An article on the Catalan independence movement will appear in Junior Scholastic's November 20 issue. 

In a major escalation of Spain’s territorial conflict, lawmakers in Catalonia on Friday declared the region’s independence. Almost immediately the Spanish Senate voted to authorize the central government to take direct control of Catalonia and remove its leaders. The showdown represents Spain's greatest constitutional crisis since the country embraced democracy in 1978.

Undeterred by the central government’s threat to seize control of Catalonia, separatists in the region’s parliament passed a resolution to “create a Catalan republic as an independent state.” In protest, lawmakers opposed to independence walked out of the chamber before the vote.

In a speech on Friday before the Spanish Senate vote, Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy had said he had “no alternative” because the Catalan leader, Carles Puigdemont, and his separatist cabinet had pursued an illegal and unilateral path that was “contrary to the normal behavior in any democratic country like ours.”

Catalonia is one of Spain’s 17 autonomous regions and home to 7.5 million people—about 16 percent of the country’s total population. The region has its own language (Catalan), culture, and history dating back more than 1,000 years. Many Catalans have long considered their region to be separate from Spain.

The modern fight for Catalan independence began to gain strength after the 1975 death of Spain’s longtime dictator, Francisco Franco. During his nearly 40-year reign, Franco took away much of Catalonia’s autonomy and suppressed the region’s culture. He outlawed the Catalan language, forced parents to choose Spanish names for their children, and executed or imprisoned thousands of people in an attempt to clamp down on opponents.

Over time, the oppression led to a renewed sense of Catalan nationalism and intensified Catalans’ desire for independence.

The current crisis has been brewing for several months. In early September, Catalonia’s regional government—which is controlled by those who favor independence—voted to hold a referendum on independence on October 1. The Spanish government said such a referendum would be illegal, but Catalan leaders moved ahead with the plan regardless.

About 90 percent of those who went to the polls on October 1 voted for independence. But experts say many Catalans who oppose independence boycotted the referendum. Turnout was about 43 percent. The referendum was marred by clashes between the Spanish national police and Catalan citizens that left hundreds injured, including police officers.

Puigdemont, the Catalan leader, had come close on Thursday to calling for early regional elections, which might have steered the country away from crisis. But he dropped the idea and instead told Catalonia’s parliament that it would decide on independence the next day.

Not all Catalan lawmakers favor independence. Puigdemont leads a fragile separatist coalition that has 72 of the Catalan parliament’s 135 seats.

Carlos Carrizo, a Catalan lawmaker who opposes secession, told Puigdemont and separatist lawmakers that, far from creating a new Catalan republic, “you will go down in history for having fractured Catalonia and for sinking the institutions of Catalonia.”