MADRID (Sputnik) — On Sunday, Spain's northwestern autonomous region of Catalonia held an independence referendum despite the fact that the vote had been previously ruled illegal by the Spanish Constitutional Court.
“We should safeguard rights and freedoms of all the Spanish citizens who have been trampled by the Generalitat [Catalan government],” Santamaria told a press conference, adding that 400 Spanish police and Civil Guard officers had been injured during the clashes.
She also accused the Catalan authorities of attempting to hinder the rule of law and force the region’s residents to act against their own will.
“They want to make Catalonia a place without law, it should not be allowed nor in Spain, neither in the European Union … The Catalans feel threatened, feel forced to make certain decisions against their will, and all of this is the Catalan authorities’ fault,” Santamaria stressed.
Spanish Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido spoke up for the security forces officers and noted their professionalism during the clashes in Catalonia on the voting day.
The minister also stressed that the events in Catalonia were “unacceptable” and the government would take legal retaliatory measures “as it is provided for in a state governed by the rule of law.” He also promised that the Interior Ministry would take all the necessary steps to protect security forces officers from actions aimed at them.
According to the Catalan authorities, over 90 percent of more than 2.26 million voters who took part in the referendum supported independence.
