Spain's Catalonia region calls for independence vote
Catalonia leader Artur Mas signed a decree calling for an independence vote on Saturday, directly defying Spain's central government in Madrid.
"Catalonia wants to decide pacifically and democratically its political future," Mas said. "Nobody should fear that somebody expresses his opinion by placing a vote in a ballot box."
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The call for a vote comes in the wake of Scotland's independence referendum earlier this month. Voters chose to remain part of the United Kingdom, but Mas says the exercise was "a great lesson in democracy."
Spain's prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, swiftly panned the referendum in a statement made by his deputy prime minister, saying any vote held would be "unconstitutional."
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