The Catalonia government on Monday said that officials in the autonomous region would not follow orders from the Spanish government if it tried to impose direct rule, BBC reported. On Saturday, the Spanish government decided to sack Catalonia’s leadership and conduct a fresh election in the region, after the regional government held an independence referendum.
The Spanish government was acting against the will of Catalans, Catalonia Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Raul Romeva said. He also blamed the European Union for not intervening in the situation. “How can the European Union live with that situation [an imposition of direct rule from Spain],” Romeva asked. “How can the European Union’s democracy survive and how can they be credible if they allow this to happen?”
“Because what I can tell you is that the people and the institutions in Catalonia will not let this happen,” Romeva added. The Catalan Parliament will meet on October 26 to formulate its response to Spain’s decision to impose direct rule. The Spanish Senate is set to vote on the government’s proposal on October 27.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy had said the Catalan economy, which accounts for a fifth of Spain’s economy, was in a poor condition because of the independence referendum, and that Spain’s direct rule over Catalonia, including its Parliament, police and finance, would not last for more than six months.
But Catalonia Regional President Charles Puigdemont said the people of Catalonia cannot accept the “illegal” measures taken by the Spanish government and called on the regional Parliament to act against them.
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