after a disputed referendum on independence by the prosperous region that has ignited a national crisis. Thousands of anti-independence protesters, meanwhile, gathered in Madrid for a rally on Saturday.
Santi Vila, Catalonia’s regional chief for business, told Cadena SER Radio on Friday that he’s pushing for “a new opportunity for dialogue” with Spanish authorities.
“We have to give it one more chance, maybe the last chance, and perhaps the only way that can happen is to start with a cease-fire,” Vila said. “We can all calm down and give ourselves the opportunity to not take any decisions and see what channels we can open up to start a dialogue.”
The calls for prudence from within Catalonia’s separatist camp come after some of its most important banks and businesses announced they were relocating their headquarters to ensure that the possible secession of the region wouldn’t immediately knock them out of the EU.
It is unclear how widespread Vila’s moderate position is inside the Catalan government, which is being pressured from separatist grassroots groups and the far-left party CUP to declare independence soon.
Separatists said they won the October 1 referendum by a landslide, but Spain says the vote was illegal, invalid and unconstitutional. Less than half of the electorate cast ballots in the referendum which was marred by a brutal police crackdown.