Continued Actions by the Spanish Government to Prevent the Catalonia Independence Referendum

While the Catalonia regional government insists that the independence referendum will be held this weekend, the Spanish government has increased its efforts to prevent this referendum since last week. Despite Madrid's pressures against the referendum, Raúl Romeva, the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Catalonia, emphasized in an interview with AFP on Tuesday that the independence referendum will take place on October 1st. According to Reuters, the Spanish government ordered police on Tuesday, October 4th, to seize all ballot boxes in the Catalonia region to prevent the referendum from taking place. Based on the order from the Catalonia prosecutor, the police in this region have until next Saturday to seize all polling stations in the state. Officials in Madrid also announced last week the dissolution of the state electoral commission. In this context, on Wednesday, September 29th, Spanish police arrested 13 officials from the Catalonia region on the eve of the independence referendum. Tensions between the central Spanish government and Catalonia officials have escalated in recent weeks over the disagreement regarding the independence referendum, which, according to Reuters, has turned into "one of the biggest political crises" in Spain since the 1970s. The Spanish government considers this referendum illegal, but Catalonia officials insist on holding their desired referendum on the independence of the Catalan region from the central government on Sunday, October 1st. This insistence from Catalonia officials comes despite Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy labeling the referendum as "illegal" and the country’s constitutional court ruling to postpone it until its legality is determined. Mariano Rajoy, who spoke alongside Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, described the independence of the Catalan region from the central government as "ridiculous." Donald Trump also opposed the execution of this referendum and urged the people of Spain to remain united. In an effort to prevent the referendum from being executed, the Spanish government has initiated legal and political actions in recent weeks, including attempting to exert more control over public financial resources in Catalonia. Meanwhile, hundreds of police forces have been added to the security forces in Barcelona and other cities in Catalonia. According to existing polls, 40% of Catalans support independence from the central government, and this group is likely to participate in the referendum and contribute to its approval. Separatist parties in Catalonia secured 47.6% of the votes in the regional elections two years ago. Thus, in the local parliament of Catalonia, separatist parties hold the majority with 72 out of 135 seats. Catalonia is an autonomous region in northeastern Spain, centered in Barcelona, with a population of seven and a half million, and its people enjoy relative prosperity compared to other parts of Spain. The economic crisis in Spain has led to dissatisfaction among the people of Catalonia regarding the country's situation, and many residents of this region believe that Spain's tax system discriminates against Catalans and that Madrid's economic approach to Catalonia is unfair.