Spain rejects Catalonia independence referendum

Madrid [Spain], April 13: Spain government has rejected a new proposal by the Catalonia region to hold an independence referendum. "With Prime Minister [Pedro] Sanchez there will be no referendum on self-determination in Catalonia," Finance Minister María Jesús Montero told journalists in Madrid on Wednesday.
Montero stressed that the Catalan government of PM Pere Aragones must abide by Spain's constitution. Aragones announced in Barcelona that a proposal "to solve the basic Catalan problem" would be drawn up in consultation with various sectors of society and be presented to Madrid by early 2024 at the latest. The goal, Aragones said, is to hold a referendum similar to the 1995 vote in Canada's Quebec province - where voters narrowly rejected independence. "No one is satisfied with the deadlock in Catalonia," said Aragones. "The conflict continues." The announcement was criticized not just in Madrid but also by some pro-independence activists in Catalonia, albeit for different reasons.
Unlike the left-wing ERC party of Aragones, other separatists, such as the free-market conservative Together for Catalonia (JuntsXCat), want to achieve independence without Madrid agreeing to a referendum. After an illegal independence referendum and a subsequent decision to secede from Spain in 2017 autumn, Catalonia was placed under receivership by the central government.
Source: Qatar Tribune