Video from The Guardian

Global Justice Ecology Project condemns the violence of the Spanish government against Catalan people trying to vote in support of their self-determination.

Via CommonDreams.org:

As of Sunday afternoon, more than 760 people were injured in Catalonia after Spanish police clashed with Catalan citizens who attempted to cast votes for the region’s independence referendum, which Madrid has deemed unconstitutional, Reuters reports.

Despite the reports of violence, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy praised the police force for its actions in Catalonia Sunday.

BREAKING: Spanish PM thanks police, says they acted with “firmness and serenity” to Catalonia’s independence referendum.

— The Associated Press (@AP) October 1, 2017

Alarming photos and videos continued to circulate on social media into the evening.

Catalan officials say Spanish police have injured more than 330 people who tried to vote during Catalonia’s independence referendum on Sunday.

90% of voters said ‘Yes’ to independence from #Spain – #Catalan governmenthttps://t.co/V9wlil55Hb pic.twitter.com/QuiVCk7tXR

— RT (@RT_com) October 2, 2017

Video from RT

Madrid has declared the vote unconstitutional, but Catalan citizens and members of the regional government have vowed to move forward with it. In recent days they have protested by the thousands, and even occupied more than 160 local schools that were set to serve as polling stations, in attempts to avoid the national police’s promise to prevent voting.

The BBC reports:

Police officers are preventing people from voting, and seizing ballot papers and boxes at polling stations. In the regional capital Barcelona, police used batons and fired rubber bullets during pro-referendum protests.

Catalan emergency services said they had treated 38 people who were injured when police pushed back crowds of voters and forced their way into polling stations. The Spanish interior ministry said 11 police officers had been injured.

Catalan firefighters even battled with police officers on Sunday, trying to protect voters from the national police.