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Spanish police seize pro-Catalan referendum pamphlets

Spanish police on Sunday seized 1.3 million pamphlets and posters supporting Catalonia's independence referendum, the latest move to try to block the vote.

Published: 18 September 2017 09:38 CEST
Spanish police seize pro-Catalan referendum pamphlets
Posters calling to vote "Yes" in the referendum on independence in Catalonia stuck in a telephone booth, in Barcelona. Photo: AFP

Catalonia's pro-separatist government is determined to hold a referendum on October 1st, despite it being banned by Spain's Constitutional Court.

The documents were seized at an advertising distribution company near Barcelona, the Spanish interior ministry said in a statement.  

READ MORE: Catalonia's mayors caught in referendum crossfire

Among the documents were about 700,000 leaflets promoting a “yes” vote in the referendum and 370,000 flyers with logo of the Catalan government along with 138,000 posters for the far-left Popular Unity Candidacy (CUP) party.  

 This handout picture released by the Spanish Civil Guard on September 17, 2017 shows pamphlets supporting Catalonia's independence referendum seized at an advertising distribution company in the province of Barcelona: Photo: AFP

Faced with a determined Catalan government, Spain has multiplied its efforts to crack down on the referendum, having previously seized propaganda material and threatened to arrest Catalan mayors who allow the vote.

'We are not afraid'

Also on Sunday, hundreds of people attended a meeting in Madrid to show support for the referendum, some waving pro-independence leaflets.    

The meeting was held in a small theatre in the central district of Lavapies after a court banned holding it in a cultural centre owned by the town hall.    

“Faced with their ban, we are determined,”  Jordi Cuixart, head of Omnium Cultural, a Catalan cultural organisation, said to applause from the public inside and outside the theatre.

“We need your solidarity now more than ever. What we are experiencing today is a true breakdown of democratic process.”  

READ ALSO: Nine key pitfalls of Catalonia's independence referendum

Outside the meeting, some chanted “Freedom of expression”, “Right to decide” and “We are not afraid” under the watch of several police officers.

“This is no longer a question of Catalans and Spaniards, it is a question of the quality of our democracy,” Maria Jose Hernandez, a 40-year-old old graphic designer, told AFP.

On Sunday, the newspaper El Pais called on famous personalities such as writer Javier Marias and actress Marisa Paredes to call for Catalans to abstain from what the newspaper dubbed an “anti-democratic swindle”.

Catalan society is deeply divided on the subject of independence. A poll commissioned by the regional government in July showed 49.4 percent of Catalans were against independence while 41.1 percent were in favour.

By Adrien Vicente / AFP

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Swiss decision to purchase US fighter jets could force second referendum

Switzerland's decision to purchase US-made fighter jets could be put to a referendum,

Published: 30 June 2021 18:13 CEST
Swiss decision to purchase US fighter jets could force second referendum
Swiss fighter jets. Photo: JOE KLAMAR / AFP

Switzerland’s government on Wednesday backed the purchase of 36 F-35A fighter jets from Lockheed Martin to replace its fleet and five Patriot air defence units from fellow US manufacturer Raytheon.

Switzerland’s current air defence equipment will reach the end of its service life in 2030 and has been undergoing a long and hotly-contested search for replacements.

“The Federal Council is confident that these two systems are the most suitable for protecting the Swiss population from air threats in the future,” the government said in a statement.

‘No Trump fighter jets’: Swiss don’t want to buy American planes

The decision will now be put to the Swiss parliament — and also risks being challenged at the ballot box, with left-wingers and an anti-militarist group looking to garner enough signatures to trigger a public vote.

The F-35A was chosen ahead of the Airbus Eurofighter; the F/A-18 Super Hornet by Boeing; and French firm Dassault’s Rafale.

For the ground-based air defence (GBAD) system, Patriot was selected ahead of SAMP/T by France’s Eurosam.

“An evaluation has revealed that these two systems offer the highest overall benefit at the lowest overall cost,” the government statement said. Switzerland is famously neutral. However, its long-standing position is one of armed neutrality and the landlocked European country has mandatory conscription for men.

“A fleet of 36 aircraft would be large enough to cover Switzerland’s airspace protection needs over the longer term in a prolonged situation of heightened tensions,” the government said.

“The air force must be able to ensure that Swiss airspace cannot be used by foreign parties in a military conflict.” 

Long path to decision 

Switzerland began to seek replacements for its ageing fleet of fighter jets more than a decade ago, but the issue has become caught up in a political battle in the wealthy Alpine nation.

The Swiss government has long argued for the need to quickly replace its 30 or so F/A-18 Hornets, which will reach the end of their lifespan in 2030, and the F-5 Tigers, which have been in service for four decades and are not equipped for night flights.

In 2014, the country looked set to purchase 22 Gripen E fighter jets from Swedish group Saab, only to see the public vote against releasing the funds needed to go forward with the multi-billion-dollar deal.

Bern launched a new selection process four years later, and a referendum last year to release six billion Swiss francs ($6.5 billion) for the purchase of the fighters of the government’s choice squeezed through with 50.1 percent of voters in favour.

During the referendum campaign, the government warned that without a swift replacement for its fleet, “Switzerland will no longer be in a position to protect and even less defend its airspace by 2030”.

Currently, the fleet does not have the capacity to support ground troops for reconnaissance missions or to intervene against ground targets.

Meanwhile Switzerland’s current GBAD system is also old and lacks the capacity to meet the widening spectrum of modern threats.

The military currently relies on a range of Rapier and Stinger short-range missiles that have been in service since 1963.

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