‘Europe saw one of the largest demonstrations in recent years: at least 1.8 million people formed an 11km red-yellow line to show their support for the upcoming independence referendum. A mosaic was made in the form of a ‘V’ for ‘vote’.
V for vote
At least 1.8 million Catalans, dressed in red and yellow, the colors of the Catalan flag, gathered on Gran Via and Avenida Diagonal, two of the main streets in Barcelona. Seen from the air, the rally formed a ‘V’ 11km long. According to the organizers, ‘V’ represented ‘vote’, ‘victory’ and ‘will’ (voluntat in Catalan).
The number of people participated in the rally – 1.8 million – even surpassed the number of population in Barcelona, which is about 1.6 million. There were more people than the whole population in Luxemburg, Lichtenstein, Monaco or Vatican.
“We want a say in politics and our future. We’ve won back our sovereignty and realized the strength we have, if we mobilize, to change things,” Carme Forcadell, head of the National Catalan Assembly (ANC), one of the organizers of the event, told Reuters.’
Read More: Catalonians stage their biggest independence rally
Niamh Harris