Spanish Prime Minister takes Catalonia's reform to courtJuly 28, 2017 - 18:46 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - At the last press conference before the Spanish government heads off on vacation, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced on Friday, July 28 that his government would lodge legal action with the Spanish Constitutional Court against Catalonia's latest bid to lay out a path to independence from the rest of Spain, Deutsche Welle reports. Rajoy's announcement addressed a procedural reform that lawmakers in Catalonia had approved on Wednesday that would allow the region's government to fast-track its approval of laws of secession without debate and within a single day. The head of government and his advisers believe that Spain's top court will find the proposed reform unconstitutional for violating the right to political participation. The proposed reform lacks "the most elemental democratic guarantees," Rajoy said, making it a clear violation of both the Spanish Constitution and the region's Statute of Autonomy, which outlines the areas of self-governance that are independent from Madrid. The autonomous institutions of Catalonia and the bureaucrats who serve them "cannot be used to deliver an action that blatantly contradicts law," Rajoy added. The prime minister from the conservative People's Party and his government adamantly oppose the Catalan secessionist movement, which wants the semi-autonomous region in Spain's northeast to split off from the rest of Spain and become its own sovereign state. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |