World

Catalan separatists struggle for momentum amid legal crackdown

The separatists aiming to lead a Catalan breakaway from the rest of Spain next month are losing momentum as a legal offensive against their plans for an illegal referendum deters moderates.

24.09.2017

(Bloomberg) The separatists aiming to lead a Catalan breakaway from the rest of Spain next month are losing momentum as a legal offensive against their plans for an illegal referendum deters moderates.

An annual demonstration in the regional capital Barcelona, a rallying point for separatists, failed to match the attendance of recent years after Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy warned that anyone helping to stage the ballot set for October 1 risks criminal prosecution.