Mass pro-independence rally on National Day for 11th year in a row
Thousands take to streets in Barcelona with president's absence due to internal row among campaigners
Thousands of people took to the streets on Sunday afternoon, the day marking the Catalan National Day in Barcelona, in order to demand independence for Catalonia.
The rally began in Paral·lel avenue and was due to go past the seafront and end in the Estació de França station, by the Ciutadella Park, where the Catalan parliament is located.
President absent for first time since 2015
President Aragonès did not attend the event "because it is against [pro-independence] parties and not against Spain." This is a major evidence that campaigners for a split with Spain are divided between those prioritizing talks with Madrid, including Aragonès, and those who say confrontation would be a much more effective way ahead.
Indeed, the official manifesto for the protest, organized by grassroots organization ANC, criticizes the handling of the independence campaign by the parties leading it.
It is the first time since 2015 that a Catalan president fails to attend the march.
Center-right nationalist CDC party leader, Artur Mas, was the Catalan president in 2012, when the first National Day mass pro-independence demonstration was held – yet, the leader, who transitioned from asking for a referendum to be openly for a split during his tenure, never attended the march while in office to preserve his institutional role.
In the 2016 and 2017 editions, the president was Carles Puigdemont, member of the same party (before it disappeared giving way to PDeCat) and more explicitly pro-independence, attended the event, as his successor Quim Torra, appointed by himself, did in the 2018, 2019 and 2020 editions.
In 2021, left-wing also pro-independence president Pere Aragonès joined the rally, but he did not repeat in 2022.
Attendees
Every September 11, the attendance in the demonstration has been one of the key facts to know the level of engagement among Catalans over the independence campaign.
The rally in 2014 marks the peak number of attendees, with 1.8 million, according to the local police, which stood for almost a quarter of the total population in the country.
Yet, these numbers have been declining especially after the referendum and independence push in October 2017, with the pandemic also playing its role.
In 2021, 108,000 took part in the rally, according to the local police, and 400,000 according to organizers.
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