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| Venice votes on splitting from Rome | |
| (2 days later) | |
| Voting has begun in Venice and the surrounding region on whether to break away from Italy. | Voting has begun in Venice and the surrounding region on whether to break away from Italy. |
| Recent opinion polls suggest that two-thirds of the four million electorate favour splitting from Rome, but the vote will not be legally binding. | Recent opinion polls suggest that two-thirds of the four million electorate favour splitting from Rome, but the vote will not be legally binding. |
| The online poll was organised by local activists and parties, who want a future state called Republic of Veneto. | |
| This would be reminiscent of the sovereign Venetian republic that existed for more than 1,000 years. | This would be reminiscent of the sovereign Venetian republic that existed for more than 1,000 years. |
| A focal point for culture, architecture and trade, Venice lost its independence to Napoleon in 1797. | A focal point for culture, architecture and trade, Venice lost its independence to Napoleon in 1797. |
| Online voting is due to continue until Friday. | Online voting is due to continue until Friday. |
| The vote received very little coverage in Italy's national media but the organisers said they expected as many as two million people to take part. | The vote received very little coverage in Italy's national media but the organisers said they expected as many as two million people to take part. |
| The BBC's Alan Johnston in Rome says the vote reflects a growing separatist mood in parts of Europe, such as Spain's Catalonia region and Scotland, which votes on whether to become independent in September. | The BBC's Alan Johnston in Rome says the vote reflects a growing separatist mood in parts of Europe, such as Spain's Catalonia region and Scotland, which votes on whether to become independent in September. |
| Moves towards independence often evoke more sympathy in wealthy northern Italy, where many resent what they see as the poorer south's waste and corruption. | Moves towards independence often evoke more sympathy in wealthy northern Italy, where many resent what they see as the poorer south's waste and corruption. |
| Luca Zaia, governor of Veneto, the Venice region, rejected suggestions that the Italian constitution would prevent secession. | Luca Zaia, governor of Veneto, the Venice region, rejected suggestions that the Italian constitution would prevent secession. |
| International law, he told Libero Quotidiano, allowed "the right to self-determination". |