The people of Catalonia have just declared their independence from Spain. Following a referendum partially disrupted by Spanish police where 90% of voters voted in favor of independence, the Catalan parliament voted 70-10-2 for independence. The vote was done in secret to protect lawmakers from joining two of their colleagues who are currently political prisoners of the Spanish authorities.
From Al Jazeera:
The names of those who voted for independence were withheld, as the Spanish attorney general promised to charge those who voted in favour of independence with “rebellion”.
After the declaration, the Spanish government approved direct rule in Catalonia, allowing Madrid to directly administer the breakaway region.
The NYT has a good set of photos from the celebrations on the street.
In response, the federal government in Madrid, led by conservative Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy responded by invoking Article 155 which imposes direct rule, trying to not only negate independence, but remove the autonomy of Catalonia.