“Yes” side wins Catalonia independence vote marred by chaos
BARCELONA, Spain — Catalonia’s regional government declared a landslide win for the “yes” side in a disputed referendum on independence from Spain that degenerated into mayhem Sunday, with more than 800 people injured as riot police attacked peaceful protesters and unarmed civilians trying to cast their ballots.
Catalonia has “won the right to become an independent state,” Catalan president Carles Puigdemont said after the polls closed, adding that he would keep his pledge to declare independence unilaterally if the “yes” side wins.
“Today the Spanish state wrote another shameful page in its history with Catalonia,” Puigdemont added, saying he would appeal to the European Union to look into alleged human rights violations during the vote.
Catalan regional government spokesman Jordi Turull told reporters early Monday that 90 per cent of the 2.26 million Catalans who voted chose the “yes” side in favour of independence. He said nearly 8 per cent of voters rejected independence and the rest of the ballots were blank or void. He said 15,000 votes were still being counted.