Catalans vote to split from Spain amid violent crackdowns at the polls
Barcelona (CNN)The Catalan government said it earned the right to independence from Spain after a contested referendum exploded into violence Sunday.
Hundreds were injured as riot police raided polling stations and fired rubber bullets to suppress voter turnout, in a referendum the Spanish government considers illegitimate. "At this point, I can tell you very clearly: Today a self-determination referendum in Catalonia didn't happen," Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said in a televised speech.
Catalonia's separatist government pushed forward with the vote despite opposition from Madrid and a ruling from the country's top court declaring it illegal. Of 2.2 million ballots counted so far, about 90% were in favor of independence, regional government spokesperson Jordi Turull said in a news conference shortly after midnight. 15,000 votes are still pending, Turull said
Turnout in Catalonia, which has 5.3 million total eligible voters, would have been higher if not for suppression at the polls by Spanish national police, Turull said. At least 770,000 votes were lost in polling station crackdowns, the Catalan government said Monday.
Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish riot police shoot rubber bullets at people trying to reach a voting site designated by the Catalan government in Barcelona. The deputy mayor of Barcelona said police fired rubber bullets at people as they attempted to vote in the referendum, which Spain's top court has declared illegal. There were reports that police in Girona, Spain, used batons.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A protestor shouts as he holds a Catalan flag during a demonstration called by far-right groups in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, center, arrives to inspect a sports hall as police interve in Girona, Spain. Puigdemont condemned "indiscriminate aggression" against peaceful voters.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A Spanish riot police officer swings a club against would-be voters near a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Riot police drag a member of the public away from a school being used as a polling station. Regional authorities said 337 people were injured after Madrid deployed the national police force to close down polling stations. Catalan emergency services confirmed the number to CNN.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People clash with Spanish National Police outside the Ramon Llull school, designated as a polling station by the Catalan government in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, October 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People try to offer flowers to a civil guard at the entrance of a sports center, assigned to be a referendum polling station by the Catalan government in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, October 1, 2017.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People attend a demonstration against a referendum on independence for Catalonia on Sunday, October 1, 2017 in Madrid, Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman casts her vote in a ballot at a polling station in Barcelona, on Sunday, October 01, 2017, during a referendum on independence for Catalonia.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Members of Spain's national police force clear people from a polling station where Catalan President Carles Puigdemont had been expected to vote, in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, October 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters said they would not comply with a police order to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman celebrates outside a polling station after casting her vote in Barcelona, on October 01, 2017, in a referendum on independence for Catalonia.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Civil guards clear people away from the entrance of a sports center, designated a polling station by the Catalan government and where Catalan President Carles Puigdemont had been expected to vote, in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, October 1, 2017.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Family members comfort each other after they were unable to vote in the referendum after Spanish police closed their polling station on Sunday, October 1, 2017 in Sant Julia de Ramis, Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People wait at the doors of the Moises Broggi school to start voting during the Catalan independence referendum in Barcelona, Spain on Sunday, October 1, 2017.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Independence supporters gather in Barcelona after Catalonia's separatist government held a referendum to decide if the region should split from Spain late Sunday, October 1. The Catalan government claimed victory early Monday, after pushing forward with the vote despite Spain's Constitutional Court declaring it illegal.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A member of the Catalan National Assembly cries at the end of the voting day on October 1.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish riot police remove fences thrown at them as they try to prevent people from voting in Barcelona, Spain, on Sunday, October 1.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-referendum supporters clash with members of the Spanish National Police after police tried to enter a polling station to retrieve ballot boxes.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-referendum supporters lock a gate to a polling station as members of the Spanish National Police arrive to control the area during voting at the Escola Industrial of Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish National Police clash with pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-independence supporters cover a mock ballot box with Estelada Catalan flags in Pamplona, northern Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish National Police clash with pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People play games in a square where a giant pro-independence Estelada Catalan flag is displayed.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman celebrates after voting at a polling station in Barcelona on October 1.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People help a man injured by a rubber bullet fired by Spanish police officers outside the Ramon Llull polling station in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-referendum supporters embrace as Spanish National Police try to remove them from the Ramon Llull school in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People queue to vote at a school in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman casts her vote at a polling station in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish riot police shoot rubber bullets at people trying to reach a voting site designated by the Catalan government in Barcelona. The deputy mayor of Barcelona said police fired rubber bullets at people as they attempted to vote in the referendum, which Spain's top court has declared illegal. There were reports that police in Girona, Spain, used batons.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A protestor shouts as he holds a Catalan flag during a demonstration called by far-right groups in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, center, arrives to inspect a sports hall as police interve in Girona, Spain. Puigdemont condemned "indiscriminate aggression" against peaceful voters.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A Spanish riot police officer swings a club against would-be voters near a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Riot police drag a member of the public away from a school being used as a polling station. Regional authorities said 337 people were injured after Madrid deployed the national police force to close down polling stations. Catalan emergency services confirmed the number to CNN.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People clash with Spanish National Police outside the Ramon Llull school, designated as a polling station by the Catalan government in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, October 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People try to offer flowers to a civil guard at the entrance of a sports center, assigned to be a referendum polling station by the Catalan government in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, October 1, 2017.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People attend a demonstration against a referendum on independence for Catalonia on Sunday, October 1, 2017 in Madrid, Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman casts her vote in a ballot at a polling station in Barcelona, on Sunday, October 01, 2017, during a referendum on independence for Catalonia.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Members of Spain's national police force clear people from a polling station where Catalan President Carles Puigdemont had been expected to vote, in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, October 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters said they would not comply with a police order to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman celebrates outside a polling station after casting her vote in Barcelona, on October 01, 2017, in a referendum on independence for Catalonia.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Civil guards clear people away from the entrance of a sports center, designated a polling station by the Catalan government and where Catalan President Carles Puigdemont had been expected to vote, in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, October 1, 2017.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Family members comfort each other after they were unable to vote in the referendum after Spanish police closed their polling station on Sunday, October 1, 2017 in Sant Julia de Ramis, Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People wait at the doors of the Moises Broggi school to start voting during the Catalan independence referendum in Barcelona, Spain on Sunday, October 1, 2017.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Independence supporters gather in Barcelona after Catalonia's separatist government held a referendum to decide if the region should split from Spain late Sunday, October 1. The Catalan government claimed victory early Monday, after pushing forward with the vote despite Spain's Constitutional Court declaring it illegal.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A member of the Catalan National Assembly cries at the end of the voting day on October 1.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish riot police remove fences thrown at them as they try to prevent people from voting in Barcelona, Spain, on Sunday, October 1.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-referendum supporters clash with members of the Spanish National Police after police tried to enter a polling station to retrieve ballot boxes.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-referendum supporters lock a gate to a polling station as members of the Spanish National Police arrive to control the area during voting at the Escola Industrial of Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish National Police clash with pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-independence supporters cover a mock ballot box with Estelada Catalan flags in Pamplona, northern Spain.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Spanish National Police clash with pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People play games in a square where a giant pro-independence Estelada Catalan flag is displayed.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman celebrates after voting at a polling station in Barcelona on October 1.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People help a man injured by a rubber bullet fired by Spanish police officers outside the Ramon Llull polling station in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
Pro-referendum supporters embrace as Spanish National Police try to remove them from the Ramon Llull school in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
People queue to vote at a school in Barcelona.
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Photos: Amid violent crackdowns at the polls, Catalans vote to split from Spain
A woman casts her vote at a polling station in Barcelona.
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A disputed referendum
In scenes that reverberated across Europe, riot police smashed their way into some polling locations and dragged away voters attempting to take part in the referendum. Regional officials said more than 800 people were injured and 400 polling stations were closed in the crackdown. The Spanish Interior Ministry said 92 of about 2,300 polling stations were closed.
Shortly after voting ended, Spain's Prime Minister said most Catalans were fooled into participating in an illegal vote. Rajoy, who was elected in part on a pledge to maintain national unity and quash the secession movement, stood by the government's intervention.
Spanish police fired rubber bullets outside a polling station in Barcelona on Sunday.
"The referendum that wanted to liquidate our constitution and separate a part of our country with no regards to the opinion of the whole nation did not come into existence," he said. "We showed that our democratic state has the means to protect itself from such a serious attack as the one this illegal referendum represented."
Catalan President Carles Puigdemont called the violence a "shameful page" in the country's history. He insisted Catalans "won the right to an independent state" in the face of oppression.
"We have won the right to be heard, to be respected, and to be recognized," he said late Sunday, before preliminary tallies were announced.
"Today, after a day weighed down by the dignity of the millions of people that made it possible today, Catalonia has gained its sovereignty and full respect."
Independence supporters gather in Barcelona's Plaza Catalonia Sunday night.
How we got here
The vote risks plunging the country into one of its worst political crises since the end of Gen. Francisco Franco's dictatorship in 1975.
Catalan nationalists argue the region is a separate nation with its own history, culture and language, and that it should have increased fiscal independence.
A wealthy region in Spain's northeast, Catalonia has its own regional government. The Generalitat has considerable powers over healthcare, education and tax collection. But the region pays taxes to Madrid, and pro-independence politicians have complained that its revenues subsidize other parts of Spain at an unfair cost to Catalonia.
The long-running dispute goes back to the brutal years under Franco, whose dictatorial regime repressed Catalonia's earlier limited autonomy. It wasn't until 1979, four years after his death, that the region gained full autonomy.
In 2006, the Spanish government backed Catalonia's calls for greater powers granting nation status and financial control to the region. Four years later, that status was rescinded by the Constitutional Court, which ruled that while Catalan is a "nationality," Catalonia is not a nation itself.
People await the referendum's result on Sunday in Barcelona.
Catalonia's campaign to break away has been gaining momentum since 2010, when Spain's economy plunged during the financial crisis. Catalonia held a symbolic poll in 2014, in which 80% of voters backed complete secession -- but only 32% of the electorate turned out.
The national government has ardently resisted separation. In the runup to the vote, national authorities seized ballot papers, voter lists and campaign material. Thousands of extra national police were sent to the region and high-ranking Catalan officials involved in organizing the referendum were arrested.
CNN's Isa Soares and Vasco Cotovio reported from Barcelona and Emanuella Grinberg wrote this story in Atlanta. CNN's Julia Jones, Hilary Clarke and Lauren Said-Moorhouse contributed to this report.
News Courtesy: www.cnn.com
