00:49Spain: Catalans hold huge rally backing early elections and independence push
Thousands of Catalans rallied at in Barcelona, Tuesday, in support of the call for early elections on 27 September as part of a push for the state's independence from Spain.
Catalans, organised by the pro-independence platform 'Now is the Time', waved their state's flag and chanted in support of the snap elections, which many see as a proxy for the Spanish state's push for independence.
The rally comes after Catalan leader Artur Mas announced surprise parliamentary elections on Monday for September 27, promising voters the region will target full independence if pro-independence parties secure a majority. The vote, described by Mas as "self-defence" against the central government, will come just before the Spanish general election at the end of the year.
The campaigning process will kick off on Catalan's national day, September 11, which in the last three years has seen hundreds of thousands of Catalans hit the streets for pro-independence rallies.
00:49Thousands of Catalans rallied at in Barcelona, Tuesday, in support of the call for early elections on 27 September as part of a push for the state's independence from Spain.
Catalans, organised by the pro-independence platform 'Now is the Time', waved their state's flag and chanted in support of the snap elections, which many see as a proxy for the Spanish state's push for independence.
The rally comes after Catalan leader Artur Mas announced surprise parliamentary elections on Monday for September 27, promising voters the region will target full independence if pro-independence parties secure a majority. The vote, described by Mas as "self-defence" against the central government, will come just before the Spanish general election at the end of the year.
The campaigning process will kick off on Catalan's national day, September 11, which in the last three years has seen hundreds of thousands of Catalans hit the streets for pro-independence rallies.