After days of ill-tempered rhetoric, the central government said it regretted the injuries and suggested Catalonia should hold a regional election to settle the crisis. Businesses and the government kept up economic pressure on Catalonia however, with several big companies announcing moves to shift their legal domiciles to other parts of Spain. The anonymous initiative, which spread across social media, seeks to promote talks using the slogan: "Spain is better than its leaders". If Catalonia declares independence, Spain could respond by suspending the region's existing autonomous status and imposing direct rule from Madrid. With its own language and cultural traditions, demands for independence in Catalonia date back centuries but have surged during recent years of economic crisis.

Source: The Hindu October 07, 2017 03:45 UTC