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AP/Press Association Images

Catalonia votes for independence, Spain calls the vote "useless"

Spain said the vote was “fruitless and useless”.

CATLONIA’S NATIONALIST GOVERNMENT vowed to step up its secession drive after over two million people voted in a symbolic independence referendum which Spain’s central government dismissed it as “useless”.

Catalan government head Artur Mas called the vote, not sanctioned by Madrid, “a total success” after a large majority of those who took part supported independence.

The vote “made it very clear that we want to govern ourselves,” he said.

In Barcelona and other cities voters of all ages lined up around the block, some applauding, as polling stations opened after weeks of tense legal wrangling with Spanish authorities.

Voters were asked for their response to two questions. The first was: “Do you want Catalonia to be a state?”. If answered affirmatively, the ballot paper posed a second question: “Do you want that state to be independent?”.

Partial results showed 80.7% of the roughly two million people who took part in the vote voted yes to both questions while just over 10% voted yes for the first question and no for the second, Catalan vice president Joana Ortega told a news conference. About 4.5% voted no to both questions.

There was no official electoral roll but the regional government said 5.4 million Catalans and resident foreigners aged 16 were eligible to vote in the referendum which was organised by thousands of volunteers.

“People believed that they could decide their future and they turned out en masse,” said Xavier Bardolet, 44, as he voted in the town of Sant Pere de Torello about 90 kilometres (50 miles) north of Barcelona.

The poll was held in the face of fierce opposition from the Spanish government, and despite a constitutional court ruling to suspend the exercise.

‘Fruitless and useless’

Spanish Justice Minister Rafael Catala dismissed the vote as “fruitless and useless”.

“The government considers this to be a day of political propaganda organised by pro-independence forces and devoid of any kind of democratic validity,” he said in a statement.

State prosecutors were continuing to investigate whether Catalan authorities breached court injunctions by opening polling stations in schools and other public buildings to “assess the existence of criminal liability”, he added.

Catalan leaders admit the vote has no direct legal consequences, but hope the high turnout will bolster their political case with both Madrid and other European governments.

Mas said his government would now push to hold an official referendum and would seek international support to help convince the Spanish government to let it go ahead.

“We deserve to vote in a legal and binding referendum and this is what we are going to try to do,” he added.

- © AFP 2014

Read: Catalonia will vote today on whether to break away from Spain*

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    Mute Dave Collins
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    Jun 18th 2020, 1:17 PM

    RIP, she did a lot of good work as Irish ambassador I seem to remember..

    414
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    Mute Joby Redmond
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    Jun 18th 2020, 2:17 PM

    Lovely woman who loved Ireland. She pushed and got visa restrictions for Irish people lifted. And she appears in the film Micheal Collins. RIP Jean.

    222
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    Mute Declan Leonard
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    Jun 18th 2020, 2:18 PM

    A wonderful woman by all accounts. My father used to drive her about when she was here.

    181
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    Mute Joan Doyle
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    Jun 18th 2020, 2:32 PM

    What an an amazing group of siblings

    147
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    Mute Wheresmyjumper
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:20 PM

    @Joan Doyle: ya especially Ted

    18
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    Mute Wheresmyjumper
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    Jun 18th 2020, 6:26 PM

    @Wheresmyjumper: well other than that girl he left for dead

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    Mute James Walsh
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    Jun 18th 2020, 6:50 PM

    @Wheresmyjumper: Give it up ya gobsh!te, the Kennedys have always been friends of Ireland and take pride in their Irish heritage.

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    Mute Wheresmyjumper
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    Jun 18th 2020, 7:03 PM

    @James Walsh: so if someone takes pride in their Irish Heritage, they can drive a car drunk into the sea, leave a woman in car, take a boat to another town, hide for a night and then call for help? Good to know

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    Mute Cowboy Paddy
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    Jun 18th 2020, 7:45 PM

    @Wheresmyjumper:
    No… But bringing up her brother’s bad choice over 50 years ago during the announcement of her death takes a special kind of thinking…

    You could talk about all the wonderful things her family did

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    Mute Wheresmyjumper
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    Jun 18th 2020, 8:16 PM

    @Cowboy Paddy: i didn’t bring him up another poster did, he got away lightly, more than just a bad choice his family connections got him off murder

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    Mute Cowboy Paddy
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    Jun 18th 2020, 11:52 PM

    @Wheresmyjumper:
    Have you any proof of murder?

    If you do why do with hold it from the Police all this time?

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    Mute Teresa Ryan
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    Jun 19th 2020, 5:41 PM

    @James Walsh: He still left a woman to drown. There’s no getting away from that.

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    Mute James Walsh
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    Jun 19th 2020, 9:05 PM

    @Teresa Ryan: I was talking about the Kennedy family in general, and not Ted in particular.

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    Mute Garreth Byrne
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    Jun 18th 2020, 2:49 PM

    She was one of the good Kennedys. She served her society well. She was a friend of the old country. R.I.P.

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    Mute tuco
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    Jun 18th 2020, 3:05 PM

    Rip to a great woman.she really held Ireland in her heart.the last bloodline of the famous Kennedy dynasty

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    Mute Emer Caffrey
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    Jun 18th 2020, 3:32 PM

    Ah, such a lovely woman, rest in peace

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    Mute Sylvia O'Regan
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    Jun 18th 2020, 2:20 PM

    She had an interesting life. RIP.

    That being said, I hope that these political dynasties are coming to an end. Power shouldn’t be concentrated.

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    Mute Ben Keohane
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:15 PM

    @Sylvia O’Regan: not sure about the comment about dynasties. Her whole family were devoted to politics.

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    Mute John Caplis
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    Jun 18th 2020, 7:31 PM

    @Ben Keohane: And unfortunately they paid dearly for it. Both Jack and Bobby Kennedy helped to save the world from nuclear war during the Cuban Missiles Crisis. I wonder how the current president would have handled it?

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    Mute Cowboy Paddy
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    Jun 18th 2020, 7:38 PM

    @Sylvia O’Regan:
    Actually Jean was not a politician and never ran in a race in her life.

    She was diplomat and done a great service for Ireland and for that we can be forever thankful. This help to Ireland from the Kennedy’s was in a long line of help her family gave to Ireland .

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    Mute John Waters
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:42 PM

    A strong lady driven by ambition and the will to help people of all race or religion.Did great work for disabled and disadvantaged children.Has left
    a wonderful legacy like here brothers before her .You have earned your rest
    R.IP.

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    Mute Raymond Power
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:20 PM

    According to the embassy jfk visited Ireland “fifty five years ago” I’ll just leave that here…

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    Mute Tony Lyons
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:24 PM

    @Raymond Power: after he died very good

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    Mute Martina Lowe
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:35 PM

    A great lady I had da pleasure of meeting

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    Mute Martina Lowe
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:31 PM

    A lovely lady I had da pleasure of meeting her in 1994 in Tullamore was great to have met 1 of da famous Kennedy clan

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    Mute Martina Lowe
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    Jun 18th 2020, 5:34 PM

    A lovely lady I had da pleasure of meeting her in 1994 in Tullamore was great to have met 1 of da famous Kennedy clan

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