Catalonia to Hold Unofficial Independence Referendum, Despite Constitutional Court’s Ban

Catalonia will conduct an unofficial independence referendum despite the fact that the Constitutional Court of Spain admitted the lawsuit by the country's government to rule it illegal on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Catalan government said.

"Everything is ready for the vote on November 9," Francesc Homs said at a press conference. "We will hold it to grant our citizens the freedom of expression," he added.

Homs noted that the Catalan government will provide additional arguments to support its position to the Constitutional Court and will launch another lawsuit against the attempts by the Spanish government to curb "the right of its citizens to participate" in outlining the region's future.

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On September 27, Catalan President Artur Mas called for an independence vote and signed a decree scheduling a referendum for November 9. The Spanish government vowed to block the motion by appealing to the Constitutional Court, and on September 29, the court suspended the referendum while it deliberated on its legality.

Artur Mas then stated that the voting in November will not be carried out as an official referendum, but rather as a questionnaire to find out public opinion. But on Friday Madrid launched yet another lawsuit to block the symbolic vote as well.

On November 9, Catalans will be called to the polls to answer two questions: "Do you want Catalonia to be a State?" and "If so, do you want Catalonia to be an independent state?"

According to the poll, conducted by Metroscopia opinion research center, 44 percent of Catalonians plan to vote for independence and 42 percent – for the autonomy to remain within Spain.
(RIA Novosti)
4/11/14
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