Catalan police ordered to stop independence vote

By Alyssa McMurtry

MADRID (AA) – Prosecutors on Tuesday ordered police in Spain’s northeastern region Catalonia to confiscate any material related to the independence referendum on Oct. 1.

The Superior Prosecutor of Catalonia summoned the heads of the three police forces operating in Catalonia -- the Civil Guard, the National Police and the Catalan police (Mossos d’Esquadra) -- to the Supreme Court to give them the official orders.

The orders call on the police to confiscate ballot boxes, electoral envelopes, instruction manuals for electoral volunteers, and flyers.

The prosecutors add that since the Catalan government does not have the legal right to hold consultation over questions that affect the constitutional order, any activity to celebrate the referendum is illegal.

These instructions are particularly difficult for the local Catalan police force to follow, as they directly report to the Catalan government, which is the body responsible for organizing the referendum.

“The main function of the Catalan police is to guarantee the security of the people…” said Carles Puigdemont, President of Catalonia, on a local radio program on Tuesday.

“Taking away ballot boxes is not going after crime.”

The pro-unity opposition in Catalonia supported the prosecutors’ instructions but worried about how the government would react.

“What legitimacy would the police have if they are obligated to break the law? This is not Catalan and it has nothing to do with Catalonia. I hope no one in the government obliges them to engage in illegal activity,” said Ines Arrimadas, leader of the opposition in the Catalan Parliament.

Around one million people filled Barcelona’s streets Monday evening, according to local police, to mark the celebration of the region’s annual holiday and to demonstrate their support for Catalonia’s independence from Spain.

Recent polls suggest that the population of Catalonia is split on independence. A poll conducted in September for local news website El Espanol suggests 50 percent of Catalans were in favor of independence.

Monday’s march comes amid an increasingly tense showdown between Barcelona and Madrid. The Catalan parliament has just passed two bills, one outlining the referendum process and the other describing what would happen in the case of a “yes” vote to independence. The latter includes a unilateral declaration of independence within two days after the vote.

The Spanish government has officially challenged both laws.