Catalans vote for further autonomy
Catalans have by an overwhelming majority endorsed a new statute of autonomy giving the north eastern region of Spain greater regional powers over income tax, immigration and EU affairs.
At Sunday's (18 June) referendum, 73.90 percent of Catalans voted for the statute taking the region a further step away from Madrid, while 20.76 voted against the plan.
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The result is seen as a victory for Spain's prime minister Jose Luis Zapatero's socialist government which backed the statute, with the opposition conservatives saying it will prompt similar demands from other regions and lead to the break up of Spain.
"It is necessary to congratulate Catalonia, the Catalan citizens and all the other Spaniards", Mr Zapatero said after the vote, according to El Pais.
The "Catalans have spoken clearly," he added, despite a low turnout of 49 percent on the sunny day in Catalonia.
The reformed Catalan statute allows the region to keep a larger share of its income tax and extends Barcelona's control over financial matters, immigration and judicial matters.
Financial power has been a key issue for the Catalan region which accounts for 20 percent of the Spanish economy.
The document also indirectly recognises Catalonia as a "nation" within Spain.
Catalonia's initial autonomy proposal was watered down by the Spanish parliament after hefty debates between the left and the centre right political parties.
Centre-right Partido Popular says the statute goes too far, while the Catalan separatists, ECR, favour outright independence.
The plan even stirred unrest within the military, when ground forces chief Jose Mena was sacked earlier this year for suggesting that the army could intervene to defend the Spanish constitution.
Languages such as Basque and Catalan were banned in Spain during the dictatorship of Francisco Franco, which ended with his death in 1975.