Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada

  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Become a Member
  • Contributions
  • Français
October 1 Vote on Catalan Independence

Catalans Defy Spanish State Violence to
Take Part in Referendum

Long lineup outside a polling station.

Attempts by the Spanish government to outlaw Catalonia’s October 1 referendum on independence, including state violence, were militantly defied by the Catalans so they could exercise their right to decide the future of Catalonia. The anti-democratic suppression of Catalans by the Spanish government has been widely denounced, with rallies in support of Catalans’ right to decide taking place across Spain and Europe.

Despite riot police shooting voters with rubber bullets and beating them with shields and batons, people refused to be intimidated. News agencies report that ballot boxes had been hidden in the days before and then smuggled past the Spanish national police into polling stations. Local Catalan police were seen calmly confronting members of the national police, asking them to stand down and cease their attacks on the people and polling stations.

Avanza la Policía en Sabadell pic.twitter.com/ErEIf6P0xA

— Adrián S. Berger (@sanchezberger) October 1, 2017

Polls were open from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. The Spanish government claimed it had closed a majority of polling stations, but news agencies report that many were occupied by teachers, parents, students and activists determined to let people in. Some schools designated as polling stations organized weekend-long recreational activities to prevent the national police from occupying the buildings. Around midday, the Catalan government announced that despite police attacks, 73 per cent of polls were open, an indication that the Spanish government’s attempt to criminalize the referendum had failed.

Mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau on October 1 called for the resignation of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and criticized the violence of the Spanish national police. “If this is a democracy, the police action should be stopped immediately so we can later have a dialogue, which is what is needed,” Colau said. Colau later reported that more than 460 people were injured, a figure that was later increased by the Catalan Health Department to 761, with 335 injured in Barcelona alone. “As mayor of Barcelona I demand an immediate end to police attacks against the defenceless population,” said Colau in a statement.

The Spanish government defended the police violence with utmost arrogance, with Spain’s Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría claiming that authorities acted with “firmness and proportionality.” Prime Minister Rajoy in a televised press conference following the close of polls denied that any referendum had taken place.

The state violence brought to mind for many the suppression of the Catalan culture and language under the Franco regime, with those who lived through those years taking part in the referendum not only to affirm their democratic rights but to repudiate the dictatorship.

Seville, Spain October 1, 2017.
Madrid, Spain October 1, 2017.
Cork, Ireland October 1, 2017.
Edinburgh, Scotland, October 1, 2017.
London, England, October 1, 2017.
Berlin, Germany, October 1, 2017.
Napoli, Italy, October 1, 2017.
Montreal, Canada, September 23, 2017.

Save

• Spain Steps Up Attempts to Suppress Catalan Referendum

Join Our Mailing List

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

 
No. 7September 2023
Speak Out Against the Lies and Disinformation Designed to Isolate Cuba 
• Do Not Permit Canada to Be Used As a Base Against Cuba!
• Facts Reveal Truth About Condition of Women in Cuba
Worldwide Campaign for One Million Signatures to Remove Cuba from
U.S. List of State Sponsors of Terrorism
• Reject Cuba’s Spurious Designation as “State Sponsor of Terrorism”
47th Anniversary of Terrorist Bombing of Cuban Airliner
• Heinous Act for Which the U.S. Has Yet to Render Accounts
• A Glimpse into the Mind of a Terrorist – Orlando Bosch Speaks on Miami TV
False Accusations About Chinese Spy Bases in Cuba
•  Another Attempt to Smear Cuba
• Statements by Cuban Minister and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
International Solidarity Meeting Held in Havana – May 2, 2023
• Statement of Participants
• Speech by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel

September 25 Rallies Health Care Is a Right!

No! to Ontario Government’s Privatization of Public Hospitals!

Join the Ontario Health Coalition, CUPE-Ontario Council of Hospital Unions and other unions representing health care workers, workers in other sectors and allies on Monday, September 25, 2023 for a noon-hour rally to stop the Ford government’s privatization of public hospitals. The measures allowing further privatization were introduced in Bill 60, the Your Health Act [More]

 

This website is operated by the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist).
CPC(M-L) is registered by Elections Canada as Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada.
National Office: P.O. Box 666, Station C, Montreal, QC H2L 4L5
E-mail: info@cpcml.ca.
To unsubscribe: postmaster@cpcml.ca.
To report technical problems: webmaster@cpcml.ca.
PRIVACY POLICY