{"id":358784,"date":"2017-10-03T16:27:51","date_gmt":"2017-10-03T16:27:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=358784"},"modified":"2017-10-03T16:27:51","modified_gmt":"2017-10-03T16:27:51","slug":"thousands-of-catalans-take-to-streets-to-protest-police-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2017\/10\/thousands-of-catalans-take-to-streets-to-protest-police-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Thousands of Catalans take to streets to protest police action"},"content":{"rendered":"
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Catalonia on Tuesday to protest against Sunday\u2019s violent crackdown by Spanish police on an outlawed independence referendum for the region.<\/p>\n
Metro stations shut down in Barcelona, pickets blocked dozens of roads and state workers walked out in response to a call for a general strike by pro-independence groups and trade unions. Many small businesses also shut down for the day.<\/p>\n
Catalonia, Spain\u2019s richest region, has its own language and culture and a political movement for secession that has strengthened in recent years.<\/p>\n
Pro-independence parties who control the regional government staged Sunday\u2019s referendum in defiance of Spanish courts that had ruled it illegal. Some 900 people were injured on polling day when police fired rubber bullets and charged at crowds with truncheons to disrupt the vote.<\/p>\n
Those who participated voted overwhelmingly for independence, a result that was expected since residents who favor remaining part of Spain mainly boycotted the vote.<\/p>\n
Opinion polls conducted before the vote suggested only a minority of around 40 percent of residents in the region back independence although a majority want a referendum to be held.<\/p>\n
Protesters said the violent police crackdown against the ballot had energized the secessionist camp.<\/p>\n