Spanish PM under pressure over protests

BARCELONA: Ahead of next month’s general election, Spain’s Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez faced sharp criticism Sunday for his handling of violent Catalan separatist protests even as calm returned to Barcelona and other cities.

Hundreds of people packed a square in front of Catalonia’s regional government headquarters in Barcelona for a rally by the centre-right party Ciudadanos to demand that order be restored.

They also called on the government in Madrid to defend the rights of Catalans who oppose independence.

Many waved Spanish, Catalan and European Union flags and chanted "Viva Espana!". Ciudadanos leader Albert Rivera repeated a call for Sanchez to suspend Catalonia’s autonomy, as Madrid did in 2017 after the Catalan parliament declared independence following a banned referendum.

Rivera also urged Sanchez to get rid of Quim Torra, the head of Catalonia’s separatist regional government.

"What is he waiting for?," Rivera asked.

The streets of Barcelona and other Catalan cities have been rocked by protests since Spain’s Supreme Court sentenced nine separatist leaders last Monday to jail terms of up to 13 years for sedition over the failed 2017 independence bid.