Spanish riot police crack down on banned Catalan referendum

SUNDAY BLOODY SUNDAY Thousands in Catalonia flood to the streets to participate in independence vote, but referendum ruled illegal by Spanish government in Madrid

Spanish riot police fired rubber bullets and forced their way into activist-held polling stations in Catalonia on Sunday as thousands flooded the streets to vote in an independence referendum banned by Madrid.

“Spanish democracy faces its greatest challenge,” headlined top-selling El Pais daily just hours before police moved in en masse to seal off polling stations and seize ballot boxes, sparking scuffles as they sought to block the vote.

At least 38 people were injured in the clashes, along with another 11 policemen, officials said.

More than 5.3 million people have been called upon to have their say on independence from Spain in the wealthy northeastern region which has its own distinct language and culture.

The referendum poses the question: “Do you want Catalonia to become an independent state in the form of a republic?”

But it has been ruled unconstitutional by the central government in Madrid and the courts, with judicial officials ordering police to seize ballot papers, detain key organisers and shut down websites promoting the vote.

Thousands of Spanish police fanned out across the region on Sunday, forcing their way into polling stations.

In central Barcelona, riot police charged at demonstrators who were sitting on the ground blocking their way after they raided a polling station at a school, witnesses said.

They also said police had fired rubber bullets, with one man showing AFP a leg injury he suffered.

The crackdown drew a sharp rebuke from Catalan leaders.

“The unjustified use of violence, which is both irrational and irresponsible, by the Spanish state will not stop the will of the Catalan people,” Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont said.

The police, he said, had used “batons, rubber bullets and indiscriminate force” against people demonstrating “peacefully”.

“The head of a cowardly government has flooded our city with police,” Barcelona mayor Ada Colau tweeted, adding: “Barcelona city of peace, we are not afraid” -- a slogan coined after August’s jihadist rampage that killed 16 people.

Riot police also stormed a polling station near Girona, smashing the glass doors of the sports centre where Puigdemont was due to vote, then cutting a chain to force their way in.

But the regional government said Puigdemont had managed to vote anyway, tweeting pictures of him casting his ballot in Cornella del Terri, 10 kilometres away.

BARCELONA:

Police clash with voters near a polling booth in Barcelona.

Why now?

Catalonia has been seeking to break away since 1977, after the region was granted a degree of autonomy

The demand for independence grew after the Spanish 2008 economic crisis — wealthy Catalonia saw itself as a crutch for the rest of the country