Catalan Parliament declares independence

Catalan Parliament has declared independence. In an historic plenary session after weeks of tensions with the Spanish government, and before the Senate votes on the suspension of self-rule, Catalan MPs passed a resolution that makes effective the electoral mandate of the October 1referendum. “We hereby constitute the Catalan Republic as an independent, sovereign, legal, democratic, socially-conscious state”, reads the declaration. Independence has been declared at 3.25pm with 70 votes in favor, 10 against and 2 abstentions.

The text includes not only the declaration, but also some measures for the Catalan government to enforce in order to make the new state effective immediately. For instance, “establishing the regulations that define the procedure to acquire Catalan nationality” and “presenting the necessary decrees for issuing Catalan nationality”. The motion also asks the government to agree on a dual nationality treaty with Spain and to seek the recognition of the Catalan Republic from “all countries and institutions.”