Catalonia defies Spain

[Peter1469]

Catalonia is different from Scotland. Scotland got the permission of the UK for an independence referendum; Catalonia was denied this. Nevertheless, it voted to give it a go.

The president of Spain's powerful northeastern region of Catalonia on Saturday formally called an independence referendum, the latest secession push in Europe and one of the most serious challenges to the Spanish state in recent years.


Catalan leader Artur Mas signed the decree to call the referendum in a solemn ceremony in the regional government headquarters in Barcelona, flanked by most of the region's political leaders who support the vote.


"Like all the nations of the world, Catalonia has the right to decide its political future," said Mas.

The last sentence is technically untrue. After WWII European powers agreed to freeze borders in a hope to prevent another European war.

[waltky]

Granny says, "Dat's right - dem young Spaniels need to get a job...

Spain's 'lazy' young told by judges to get a life
Thu, 18 May 2017 - A judge rejects a young woman's demand to continue receiving her parents' financial support.

At what age should the bank of mum and dad shut its doors to a son or daughter? In northern Spain, a judge has turned down the demand of a 23-year-old woman to continue receiving her parents' financial support, ruling that she is "too lazy to earn a living". Family bonds are traditionally highly valued in Spain and this decision marks a contrast with many previous rulings in which parents have been obliged to support their offspring long after they become adults, and even into their 30s.

Spain's crippling economic crisis has caused youth unemployment to soar, meaning most young people rely on their parents for many years after leaving school. The average age at which Spaniards leave home has risen to 29, almost nine years later than the average Swede, according to Eurostat. The unnamed 23 year old, from the seaside town of Castro Urdiales, went to the Cantabrian provincial court to demand maintenance of €300 a month (£255; $330) from her father.

Why it's all about behaviour

The woman's parents had separated in 2012 and there had been no mention of child support in their settlement. The court noted that the woman had not completed secondary education but she had received money from her parents to pay for IT courses that she had not managed to complete. Legal precedent in Spain holds that parents are obliged to provide for their children until they reach economic independence. But the judges ruled that this responsibility does not apply if the child's behaviour prevents them from getting on in life. In this instance, the woman's conduct was "legally classifiable as one of abandonment, laziness and failure to take advantage".

In a similar vein, a court in Catalonia last year told a 19 year old, who was neither in work nor studying, that his parents were not obliged to support his "capricious lifestyle", effectively booting him on to the street. The president of the Spanish family law association, Maria Dolores Lozano, says parents are increasingly seeking legal help. Judges are also drawing attention to the large numbers of young Spaniards who have moved abroad to find work, when they consider whether or not a child has options to support themselves, she adds.

At what age should parental support end?[/b]

[donttread]

Granny says, "Dat's right - dem young Spaniels need to get a job...

Spain's 'lazy' young told by judges to get a life
Thu, 18 May 2017 - A judge rejects a young woman's demand to continue receiving her parents' financial support.

Twenty $#@!ing three and that had to go to court? welcome to the age of extended dependence to hide the lack of jobs.

[waltky]

Catalonians already plannin' to secede from Spain...

Catalonian leaders would quickly secede if voters want independence
July 5, 2017 -- Catalonia's ruling coalition said it would quickly declare independence from Spain if a majority of voters support an Oct. 1 secession referendum.

The Together for Yes coalition and the Popular Unity Candidacy political party are leading efforts to hold the referendum in which citizens will face the question: "Do you want Catalonia to be an independent state in the form of a republic?" The pro-independence institutions held an event on Tuesday to promote the referendum. The ruling coalition described policies it would enact under a free Catalonia, such as a new hunting law that would "guarantee a safe, sustainable and territorially balanced activity" as well as a road safety effort seeking to eradicate transit fatalities by 2020. The ruling coalition also pitched apprenticeship work programs to combat unemployment.

Catalonia's ruling coalition -- made up of the Together for Yes coalition and the Popular Unity Candidacy political party -- said it would quickly declare independence from Spain if a majority of voters support an upcoming secession referendum.

Carles Puigdemont, president of Generalitat of Catalonia, on Tuesday said the Oct. 1 referendum will be legally binding. About 7.5 million people live in the Catalonia region, which has its own language and makes up a fifth of Spain's economic output. The calls for autonomy and independence have intensified amid Spain's financial crisis. Barcelona, Catalonia's regional capital, has a population of about 1.6 million while Madrid, Spain's capital, has a population of about 3.1 million. "The attacks on the Catalan language do not stop, and they will not stop if we do not use our vote to change things. On Oct. 1 we will vote," Puigdemont said in a statement on Wednesday.

In November 2015, Parliament members in Catalonia voted in favor of a resolution that would have led to secession. Spain's Constitutional Court annulled the vote two weeks later. Officials in the Spanish government, led by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, have described the vote for Catalan independence as a coup d'etat disguised as a democratic process. Former Catalan President Artur Mas was banned from holding public office for two years after holding a 2014 referendum on secession.

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...&utm_medium=15

[Peter1469]

Update: support for separation from Spain drops to 35%.

Despite its distinct traditions and language, the idea of breaking away from Spain had little mainstream traction until the economic crisis -- and the corruption it uncovered -- hurt Catalans’ finances and undermined their confidence in the Spanish state.

Support for independence peaked at 49 percent in 2013, as the Spanish economy was contracting for a third straight year and unemployment reached a record 26 percent.
But Spain is on the mend now. Joblessness is down to 17 percent and the economy is growing at a pace of more than 3 percent. After a decade of turmoil, Catalan moderates are nervous about putting the recovery at risk. Just 35 percent say Catalonia should be independent, according to the Catalan government’s polling agency. That’s the lowest in five years.

[Peter1469]

The vote for independence is back in the news.

Catalonia set for clash with Mardid over independence vote

Catalonia is expected to pass a law Wednesday laying the groundwork for an independence referendum on October 1st which is fiercely opposed by Madrid, setting a course for Spain's deepest political crisis in decades.

The looming showdown comes three weeks after the jihadist attacks in Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, and a nearby seaside resort that killed 16 people and wounded more than 120 others.

I am not sure why they are so keen on independence. If they don't start having babies, they will be gone in a couple of generations anyway- Muslims from the Middle East and North Africa will replace them.

[Peter1469]

Catalan president 'could be arrested over independence referendum'

Spain is fighting back.

Spain's chief public prosecutor on Monday refused to rule out ordering the arrest of Catalonia's president as Spanish authorities continued a crackdown against a banned independence referendum in the region.


Jose Manuel Maza said Carles Puigdemont could be charged with civil disobedience, abuse of office and misuse of public funds for pressing ahead with preparations for the October 1 referendum.
"It's a decision that is possible but we have not considered that we should take it," Maza said during an interview with Onda Cero radio.

[Peter1469]

Spain, Catalonia head for showdown over independence vote

The Spanish government crackdown may strengthen the movement for independence.

Montserrat Aguilera wasn’t intending to vote for the Catalonia region to secede from the rest of Spain.

But the 52-year-old laboratory worker changed her mind amid an unprecedented crackdown by Spain’s government as it tries to prevent Sunday’s independence referendum from going ahead.


Spain and its most powerful and prosperous region are headed for a showdown, with police trying to shut down polling stations to stop the referendum and activists, students and parents occupying schools designated voting places to keep them open.



Much remains unclear, including whether police will forcibly remove people who are still in the polling stations at a 6 a.m. Sunday deadline and how many of Catalonia’s voters will be able to cast ballots amid the central government’s crackdown.


Also unknown is what happens next if regional leaders declare any vote legitimate and Catalonia declares independence. The referendum was suspended under constitutional rules weeks ago so a court could consider its legality.

[Peter1469]

The election is set for tomorrow. Here is an article that states Spain can't win this fight.

The autonomous Spanish community of Catalonia plans to hold an independence referendum on Oct. 1. The Spanish government intends to prevent that referendum from taking place *– by any means necessary. Ironically, Spain’s crackdown, while predictable, exacerbates the very threat Spain is trying to subdue. Whether or not Madrid’s heavy-handed approach prevents a declaration of independence, in the long term it will only push more Catalans toward the conclusion that their future lies not with Spain but with themselves. Spain, the European Union’s fourth-largest economy, sits on the verge of a major political crisis that it has no way of solving.

[Peter1469]

Clashes as riot police crack down on banned Catalan vote




At least 91 injured as riot people try to prevent the vote.

Clashes as riot police crack down on banned Catalan vote






Marianne Barriaux with Daniel Silva in Madrid

AFPOctober 1, 2017












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Spain sent in 10,000 extra police to Catalonia for referendum day (AFP Photo/LLUIS GENE)
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Barcelona (AFP) - 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.
At least 91 people were injured in clashes, emergency services said, as police cracked down down on what the Spanish central government has branded a "farce".