Catalan leader mum about independence

He also won’t call elections, heating Madrid standoff.

After BARCELONA, SPAIN — dramatic brinkmanship with Spain’s central government, Catalonia’s leader said Thursday he would not call for early elections that might have eased a tense standoff with Madrid over independence.

The northeastern region’s president, Carles Puigdemont, also had not declared independence, as some secessionists had hoped he might do.

With the clock ticking down on today’s deadline set by Spain, Puigdemont denounced the Madrid government’s plan to impose direct rule on Catalonia — a move expected to include ousting him.

“This is an abusive step,” Puigdemont said in a televised speech. “I do not accept these measures. They are unjust.”

After the speech, the regional Parliament quickly convened to try to plot a course.

The struggle has pitted Catalonia, which has limited selfrule, against a central government that has branded the region’s independence drive illegal and illegitimate under Spain’s constitution. It is the most serious political confrontation of the country’s nearly 40-year democratic era.

Spanish authorities and Puigdemont’s government have been headed for a showdown since regional leaders staged an independence referendum Oct. 1, defying Spanish court rulings. More than half the electorate stayed away, and police tried to stop the balloting, but the result was overwhelmingly in favor of breaking away.

That set off weeks of bitter back-and-forth exchanges between Madrid and Barcelona, the Catalan capital. Puigdemont sent mixed signals, saying that the vote result was a mandate to declare independence, but stopping short of doing so and then ignoring subsequent Spanish government demands that he clarify his position.

Last week, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy declared his intention to impose direct rule on the region using a constitutional provision known as Article 155.

That would allow for the ouster of Puigdemont and senior deputies, along with a takeover of the region’s police and finances.

Spain’s Senate is set to meet in Madrid this morning to ratify the use of the article.

PACO FREIRE / SOPA / ZUMA PRESS / TNS A young woman sings the Catalan anthem during a pro-independence demonstration Thursday at University Square in Barcelona, Spain. The Madrid government is expected to oust the region’s leaders and impose direct rule.