In Brussels, European Council President Donald Tusk pleaded directly with the Catalan leadership to choose dialogue rather than a divisive call for independence. Some 2.3 million Catalans — or 43 per cent of the electorate in the north-eastern region — turned out to vote in the Oct. 1 independence referendum, which the Spanish government said was illegal. Some feared a drastic backlash from the Spanish central authorities. The Catalan parliament’s governing board acknowledged Tuesday morning it had received the results of last week’s disputed independence referendum. Hundreds of thousands have turned out for street protests in Barcelona and other towns in the past month to back Catalan independence and protest against police violence during the vote.

Source: National Post October 10, 2017 07:18 UTC