Catalonia and declaration of independence

Since declaring their independence in regional parliament on October 27, the Catalonian government has been struggling to bring this declaration to fruition. The government of Catalonia was dissipated by the Mariano Rajoy’s Spanish government after declaring its independence. A constitutional court ruled the declaration of independence “unconstitutional and void.” The Spanish government has called a snap regional election for December 21 while several former leaders of Catalonia are currently hiding in Belgium, or are incarcerated. Among those are deposed Catalonian president, Carles Puigdemont, and four other prominent politicians. A Spanish request for an European Union arrest warrant on these officials is pending approval. This past Wednesday in Spain saw massive pro- independence strikes occupy over sixty roads in the Catalonia region, with many routes to Barcelona being interrupted. A warning against travelling by car was the only advice given to the Catalonian people from its Ministry of Transport. Spain’s foreign minister has also put forward the idea that Spain may adopt constitutional changes to make way for regional referendums on independence. However, in the foreign minister’s referendum model, all 47 million of Spain’s citizens would be able to vote on one region’s bid for independency. The minister, Alfonso Dastis, in his remarks to the BBC said, “We acknowledge there is a political situation that deserves to be looked at but, in any case, it’s clear that the decision will be taken, will have to be taken by all Spaniards.”