Catalonian Determined To Forward On Referendum.
Leaders in Catalonia say they are determined to go ahead with a vote on independence that Madrid calls illegal and which has thrust Spain into its most dramatic political crisis for decades.
The central government in Madrid, which has sent thousands of police reinforcements to the northeastern region to prevent people from voting on Sunday, meanwhile insisted on Friday the referendum would not happen.
Raul Romeva, Catalonia's foreign affairs chief, maintained that it is "impossible to stop" the poll, which he insisted is not illegal.
He called on the Spanish government to allow Catalan voters to "solve the situation by democracy".
Courts have ordered police to cordon off schools scheduled to be used as ballot stations.
In a bid to keep them open, parents have called for a mass school sleepover this weekend, with tents and sleeping bags, free paella and cinema. Organisers said 60,000 had already registered to participate.
Separatists have called on people to turn out at the polling stations in a mass statement of "peaceful resistance", even if they are prevented from voting.
"I don't believe there will be anyone who will use violence or who will want to provoke violence that will tarnish the irreproachable image of the Catalan independence movement as pacifist," said Catalan President Carles Puigdemont.
Madrid, which claims the authority of a constitution that declares the country to be indivisible, remained staunchly opposed to the vote.
"I insist that there will be no referendum on October 1," Mendez de Vigo, central government spokesman, told a news conference following the weekly cabinet meeting, reiterating that the vote was illegal.
Leaders in Catalonia say they are determined to go ahead with a vote on independence that Madrid calls illegal and which has thrust Spain into its most dramatic political crisis for decades.
The central government in Madrid, which has sent thousands of police reinforcements to the northeastern region to prevent people from voting on Sunday, meanwhile insisted on Friday the referendum would not happen.
Raul Romeva, Catalonia's foreign affairs chief, maintained that it is "impossible to stop" the poll, which he insisted is not illegal.
He called on the Spanish government to allow Catalan voters to "solve the situation by democracy".
Courts have ordered police to cordon off schools scheduled to be used as ballot stations.
In a bid to keep them open, parents have called for a mass school sleepover this weekend, with tents and sleeping bags, free paella and cinema. Organisers said 60,000 had already registered to participate.
Separatists have called on people to turn out at the polling stations in a mass statement of "peaceful resistance", even if they are prevented from voting.
"I don't believe there will be anyone who will use violence or who will want to provoke violence that will tarnish the irreproachable image of the Catalan independence movement as pacifist," said Catalan President Carles Puigdemont.
Madrid, which claims the authority of a constitution that declares the country to be indivisible, remained staunchly opposed to the vote.
"I insist that there will be no referendum on October 1," Mendez de Vigo, central government spokesman, told a news conference following the weekly cabinet meeting, reiterating that the vote was illegal.
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