Spanish govt. won’t recognize Catalan referendum: Analyst

A political analyst says the Spanish government will not recognize a planned referendum on independence in Spain’s Catalonia region.

Dennis Etler, a professor of Anthropology at the Cabrillo College, made the remarks during an interview with Press TV on Saturday.

Comparing the situation in Catalonia with that in eastern Ukraine, Etler said that the referendum in the Spanish region would be “chastised” just like the recent votes were criticized across the pro-Russia areas in Ukraine’s restive east.

The commentator further stressed that a potential declaration of independence by Catalonians is set to damage the Spanish economy and will cause serious damage to the central government in Madrid.

Many Catalans believe their economy would be more prosperous on its own, complaining that a high portion of their taxes goes to the central government in Madrid.

Etler saidthere is a huge wave of national sentiment in Catalonians as they believe that their natural resources are being used for elsewhere.

On November 4, Spain’s Constitutional Court ordered the Catalan government to suspend the referendum, but Catalan officials have vowed to go ahead as scheduled.

Catalans maintain that the referendum, which they call a “citizen participation process,” is legal. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, however, argues that Catalonia’s independence bid disrespects “democratic conditions.”

A “yes” vote in the symbolic referendum will not automatically lead to the secession of the region, but will only give the Catalan president the mandate to negotiate independence with the Spanish administration.