Catalonia, Spain's next threat: Losing 20% of its economy
http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/12/business/catalonia-independence-spain/index.html?hpt=hp_c1
November 25, 2012 -- Updated 0942 GMT (1742 HKT)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Catalans go to the polls on Sunday November 25 in a vote that trigger a referendum for independence
- Catalonia is home to tourist attractions -- Barcelona Football Club and the Gaudi House Museum
- The CiU is raising the debate on sovereignty at a time of public frustration over taxes in Catalonia
Separatist Catalans are calling for sovereignty from Madrid and the rule of the conservative Popular Party, led by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.
Losing 20% of the economy
is the last thing the Spanish government needs right now. But if those
calling for independence get their way, that could be exactly what
happens when Catalans go to the polls this weekend.
Catalonia -- a region in the northeast of Spain and home to global brands and tourist attractions including Barcelona Football Club and the Gaudi House Museum -- represents one fifth of the Spanish economy.
The Catalan independence
question comes at an inconvenient time for Rajoy's government. Spain,
part of the eurozone mainstay, is grappling with unsustainable borrowing
costs and a soaring public deficit while trying to placate public anger
over a lack of jobs and stringent austerity.
Out of the hardship,
regional disputes in northern Spain have started to resurface,
particularly in Catalonia. Economists at Deutsche Bank say the political
turmoil in such a prosperous region could be the catalyst that forces
the Spanish central government into seeking aid from Europe's permanent
bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism.
As the industrial
heartbeat of the eurozone's fourth largest economy, Catalonia is the
most affluent region in Spain. Situated on the Mediterranean and
bordering France, the area is home to seven million people and made up
of four provinces: Barcelona, Lleida, Tarragona and Girona.
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