Spain: Secessionists rally for independence as Catalan parliament reconvenes

Around 500 pro-independence demonstrators gathered at Passeig Lluis Companys on Wednesday to follow the constitution of the Parliamentary board of Catalonia on a giant screen.
Spectators held Catalan flags and carried banners that read “freedom for political prisoners” as well as other separatist messages.
“It's a step forward and we expect that from here Puigdemont can be proclaimed president”, said resident Montserrat.
Another resident added that “it’s what the people have chosen, that he comes back to Catalonia as an elected president. And if they want to detain him, they can do it as an elected president.”
“What is best for [Catalonia] is to disobey the Spanish monarchy and make the Catalan Republic go forward. There is a whole country behind him, a social majority that wants the Catalan Republic”, affirmed resident Lluis.
During the parliamentary session, Republican Catalan Left (ERC) member Roger Torrent was elected president of the legislature.