Catalonia's leader says Spanish king ignored Catalans

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By urging the region to end its bid for independence, Spain's King Felipe VI has "deliberately [ignored] millions of Catalans" according to Catalonia's regional president.

"The king has adopted the [national] government's position and policies, which have been disastrous with regard to Catalonia. He is deliberately ignoring millions of Catalans," Carles Puigdemont said in a televised address.

Catalonia's regional government on Wednesday mulled when to declare the region's independence from Spain, with some lawmakers saying it would happen Monday.

In his statement, Catalan President Puigdemont again urged the government to accept mediation in the political deadlock between Spain's authorities and the leaders of the wealthy northeastern region of some 7.5 million.

Catalan Regional President Carles Puigdemont gestures as he makes a statement at Generalitat Palace in Barcelona, Spain, October 4, 2017. /Catalan Government Photo via Reuters

Politicians in other parts of Spain, and a handful of civil groups, have offered to try to bridge the divide between the two sides, but Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says no dialogue can take place outside of the country's constitution, which doesn't include provisions for a region to secede.

Puigdemont 'outside of the law for way too long'

"Mr. Puigdemont has been outside of the law for way too long," Rajoy's deputy, Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, said, responding to the remarks Puigdemont made in a televised address late on Wednesday.

European leaders have sided with Spain and, amid fears that Catalonia's secession bid could find echoes elsewhere on the continent, the European Union has so far refused to step in.

European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans stressed on Wednesday the need for Spain and Catalonia to talk with each other, but said there is a "general consensus that regional government of Catalonia has chosen to ignore the law when organizing the referendum."

Members of the European Parliament, several holding a Catalonia flag (L), debate the ongoing situation in Catalonia, three days after the banned referendum on a split from Spain, in Strasbourg, France, October 4, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Puigdemont will address the regional parliament Monday to review the disputed vote, a session that his parliamentary supporters in the radical CUP group say they will consider the independence declaration.

"We held the referendum amid unprecedented repression and in the following days we will show our best face to apply the results of the referendum," Puigdemont said on Wednesday.

His televised address mirrored a speech 24 hours earlier by Spanish King Felipe VI.

King 'has disappointed many Catalans'

Accusing him of following Rajoy's "catastrophic" policies toward Catalonia, Puigdemont addressed the king directly, telling him: "You have disappointed many Catalans."

Rajoy's conservative government has declared the referendum illegal and invalid, and pledged to respond with "all necessary measures" to counter Catalan defiance, without revealing how it intends to do so.

A Catalonian, Spanish and European flag fly on the roof of the Bank of Spain, three days after the banned independence referendum in Barcelona, Spain October 4, 2017. /Reuters Photo‍

The referendum became a crisis in Spain on Sunday when some 900 people needed medical attention after police cracked down to try to prevent the vote. Over 400 police also had bruises. On Tuesday, huge crowds held street protests in Catalonia, and unions staged a strike to protest the police's actions.

In a nationally televised address Tuesday night, King Felipe VI came out strongly against Catalan authorities, criticizing their "irresponsible conduct." The Spanish state, he went on, needed to ensure constitutional order and the rule of law in Catalonia, the richest region of Spain.

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Source(s): AP ,AFP