The Spanish Government warned Carles Puigdemont he faced his final chance to relinquish independence within three days or it would trigger Article 155, the so-called 'nuclear option' which would override Catalonia's autonomy.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy had set a deadline of 10am local time yesterday for the Catalan leader to clarify whether or not the autonomous region had made a unilateral declaration of independence last week. The Catalan President responded with a letter that did not directly answer the question but instead stressed a mandate for independence and called for dialogue.
The Spanish Government had made it clear that anything less than a clear "No" would set in motion Article 155, a never-used constitutional tool allowing it to effectively suspend autonomous powers and rule directly from Madrid. That is now set to be applied from late on Friday NZT, if Puigdemont does not reverse his position.
Puigdemont, under heavy pressure from independence hardliners to confirm an abrupt split, had called for an urgent meeting with Rajoy in his letter. Rajoy told Puigdemont he still had a chance to respond in a "clear and simple way". If he did not do so, he "will be the only one responsible for the application of the constitution".
The leaders of two pro-independence groups are in custody on sedition charges. A judge decided that Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart, of Catalan National Assembly and Omnium Cultural, should be in jail.
