西班牙官员将会见加泰罗尼亚地方领袖

Spanish Officials to Meet on Taking Local Powers from Catalonia

Spain has called for a special cabinet meeting on Saturday that could start a process that would take away local powers from Catalonia.

Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy made the move after Catalonia’s leader wrote that the autonomous¹ area would seek independence unless the two sides began talks.

Catalonia’s leader Carles Puigdemont sent a letter to the Spanish prime minister shortly before a time limit for clarifying his position on secession.

“If the State Government persists in blocking dialogue and the repression² continues, the Parliament of Catalonia will proceed, if deemed appropriate, to vote on the formal declaration of independence,” he wrote.

Rajoy’s office answered by announcing a special cabinet meeting that would discuss putting Article 155 of Spain’s constitution into effect.

A government statement said, the meeting will “approve the measures that will be sent to the Senate to protect the general interests of all Spaniards.”

The law gives Spain’s government the power to take away some or all of the area’s powers of self-rule. The article has never been used since Spain approved its democratic constitution in 1978.

Disputed independence vote

Voters in Catalonia approved independence in a disputed referendum held on October 1 called for by the Catalan leader. However, opponents said they would boycott³ the vote and fewer than half of voters took part.

The government in Madrid considered the referendum an illegal act and sent police to block voting. Hundreds of people were injured in clashes with police. The government added that many police officers also were injured.

Last week, Puigdemont appeared to declare independence in a speech to parliament. However, he suspended official steps for a parliamentary vote. Instead, he called for talks on the issue.

Wanting clarification on the question of secession, Rajoy’s government asked the Catalan leader to answer “yes” or “no” by Monday. The government also gave Puigdemont until Thursday to pull back from an independence claim.

In addition, the government said it would delay Article 155 if the Catalan separatist leader called for immediate⁴ elections in Catalonia to “reestablish legal order.”

However, Catalan officials have not accepted that request.

Europe watching closely

At a meeting of European Union leaders, German Chancellor⁵ Angela Merkel said the EU was watching events closely.

“We hope that there will be solutions that can be found on the basis of the Spanish constitution,” she said.

French President Emanuel Macron called for discussions of the crisis. He also has expressed support for Rajoy and called for “unity” at the EU meeting.

However, some European leaders oppose formal discussions of the situation. They say it is an internal issue for Spain.

Catalonia is one of 17 autonomous areas in Spain. The area has its own parliament and president. It also represents about one fifth of Spain’s economy and one seventh of its population. The city of Barcelona, the second largest in Spain, is an important center of technology, industry and tourism.

The area has a history of seeking independence for hundreds of years and carried out a referendum in 2014.

Andrew Dowling is an expert in Catalan history at Cardiff University in Wales. He said an independence declaration by Catalonia would only be symbolic⁶ without control over government institutions and borders.

He said Catalonia might already have seen the economic results of the dispute.

Spain’s Association of Commercial Registers says 700 companies have moved their registration⁷ addresses out of the region. They include Catalan banks and large to medium-sized businesses.

I’m Jill Robbins.

I'm Mario Ritter.

Words in This Story

autonomous –adj. have elements of self-rule, acting⁸ separately

secession –n. to withdraw from a nation or state

referendum –n. a vote on a single issue or law by the public

clarification –n. the process of explaining for better understanding

internal –adj. taking place inside

symbolic –adj. something that may serve as a sign, but has no real effect

1 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

2 repression   

n.镇压，抑制，抑压

参考例句：

• The repression of your true feelings is harmful to your health.压抑你的真实感情有害健康。
• This touched off a new storm against violent repression.这引起了反对暴力镇压的新风暴。

3 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

4 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

5 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

6 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

7 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

8 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。