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| Spain Asks Catalonia: Did You Declare Independence or Not? | Spain Asks Catalonia: Did You Declare Independence or Not? |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BARCELONA, Spain — Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy took a tentative step on Wednesday toward seizing administrative control of Catalonia, but he asked the region’s leader to first clarify whether he had actually declared his region’s independence from the rest of Spain following an unusual series of events the night before. | |
| In a short news conference, Mr. Rajoy called on Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia’s leader, to confirm whether he had declared independence, given what the Spanish prime minister called “the confusion” generated by the comments and actions from Mr. Puigdemont and other Catalan leaders on Tuesday. | In a short news conference, Mr. Rajoy called on Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia’s leader, to confirm whether he had declared independence, given what the Spanish prime minister called “the confusion” generated by the comments and actions from Mr. Puigdemont and other Catalan leaders on Tuesday. |
| Pending a response from the Catalan government, Mr. Rajoy said that he was initiating a request for his government to invoke Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution — a broad, forceful tool that has never been used in modern Spanish democracy. | |
| The article would allow Madrid to suspend Catalan lawmakers and take charge of the region’s autonomous administration, although Mr. Rajoy’s move does not commit him to an emergency intervention. | |
| “It is urgent to put an end to the situation that Catalonia is living,” Mr. Rajoy said. “The government wants to offer certainties to Spaniards and Catalans.” | “It is urgent to put an end to the situation that Catalonia is living,” Mr. Rajoy said. “The government wants to offer certainties to Spaniards and Catalans.” |
| Mr. Rajoy, whose remarks came after an emergency cabinet meeting earlier in the day about how to address the situation in Catalonia, has asked to appear before the Spanish Parliament at 4 p.m. | Mr. Rajoy, whose remarks came after an emergency cabinet meeting earlier in the day about how to address the situation in Catalonia, has asked to appear before the Spanish Parliament at 4 p.m. |
| The Spanish leader is under intense pressure from his own lawmakers to stop Catalan secessionism in its tracks, but he is also aware that strong reprisals against the region’s leader, Carles Puigdemont, could galvanize the independence movement. | |
| The comments on Wednesday represented the first formal response to the events of the previous evening, when Mr. Puigdemont appeared to declare independence from Spain in an address to the Catalan Parliament, before immediately suspending that decision to allow for more “dialogue” with Madrid. | |
| Further muddying the waters, Mr. Puigdemont and separatist lawmakers later signed a declaration of independence, a process set in motion after a highly disputed referendum on Oct. 1 that went ahead despite being suspended by the Spanish Constitutional Court. | Further muddying the waters, Mr. Puigdemont and separatist lawmakers later signed a declaration of independence, a process set in motion after a highly disputed referendum on Oct. 1 that went ahead despite being suspended by the Spanish Constitutional Court. |
| Most Madrid-based newspapers and television morning talk shows ridiculed Mr. Puigdemont’s speech on Tuesday and described his call for negotiations with Madrid as an act of desperation. | Most Madrid-based newspapers and television morning talk shows ridiculed Mr. Puigdemont’s speech on Tuesday and described his call for negotiations with Madrid as an act of desperation. |
| The headline in the newspaper El Mundo described the night’s events as “farce and blackmail.” Susanna Griso, a news anchor on the television channel Antenna 3, said the Catalan parliamentary session swung “between tragedy and comedy.” | The headline in the newspaper El Mundo described the night’s events as “farce and blackmail.” Susanna Griso, a news anchor on the television channel Antenna 3, said the Catalan parliamentary session swung “between tragedy and comedy.” |
| Spanish legal experts said that Mr. Puigdemont and his separatist lawmakers had violated the Constitution by signing a declaration of independence, and speculated that the move would almost certainly compel Mr. Rajoy to intervene forcefully in Catalonia. | Spanish legal experts said that Mr. Puigdemont and his separatist lawmakers had violated the Constitution by signing a declaration of independence, and speculated that the move would almost certainly compel Mr. Rajoy to intervene forcefully in Catalonia. |
| “Let’s be clear: A region doesn’t have the competence to declare any kind of independence,” Ignacio Gordillo, a former prosecutor for Spain’s national court, told Antenna 3. “You cannot negotiate with criminals.” | “Let’s be clear: A region doesn’t have the competence to declare any kind of independence,” Ignacio Gordillo, a former prosecutor for Spain’s national court, told Antenna 3. “You cannot negotiate with criminals.” |
| Mr. Rajoy, who has stood firm against the separatists, has a battery of potential emergency measures available to him: not just Article 155, but also a national emergency law that his government enacted in 2015. | Mr. Rajoy, who has stood firm against the separatists, has a battery of potential emergency measures available to him: not just Article 155, but also a national emergency law that his government enacted in 2015. |
| However, he also has a long record as a cautious politician who has stayed on the front line of Spanish politics for two decades by steering clear of difficult decisions and letting rivals dig themselves into holes instead. He said on Wednesday that he would “continue to act with prudence,” and put the onus on Mr. Puigdemont to explain himself. | However, he also has a long record as a cautious politician who has stayed on the front line of Spanish politics for two decades by steering clear of difficult decisions and letting rivals dig themselves into holes instead. He said on Wednesday that he would “continue to act with prudence,” and put the onus on Mr. Puigdemont to explain himself. |
| Article 155, which requires Senate approval, would allow Mr. Rajoy to suspend, for as long as he believes necessary, the political institutions of Catalonia, including its regional government and Parliament. His government could also take over the leadership of the region’s autonomous police force and its public broadcaster. | Article 155, which requires Senate approval, would allow Mr. Rajoy to suspend, for as long as he believes necessary, the political institutions of Catalonia, including its regional government and Parliament. His government could also take over the leadership of the region’s autonomous police force and its public broadcaster. |
| Separately, public prosecutors could open criminal proceedings against Mr. Puigdemont and his government. On Monday, Pablo Casado, the spokesman for Mr. Rajoy’s governing party, warned that Mr. Puigdemont could be imprisoned for insurrection. | Separately, public prosecutors could open criminal proceedings against Mr. Puigdemont and his government. On Monday, Pablo Casado, the spokesman for Mr. Rajoy’s governing party, warned that Mr. Puigdemont could be imprisoned for insurrection. |
| Still, Ignacio González Vega, spokesman for a Spanish association of judges, warned on Wednesday that “a political issue cannot be resolved only by applying laws.” He also told Antenna 3 that Mr. Rajoy “will have to step in with a lot of sensitivity, because these measures are very serious.” | Still, Ignacio González Vega, spokesman for a Spanish association of judges, warned on Wednesday that “a political issue cannot be resolved only by applying laws.” He also told Antenna 3 that Mr. Rajoy “will have to step in with a lot of sensitivity, because these measures are very serious.” |
| In Barcelona, Mr. Puigdemont is facing a backlash from hard-line separatists, frustrated by his decision to suspend the declaration of independence. | In Barcelona, Mr. Puigdemont is facing a backlash from hard-line separatists, frustrated by his decision to suspend the declaration of independence. |
| The Popular Unity Candidacy — a small, far-left party that played a pivotal role in putting Mr. Puigdemont in office — gave him an ultimatum of its own. The party said its 10 lawmakers would not attend any session of the Catalan Parliament for a month, by which point it expected Mr. Puigdemont to have put Catalan independence into force. | The Popular Unity Candidacy — a small, far-left party that played a pivotal role in putting Mr. Puigdemont in office — gave him an ultimatum of its own. The party said its 10 lawmakers would not attend any session of the Catalan Parliament for a month, by which point it expected Mr. Puigdemont to have put Catalan independence into force. |