Hundreds of thousands flood streets of Barcelona to call for independence
Spanish government describes Catalonia Day march as ¡°campaign event¡± for premier
Pro-independence supporters gathered by the hundreds of thousands in Barcelona on Friday afternoon to hold a march that has become an annual tradition on September 11, but which takes on added meaning this year because of upcoming regional elections that could lead to Catalonia¡¯s secession from Spain.
Throngs of crowds in white t-shirts had completely filled the four traffic lanes of Meridiana Avenue by 5.14pm, when the main event of the Diada ¨C Catalonia Day ¨C got started.
FC Barcelona player Gerard Piqu¨¦ was another famous face on view at the march
As demonstrators chanted ¡°Independence!¡± and waved esteladas (the unofficial flag of an independent Catalonia), a giant yellow arrow was carried five kilometers by a group of athletes from the northernmost point of Meridiana Avenue to the Catalan parliament, along a route christened Via Lliure (Liberty Road).
Prominent pro-independence politicians marched at the head of the group, including Catalan government official Francesc Homs and the three top candidates in Junts pel S¨ª (Together for Yes), the secessionist bloc that is running in the September 27 elections: Ra¨¹l Romeva, Muriel Casals and Carme Forcadell.
FC Barcelona player Gerard Piqu¨¦ was another famous face on view at the march.
Friday was? day one of the campaign to regional elections on September 27, which the regional premier is casting as a de facto plebiscite on independence
Conspicuously absent from the march was Josep Antoni Duran, leader of Democratic Union of Catalonia, a Catalanist party that ruled the region almost uninterruptedly for 37 years in tandem with Democratic Convergence of Catalonia, as CiU.
Through his Twitter account, Duran called on Catalans to ¡°defend the land¡± using ¡°dialogue, cohesion and common sense.¡± The CiU coalition broke up in June due to disagreement over the independence drive, which Duran does not support.
Meanwhile, the Spanish government said that the Diada¡¯s pro-independence acts have become ¡°a campaign event for [Artur] Mas,¡± referring to the fact that Friday is also day one of the campaign to regional elections on September 27, which the regional premier is casting as a de facto plebiscite on independence.
In a press conference with international media outlets, Mas reasserted that if his Junts pel Si bloc wins an absolute majority of seats in the Catalan parliament, he will feel legitimized to press on with his secessionist drive ¨C even if he does not technically obtain a majority of votes.
English version by Susana Urra.
Tu suscripci¨®n se est¨¢ usando en otro dispositivo
?Quieres a?adir otro usuario a tu suscripci¨®n?
Si contin¨²as leyendo en este dispositivo, no se podr¨¢ leer en el otro.
FlechaTu suscripci¨®n se est¨¢ usando en otro dispositivo y solo puedes acceder a EL PA?S desde un dispositivo a la vez.
Si quieres compartir tu cuenta, cambia tu suscripci¨®n a la modalidad Premium, as¨ª podr¨¢s a?adir otro usuario. Cada uno acceder¨¢ con su propia cuenta de email, lo que os permitir¨¢ personalizar vuestra experiencia en EL PA?S.
?Tienes una suscripci¨®n de empresa? Accede aqu¨ª para contratar m¨¢s cuentas.
En el caso de no saber qui¨¦n est¨¢ usando tu cuenta, te recomendamos cambiar tu contrase?a aqu¨ª.
Si decides continuar compartiendo tu cuenta, este mensaje se mostrar¨¢ en tu dispositivo y en el de la otra persona que est¨¢ usando tu cuenta de forma indefinida, afectando a tu experiencia de lectura. Puedes consultar aqu¨ª los t¨¦rminos y condiciones de la suscripci¨®n digital.
