Catalan officials mull independence; Spanish stocks sink

MADRID — Catalonia’s regional government mulled Wednesday when to declare the region’s independence from Spain, with some lawmakers saying it would happen Monday, and Spanish stocks sunk as the country grappled with its most serious national crisis in decades.

A top EU official said Spain and Catalonia must talk with each other, even if Catalan authorities broke the law with an unauthorized independence vote.

Catalonia’s regional president, Carles Puigdemont, who has said an independence declaration will come in a few days, was to deliver a televised speech later Wednesday. He’s also addressing the regional parliament Monday to review the disputed vote last Sunday — a session that his parliamentary supporters in the radical CUP group say will consider the independence declaration.

Spain, which has declared the referendum illegal and invalid, is bitterly opposed to any independence move.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s conservative government has said it will respond with “all necessary measures” to counter Catalan defiance, and is holding talks with opposition leaders in Madrid to forge a consensus over what to do.

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Led by losses for the two main Catalan banks, Spain’s main stock market index lost almost 3 percentage points in Wednesday’s trading amid uncertainty over how the secession bid proceeds.

Other Spanish banks, telecommunications giant Telelefonica, fashion retailer Inditex and leading energy companies Repsol, Iberdrola and Gas Natural also suffered significant losses.

The crisis in Spain grew more acute Sunday when some 900 people needed medical attention after police cracked down to try to prevent the vote. Over 400 police also had bruises. On Tuesday, huge crowds held street protests in Catalonia and unions staged a strike to protest the police’s actions.

Rajoy says any dialogue can only happen within the limits of the Spanish Constitution, which doesn’t allow a region to secede. Catalans, however, say they have earned the right to be considered a national entity and refuse any talks that don’t explore a way for independence.

Even when calling for dialogue, European leaders have sided with Spain.

European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans on Wednesday called for a negotiated end to the political deadlock, but said there is a “general consensus that regional government of Catalonia has chosen to ignore the law when organizing the referendum.”

It’s anybody’s guess what might happen if the prosperous northeastern region does actually try to secede. Spain could intervene to take over the regional government or it could even declare a state of emergency and impose martial law.

In a nationally televised address Tuesday night, Spain’s King Felipe VI came out strongly against Catalan authorities, criticizing their “irresponsible conduct.” The Spanish state, he went on, needed to ensure constitutional order and the rule of law in Catalonia, the richest region of Spain.

Catalan authorities say some 2.3 million people — less than half the region’s electorate — voted in the referendum Sunday. Many of those opposed to independence are thought to have stayed at home after the referendum was ordered suspended by a Spanish court. Of those who voted, some 90 per cent backed independence, according to Catalan officials.

The route to becoming independent won’t be easy for Catalonia. The region doesn’t have any power over defence, foreign affairs, taxes, ports or airports, all of which are in the hands of the Madrid government. The European Union has also said that an independent Catalonia cannot stay in the bloc, but must apply to join, a lengthy uncertain process.

Xavier Garcia Albiol, the top politician in Catalonia of Spain’s governing party, called Wednesday for Catalans who want to stay inside Spain to join a rally Sunday in Barcelona, the region’s main city.

Spain’s National Court, meanwhile, said it will quiz two senior officers of Catalonia’s regional police force and the leaders of two pro-Catalan independence civic groups who have been placed under investigation for sedition.

It said the four will be questioned Friday about their roles in demonstrations Sept. 20-21 in Barcelona, when Spanish police arrested several Catalan government officials and raided offices in a crackdown on preparations for the referendum. Spanish authorities say the demonstrations hindered the police operation.

The four include regional police chief officer Josep Lluis Trapero and Jordi Sanchez, the head of the Catalan National Assembly that has been the main civic group behind the independence movement.

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This story has been corrected to fix date of Sept. 20-21 demonstrations.

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Giles contributed from Madrid.

Aritz Parra And Ciaran Giles, The Associated Press