Madrid slams Catalan leader for 'encouraging radicals'

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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Tuesday spoke out against Catalonia's separatist leader Quim Torra for "encouraging radicals" a day after clashes erupted in Barcelona and other parts of Catalonia on the anniversary of a banned independence referendum.

"President Torra must abide by his responsibilities and not endanger political normalization by encouraging radicals to lay siege to institutions which represent all Catalans," Sanchez said in a tweet in his first reaction to the sensitive anniversary. "Violence isn't the way forward."

President of Catalonia's regional government Quim Torra greets pro-independence protesters in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona in Catalonia, Spain, October 1, 2018. /VCG Photo

Hundreds of pro-independence protesters knocked down barriers at the entrance of the regional parliament late Monday evening, provoking clashes with police. Some radical activists, many of them hooded, cut roads and railway lines. Torra had applauded their form of street pressure earlier in the day.

Even former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, who is in self-exile in Belgium after being sacked by then Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy last year, condemned the violence, stressing that any struggle for independence should take place "in a peaceful way" with activists' faces "uncovered."

Catalonia's independence referendum on October 1, 2017 was marred by a violent police crackdown on polling stations. Madrid imposed direct rule on the region after it unilaterally declared independence on October 27.

Protesters burn garbage from trash containers in Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain, October 1, 2018. /VCG Photo

Police officers and protesters face off in Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain, October 1, 2018. /VCG Photo

Elections later returned a regional government favoring a split with Spain through a party supporting union won most votes.

Polls in Catalonia show a relatively even split between those who favor of remaining in Spain and those wanting to secede.

Sanchez has said he favors dialogue on the region's future but has ruled out any moves towards independence.

(With inputs from agencies)

(Cover: Protesters try to break a security barrier as they gather in front of the Spanish government's local office in Girona in Catalonia, Spain, October 1, 2018. /VCG Photo)