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by Daniel Bosque with Patrick Galey in Madrid Agence France Presse BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Catalan leaders signed a declaration of independence from Spain on Tuesday but immediately put it on hold and called for talks with Madrid on the country’s worst political crisis in decades. As Spain headed into the unknown, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was to chair an emergency cabinet meeting early Wednesday to discuss the central government’s response. In a speech to […]
by Adrien Vicente and Diego Urdaneta Agence France-Presse BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — When she heard Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont utter the word “independence” Merce shed tears of emotion — whereas Sergio scowled with disdain. Puigdemont’s Barcelona speech whipped up plenty of fervor among both supporters and rivals, but elation was mixed with confusion. There was joy among thousands of Puigdemont backers, who stood draped in Catalan flags at the foot of Barcelona’s triumphal arch, as they followed his […]
BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Spain’s central government representative in Catalonia apologised Friday on behalf of police to people injured when officers tried to stop them voting in the region’s independence vote. “I can do nothing but regret it, apologise on behalf of the officers who intervened,” Enric Millo, the central government representative in Catalonia, said in a television interview.
BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has put off until Tuesday a session in the regional parliament at which some leaders have called for an independence declaration, a regional government spokesman said Friday. “Puigdemont has requested to appear before parliament on Tuesday to discuss the current political situation,” a regional government spokesman said. The announcement comes a day after Spain’s Constitutional Court ordered the suspension of the session initially scheduled for Monday.
by Marianne Barriaux Agence France-Presse BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Asuncion Garcia sits on a bench in Barcelona anxiously reading a newspaper. She points to a graphic of the tumbling share price of CaixaBank, the biggest bank in Catalonia, a region which is threatening to split from Spain. “I have savings in CaixaBank, the little that I have saved up,” says the 68-year-old, originally from Leon in northwestern Spain but resident in Catalonia for over 50 years. She is […]
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — The Madrid stock market rebounded Thursday as the Spanish government moved to block a move by Catalonia to declare independence, while Wall Street stocks surged once again to fresh records ahead of key US jobs data. The Spanish capital’s benchmark IBEX 35 shares index jumped 2.5 percent, largely offsetting the previous day’s 3.0-percent slump. Trade was more muted elsewhere in Europe, with Frankfurt dipping, while Paris and London posted […]
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Spain’s Constitutional Court on Thursday ordered the suspension of a planned session in Catalonia’s parliament at which separatist leaders have called for the region to declare independence. Judges “ordered the suspension of the plenary that has been called for Monday in the (Catalan) parliament” while it hears an appeal lodged against it, a spokeswoman said, as the court confirmed the ruling in a written statement.
by Marianne Barriaux with Roland Lloyd Parry in Madrid Agence France-Presse BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) – Spain’s government defiantly rejected calls for mediation Wednesday over Catalonia’s push for independence, which the country’s king warned was endangering national stability. As the European Union urged dialogue to ease the standoff between separatists in the northeastern region and Madrid, Catalan leaders said they could unilaterally declare independence as early as Monday. The tone of the crisis sharpened with Catalonia’s president denouncing […]
Americans celebrated Independence Day on Tuesday (July 4) with fireworks, acts of gluttony and escapes to the beach, even for people in New Jersey where legislators brokered a last-minute deal to reopen state parks. In keeping with tradition, cities across the country will launch fireworks after dark, perhaps the most emblematic way to commemorate July 4, 1776, when the American colonies’ Declaration of Independence from Britain was adopted. The document enshrines the rights to life, […]
(Eagle News) — Senator Antonio Trillanes IV may face an ethics complaint in the Senate after he issued what his colleague said were “disrespectful and unparliamentary” comments. “Maybe it is high time that we refer to the Senate ethics committee Senator Trillanes’ actions since he is becoming damaging to the institution and becoming damaging to the country,” Senator JV Ejercito said in a statement on Tuesday. Ejercito was referring to Trillanes’ “disrespectful and unparliamentary” comments […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday rejected a call by the Scottish government for a second referendum on independence before Britain leaves the European Union — but did not rule out a vote entirely. “I say now is not the time,” she said, arguing that all of Britain’s energies should be put into the forthcoming Brexit negotiations. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced Monday that she wanted a fresh […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China warned Taiwan that declaring independence would be a “dead end”, state media said Wednesday, after the island’s democratically elected president phoned Donald Trump in a precedent-breaking move. Beijing’s stance of opposing and blocking “Taiwan independence splittism” is “firm and unmovable”, Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman An Fengshan said at a briefing Wednesday, according to state-owned China News. “We have unshakable willpower, ample confidence, and sufficient capability,” he said. “Facts will show […]
