President of the Catalan Government Carles Puigdemont (4thL), Catalan regional vice-president and chief of Economy and Finance and leader of the Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) leftist republican party Oriol Junqueras (3rdL), Catalan chief of Foreign Affairs, Institutional Relations and Transparency Raul Romeva (L) and other members of the Catalan Parliament applaud the results of the vote on a bill for a referendum on independence in Barcelona, on September 6, 2017.
Catalonia’s parliament passed a law on September 6, 2017 paving the way for an independence referendum on October 1 which is fiercely opposed by Madrid, setting a course for Spain’s deepest political crises in decades. The law was adopted with 72 votes in favour and 11 abstentions. Lawmakers who oppose independence for the wealthy northeastern region of Spain abandoned the chamber before the vote.

/ AFP PHOTO / LLUIS GENE (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP/Getty Images)