Spain's Constitutional Court Suspends Upcoming Catalonia Parliament Session

Spain's Constitutional Court has suspended the session scheduled for next Monday in the Catalonia Parliament, which is expected to become a historic meeting with the announcement of the region's independence from Spain. Reuters reported on Thursday, October 5, citing the Spanish newspaper 'El País', that the ruling of the Constitutional Court came following a legal action by the Catalan Socialist Party, which opposes the separation of this region from Spain. The news agency also reported that Mariano Rajoy, the Prime Minister of Spain, has warned Carlos Puigdemont, the leader of Catalonia, to halt his plans for a unilateral declaration of independence in order to 'avoid greater evils and unfortunate events.' In an interview with a Spanish news agency, Rajoy stated that the solution to the Catalonia crisis is an immediate return to legality and the prompt announcement that Catalonia will not unilaterally declare independence, thus preventing greater evils and unfortunate events. The Catalan government claims that nearly 92% of the approximately 42% of people who participated in the independence referendum voted in favor, but Spanish officials consider the referendum fundamentally against the laws of the country and have tried to prevent it from taking place from the beginning. Meanwhile, Madrid has threatened to suspend the activities of the Catalan regional government, but Carlos Puigdemont has called this a mistake that will change everything. In his remarks on Thursday, Puigdemont emphasized that he is not afraid of being arrested and imprisoned for organizing the independence referendum. In an interview with the German newspaper 'Bild', he said, 'I am no longer surprised by the actions of the Spanish government. There is even a possibility of my arrest, which would be a brutal act.' So far, neither the Spanish government nor its judiciary has threatened Puigdemont with arrest, although he has been accused of breaking the law and ignoring the ruling of the Spanish Constitutional Court, which emphasized the prohibition of holding the independence referendum. Puigdemont's government had asked the Catalan Parliament to declare the independence of the region in its session on Monday. In this context, Catalan leaders have stated: 'We are not seeking a bitter separation from Madrid.' Plans for a general strike in protest against violence in Catalonia are underway, with 300,000 people marching against police violence in Barcelona. Catalonia will declare independence in the 'coming days.'