Spain faced a national divide Wednesday after its lawmakers overwhelmingly shot down Catalonia's bid for an independence referendum.
Spain's parliament refused the northeastern region's request to hold a November 9 referendum by a landslide 299 votes to 47 after a seven-hour debate Tuesday.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy led parliament in spurning Catalonia's secessionist bid, refusing to countenance a breakup of Spain.
His ruling conservative Popular Party (PP), the main opposition Socialists and the centrist Union for Progress and Democracy all voted to block the Catalan petition.
"But that does not resolve the problem," warned the conservative daily El Mundo.
"Now is the time to turn to politics to confront the social divide in Catalonia and to reach an overarching agreement on coexistence," the paper urged.
Indeed, there is a groundswell of resentment in Catalonia over its relationship with the rest of the country.
Proud of their distinct language and culture, a growing number of Catalonia's 7.5 million residents feel the redistribution of their taxes to other regions is unfair and that the region would be better off on its own.
Even after the Spanish parliament's rejection, Catalonia's political leader Artur Mas vowed to carry on seeking a legal way to hold the referendum, which would ask voters two questions:
- "Do you think that Catalonia should be a State, yes or no?"
- "If yes, do you want that State to be independent, yes or no?"
"From this painful 'no', the Catalan institutions will seek to build legal frameworks, and there are several, allowing for this November 9 ballot to take place," Mas said after the vote.
Catalonia argues that a 2006 Catalan autonomy statute passed by Spain's parliament granted the region the power to hold referendums.
Mas has also threatened to call snap regional elections as a form of plebiscite on the struggle for independence.
- 'Together we win' -
Many Catalans point to Scotland, whose leaders have called a referendum for September on independence from Britain -- a move authorised by the British government.
Spain's leader, however, said a referendum would flout Spain's 1978 constitution, which confers sovereignty on all Spaniards, not those of a single region.
Spain's Constitutional Court ruled last month that a region like Catalonia could not "unilaterally" call a referendum on its sovereignty.
Rajoy warned parliament, too, that independence would be an economic disaster for both Spain and Catalonia.
"Together we all win and separate we all lose," the prime minister told parliament.
Rajoy said the door was "wide open", however, for Catalonia to seek a change to the constitution.
The region's El Periodico daily was sceptical.
"For this path to be taken into consideration, the government and PP would have to support it and that, unfortunately, does not seem to be on the agenda for the moment," it said in an editorial.
Catalonia's regional government faces strong pressure to push ahead with the referendum.
The Catalan National Assembly, a powerful pressure group, has gathered tens of thousands of signatures on a petition urging local leaders to "exhaust all of the paths" to a referendum.
The group on Saturday unveiled a "roadmap", which calls for the region to declare independence from Spain by April 23, 2015 -- the feast day of Saint George, the patron saint of Catalonia.
Last year on September 11, Catalonia's national day, hundreds of thousands of people formed a human chain across the region to demand independence in a rally organised by the group.
A 2008 real estate crash that triggered a five-year economic downturn across Spain has added to the pressure for secession over the past two years.
The European Union and NATO have warned that Catalonia -- which has more people than Denmark and an economy rivalling Portugal's in size -- would be excluded if it broke away from Spain.
Spain faced a national divide Wednesday after its lawmakers overwhelmingly shot down Catalonia’s bid for an independence referendum.
Spain’s parliament refused the northeastern region’s request to hold a November 9 referendum by a landslide 299 votes to 47 after a seven-hour debate Tuesday.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy led parliament in spurning Catalonia’s secessionist bid, refusing to countenance a breakup of Spain.
His ruling conservative Popular Party (PP), the main opposition Socialists and the centrist Union for Progress and Democracy all voted to block the Catalan petition.
“But that does not resolve the problem,” warned the conservative daily El Mundo.
“Now is the time to turn to politics to confront the social divide in Catalonia and to reach an overarching agreement on coexistence,” the paper urged.
Indeed, there is a groundswell of resentment in Catalonia over its relationship with the rest of the country.
Proud of their distinct language and culture, a growing number of Catalonia’s 7.5 million residents feel the redistribution of their taxes to other regions is unfair and that the region would be better off on its own.
Even after the Spanish parliament’s rejection, Catalonia’s political leader Artur Mas vowed to carry on seeking a legal way to hold the referendum, which would ask voters two questions:
– “Do you think that Catalonia should be a State, yes or no?”
– “If yes, do you want that State to be independent, yes or no?”
“From this painful ‘no’, the Catalan institutions will seek to build legal frameworks, and there are several, allowing for this November 9 ballot to take place,” Mas said after the vote.
Catalonia argues that a 2006 Catalan autonomy statute passed by Spain’s parliament granted the region the power to hold referendums.
Mas has also threatened to call snap regional elections as a form of plebiscite on the struggle for independence.
– ‘Together we win’ –
Many Catalans point to Scotland, whose leaders have called a referendum for September on independence from Britain — a move authorised by the British government.
Spain’s leader, however, said a referendum would flout Spain’s 1978 constitution, which confers sovereignty on all Spaniards, not those of a single region.
Spain’s Constitutional Court ruled last month that a region like Catalonia could not “unilaterally” call a referendum on its sovereignty.
Rajoy warned parliament, too, that independence would be an economic disaster for both Spain and Catalonia.
“Together we all win and separate we all lose,” the prime minister told parliament.
Rajoy said the door was “wide open”, however, for Catalonia to seek a change to the constitution.
The region’s El Periodico daily was sceptical.
“For this path to be taken into consideration, the government and PP would have to support it and that, unfortunately, does not seem to be on the agenda for the moment,” it said in an editorial.
Catalonia’s regional government faces strong pressure to push ahead with the referendum.
The Catalan National Assembly, a powerful pressure group, has gathered tens of thousands of signatures on a petition urging local leaders to “exhaust all of the paths” to a referendum.
The group on Saturday unveiled a “roadmap”, which calls for the region to declare independence from Spain by April 23, 2015 — the feast day of Saint George, the patron saint of Catalonia.
Last year on September 11, Catalonia’s national day, hundreds of thousands of people formed a human chain across the region to demand independence in a rally organised by the group.
A 2008 real estate crash that triggered a five-year economic downturn across Spain has added to the pressure for secession over the past two years.
The European Union and NATO have warned that Catalonia — which has more people than Denmark and an economy rivalling Portugal’s in size — would be excluded if it broke away from Spain.
