‘Catalonia is Spain’ is theme of unity rally in Barcelona
barcelona — Hundreds of thousands flooded the streets of Barcelona on Sunday to call for Catalonia to remain part of Spain, two days after regional lawmakers exacerbated a political crisis by voting for the wealthy region to secede.
Organisers said the rally’s goal was to defend Spain’s unity and reject “an unprecedented attack in the history of democracy.” Leaders of rival pro-union parties from the ruling conservatives, the pro-business liberals and the socialists joined together under the slogan “We are all Catalonia. Common sense for coexistence!”
Societat Civil Catalana, the prounion grassroots group who organised the demonstration, said more than one million people turned out, while the police put the figure at 300,000.
The mood was festive, with demonstrators waving Spanish, Catalan and European flags and chanting slogans in favour of remaining part of Spain. “We won’t let Spain to be torn apart into pieces,” read one banner.
“The awakening of a silenced nation,” read another.
No incidents of violence were reported.
Friday’s vote by pro-independence lawmakers in favour of independence, and Madrid’s response triggering unprecedented constitutional powers taking control of Catalan affairs, was the climax of people showed up at the rally, according to the organisers
1M
Spain’s worst political crisis in decades. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has dissolved Catalonia’s parliament and called a new regional election for December 21. “Catalan leaders have broken the law. The central government
We have organised ourselves late, but we are here to show that there is a majority of catalans that are no longer silent and that no longer want to be silenced
Alex Ramos , Societat Civil Catalana president
has let this situation go for too long, for even 30 or 40 years, thinking that we were never going to arrive to this extreme, but here we are,” said Angelita Cuesta, a 66-year-old retiree at the rally. “Our society is fractured, there are family members and friends who no longer can talk about politics to avoid conflict.”
“We have organised ourselves late, but we are here to show that there is a majority of Catalans that are no longer silent and that no longer want to be silenced,” Societat Civil Catalana president Alex Ramos said.
Members of Spain’s central government, including Health Minister Dolors Montserrat, and Enric Millo, w, also attended the rally. —