Spain's PM slams Catalans' 'intolerable disobedience'

By Alyssa McMurtry

MADRID

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy harshly condemned the actions of Catalan separatist politicians in a televised speech on Thursday and vowed Spain would prevent a planned independence referendum from happening.

Madrid and Barcelona are on a crash course, with the Catalan government vowing to hold a referendum on Oct. 1.

It yesterday passed a bill outlining the details of the poll, which Rajoy called “illegal”.

“The referendum will not happen under any circumstances,” said Rajoy during his 20-minute speech. “We will demonstrate that Spanish democracy, which is free and diverse, knows how to defend itself from the enemies of coexistence.”

Rajoy also announced that the government has asked Spain’s Constitutional Court to cancel the law passed in Catalonia on Wednesday, and described yesterday’s tense scenes in the Catalan parliament as “the biggest coup of Catalonia’s history”.

It was “intolerable disobedience,” he added.

Spain’s Constitutional Court, which has already suspended other bills passed in Barcelona related to independence, announced it will study the government’s request today.

In the official complaint, the government has also requested the court personally notify those involved in organizing the referendum and all mayors of Catalonia of their duty to follow the law, and of the consequences if they do not.

“What is not legal, is not democratic,” insisted Rajoy, restating that Spain’s constitution forbids this type of independence vote. He did leave some room for negotiation, however.

“The constitution could be modified according to the rules, but never by disobedience,” he said.

Meanwhile, the defiant parliament of Catalonia announced its intention to pass another controversial bill today, which legislates what will happen after the planned referendum if the majority of voters say yes to independence.