Interview by Pablo Castaño Tierno

On Friday, after a prolonged standoff with the Spanish state, Catalonia’s parliament finally voted to declare independence. The vote, which followed October 1’s repressed referendum, was supported 70 of the 135 legislators with most of the opposition choosing to boycott.

In response, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced he was moving to dissolve Catalonia’s institutions, sack its government, and impose direct rule until elections in December. It was the first time Article 155 of the Spanish constitution, which allows for the suspension of a region’s autonomy, has been used since its inception in 1978.

Today, Spain’s chief prosecutor has called for all fourteen members of the Catalan government to face charges of rebellion, sedition, and misuse of public funds. This follows the imprisonment of two leading civil society figures from the independence movement pending similar charges two weeks ago.

As the crisis has escalated, Catalan anticapitalist party Candidatura d’Unitat Popular (CUP) has found itself playing an increasingly important role. Lluc Salellas, a member of the party’s national executive, discusses the latest developments.