Catalonia independence drive: Rajoy urges calm

MADRID: Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (pictured) called on Wednesday for calm in the face of “authoritarian delusions” in Catalonia, as tensions between Madrid and separatists in the northeastern region surged over an independence drive.

“To all Catalans, to all Spaniards, I want to tell you to maintain confidence in the future as authoritarian delusions... will never defeat the serenity and harmony of our democratic state,” Rajoy said at a gathering in Madrid.

His comments came a day after the separatist coalition that governs Catalonia, a wealthy region of 7.5 million inhabitants with its own language and customs, unveiled a bill aimed at ensuring an independence referendum takes place despite Madrid’s refusal.

Lawmakers who form the coalition said Catalonia would declare independence “immediately” if the region’s voters opt to separate from Spain in the vote planned for October 1. The bill aims to extract the region from Spain’s legal system — a step aimed at preventing the central authorities from throwing up any legal and practical challenges to organising a referendum.

It will be submitted to a vote in the Catalan regional parliament, where separatists hold a majority, at the end of August. For years separatist politicians in the region have tried to win approval from Spain’s central government to hold a vote similar to Scotland’s 2014 independence referendum from Britain — which was approved by London, though it resulted in a “no” vote.