Catalans don't yield, Puigdemont to prison

Spain prepares to implement the extreme measures of this weekend, which will see official Madrid take direct control of Catalonia and oust its president, Carles Puigdemont.

Downloading is not the only problem facing the firm of the Declaration of Independence: Puigdemont and other Catalan officials face criminal charges, and possibly prison, a move that could lead to mass protests.

The provisional deployment of central government control leads to the replacement of nearly 150 regional ministers, a part of which pledge to continue working and ignore Spain's decision. Both Puigdemont and his deputy, Oriol Yunqueras, have made it clear that they do not accept Madrid's orders and say that from their offices, only the citizens of Catalonia will be able to leave. This and the hardest moment for the Catalan leader: If he refuses to leave, he risks handcuffing and judging on the grounds of sedition. The maximum sentence in such a case is a 30-year release. Monday morning, the police presence in front of the Catalan government building was high. Spain's chief prosecutor is preparing the indictment for any official allegedly violating domestic laws with the Declaration of Independence following the alleged illegal referendum by the High Court of Spain. Madrid ordered the hold of new regional elections on December 21st, in which Puigdemont can run, but only if it has not already ended behind bars. Spanish Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis tried to clarify that the government is not trying to lift autonomy, but with its actions, she is actually returning it. The Madrid movement affects about 200,000 public administration employees in the region. Before the avalanche of developments that brought about the activism of Article 155 of the Constitution for the first time in the country's history, Catalonia had the probably highest level of self-government throughout Spain.