Tensions Between Catalan Secessionists and Loyalists Reach Breaking Point
A huge rally for the unity of Spain has taken place today in Barcelona. The organizers say that there were almost a million people. Anyway it's the biggest rally of those who are against the secession of the Spanish province of Catalonia from the country.
Earlier this week the results of last Sunday's referendum were announced, with over 90% of the voters supporting independence of Catalonia. This subject is now central in the EU. Maxim Kiselev is reporting from Barcelona.
Shouts "Puigdemont to jail!", royal flags in the center of Catalonia were hardly possible in Barcelona until recently. The rally for a united Spain is no longer a drop that fell in a sea of protest, but a sea of its own too. They take turns to invade the Catalan squares, without clashing so far.
They are Spaniards, and pronounce it to those for whom there is only one flag, the one with the star of independence from Madrid. If you do not look at colors, rallies are like twins. The streets are equally crowded, and when the march stalls, pauses are filled with dances.
And the pro-Catalan part of Barcelona has deliberately spent these hours in silence to see the event and compare it with how she, the "non-Spain" can roar.
Catalonia is split, but already not in half. It took Madrid a week to direct the thoughts of most fence-hangers towards independence by making mistakes and using truncheons and rubber bullets.
"These streets will be ours forever!" The new slogan born on the day of the referendum keeps the Spanish policemen awake all day round in hotels near Barcelona, or in the old mansion in Via Laietana street, now this is the main target.
Madrid is far, but there is a place in Barcelona to express aggression. The Spanish flag is still waving over the police station, and the Catalan police now have to protect it.
Mossos d'Esquadra, the Catalan police, is now like the frontline. Unarmed friends are on one side, opposed by strangers, but colleagues. All this week, they've guarded not only the order, but also the police officers posted from Madrid. They went here to calm down the Catalans, but now, making their way to the hotels whistled and screamed at. In response, they shout their slogans from behind the windows of the hotels: "Long live Spain and its police!"
Raquel Sánchez Jiménez, Gava Mayor: "There are those who think differently from the supporters of independence: they are accused by the Catalan authorities of opposing democracy, which is a very dangerous situation. You can't try to divide the society into good and bad".
Red-and-yellow flags in the balconies are rare in her city, which is 50 km from Barcelona. Mayor Raquel Jiménez isn't against independence, it's her dream, too. But an open battle with Madrid only shuts out this dream. And the split of Catalonia into "us" and "them" makes it unattainable.
- Spain's team? Nobody cares about it here. Few are its fans, unlike Barcelona. 90% of people are its fans.
Football is the Spanish religion, it indicates the division. There are 2 fans in a sports bar on the day of the decisive match of the national team. They are the barman and FC Espanyol fan. They are happy about the goals, but are mostly speaking about the future, when their team is expelled from the championship of Spain.
Gonzalo Fernández, bar owner: "Barcelona can play in any European championship thanks to the level of football and economic capacity, and just its greatness".
- Barcelona needs the Spanish League to remain Barcelona. And the Spanish championship needs Barcelona to remain the championship of Spain. Because if there are no Real vs Barcelona matches, there will immediately be less money. The League will lose its importance.
According to estimations, if Barcelona quits the championship of Spain, the budget falls threefold. There won't be enough money for Messi or Suarez. It's a Utopia to play in the French championship. Europe will help Madrid to take revenge on the rebellious and bury the great Barcelona. But the Spanish national team will face the same dead march, as it has too many Catalan stars.
Legend Gerard Piqué will definitely take off the Spanish T-shirt, if independence occurs. He cast his ballot at the referendum to explain why, with tears in his eyes: Gerard Piqué, footballer: "You can vote "for" or "against", but you must cast your ballot. During so many years of Franco's regime people didn't even have such an opportunity. That's why we have to protect this right by all legal means. It's what we're doing today. I feel Catalan and I'm proud of our people. We behaved exceptionally, there were no acts of violence, but the police that had been sent here, did what you all saw".
The split is both internal and external. Touching the ball, Piqué hears the whistle. Madrid meets police officers who returned from Catalonia as heroes from the battlefield. The King's speech has no hint of a dialogue with the supporters of independence. He addressed only the part of the nation, that is for a united and integral Spain.
King Felipe VI: "You have all the support and the solidarity of the rest of the Spanish people, as well as the absolute guarantee given by the rule of law in the defense of your freedom and your rights".
Catalonia seemed to expect other words. By refusing to negotiate Madrid only helps the separatists fuel the protest. And they will capitalize on its every mistake.
Carles Puigdemont: "After each their mistake, we received even more support from the community, the support of the majority of Catalonia's population who aren't happy with this situation".
The Catalan authorities are now in a perfect position to put pressure on Madrid. While they're supported by millions of people, enraged by the center's activity, even bringing in troops would be pointless. What can they do against such a crowd?
Puigdemont tries to say to Madrid that it's him who's running the show. Maybe, a general strike was to demonstrate it for whole Spain to see the region freezing on Barcelona's command.
For a day, Barcelona turned into a pedestrian zone, like Vysotsky wrote. The subway is closed, buses, trolley buses and taxis don't transport people. No point in asking someone to take to the streets, everybody is already here.
People are divided into columns, like on May Day. There are separate rows of firemen, very noisy dockers of Spain's largest port. In search of transport tourists are wandering about with their luggage. Taxi drivers have more important things to do: it's the strike indeed. For now, travelers stand it. But for how much more will such Barcelona remain their paradise?
Igor Vorobey, tour guide: "Here everybody's hitting it off, but everybody is afraid the "early birds". Currently the local Catalan legislation towards migrants are much more complex, and, so to say, much stricter that in the rest of Spain. If they're granted laissez-faire, they'll be sure to continue to put the screws on it. Nobody knows what it will bring about".
Igor has lived in Barcelona for 8 years. He is against independence. The Franco period was the pain of Catalonia, it's what waves the separatist flag. But he's sure that the Catalans aren't to draw parallels.
Igor Vorobey, tour guide: They're already wealthier than the rest of Spain. There's tourism, production, bourse, banks, a port. Industries are developed too, but who developed it? It was Franco. But now they say: "OK, you gave us money, now you can go, bye!"
All well-being can collapse in a second, it is already staggering. Madrid urgently simplifies the procedure for corporations to change addresses. And the largest Catalan banks are the first to intend to withdraw. Sabadell is ready to move to Mallorca, CaixaBank to Alicante. The capital is again ready to demolish an independence, which Catalonia seems to be a footstep away from, with the help of money, as long as it failed to do so with cannonry.
Montjuïc Castle has been witnessing Catalonia's struggle for independence for centuries, often with a tragic outcome. In the 40's under Franco thousands of Catalans were executed here, including the head of the then autonomy Lluís Companys.
The cannonry, which is now facing the sea, multiple times fired at the rebellious city. Now a Moby Dada ship, that has brought 3,500 policemen to curb Barcelona, is moored at the bottom of a mountain.
Lluís Llach, who's spent years abroad, waiting for Franco's death, thinks that Spain is still the same. There are different people in government, but the understanding of Catalan uniqueness is the same.
Lluís Llach, Catalan MP: "They treat us as if something was wrong with us. We thought that when a new democracy was established after Franco's regime, democratic Spain would respect differences between people. However, after 40 years of this "democracy" over 50% of the Catalans stand for independence".
He is still the voice of Catalonia, and he's loved not for his words pronounced from the parliamentary pulpit, but for the words sung back in 1968. His "L'Estaca" is still a hymn of dreams with the main words for Catalans: "If we all pull, it will fall down, and we will be able to liberate ourselves".
Maxim Kiselev, Philip Dubrovsky, Semyon Shavchenko for Vesti — News of the Week from Catalonia.