Thousands of Catalans took to the streets against declaration of independence

In the backdrop of political uncertainty in Barcelona, Hundreds of thousands of Catalans took to the streets on Sunday to voice their opposition to the region’s declaration of independence. The protesters described themselves as the silent majority who have been ignored during the wealthy region’s bid for independence. Catalonia’s political leadership was fired on Saturday by central authorities in Madrid who are trying to tame the worst political crisis Spain has seen in decades.

Waving Spanish, Catalan and European Union flags, the protesters described themselves as the silent majority who has been ignored during the wealthy region’s bid for independence, which came to a head Friday when the regional parliament voted to secede from Spain. The organizers said more than 1 million people turned out but police put the figure at 300,000. There was no way to immediately reconcile the figures. The mood at Sunday’s rally was festive. “We won’t let Spain be torn apart into pieces,” read one banner. “The awakening of a silenced nation,” read another. The top politicians for pro-union parties hoped to use Sunday’s rally to launch their election campaigns.

In response to the lawmakers’ secessionist vote, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy triggered unprecedented constitutional powers, firing Catalonia’s secessionist regional government and calling an early regional election for December 21. Monday will be the first working day since the region declared independence and its leadership was fired. It was not known how Catalonia’s estimated 200,000 public workers would react to their bosses dismissal.