BARCELONA, March 15: Spain locked down its 46 million citizens and France ordered the closing of just about everything the rest of the world loves about it — the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the cafes and restaurants — as governments took increasingly desperate measures to put more space between people and contain the coronavirus.

More borders snapped shut around the globe on Saturday and Sunday: President Donald Trump announced that the US, which days ago barred travelers from most of Europe, will extend the ban to Britain and Ireland. In the Philippines, thousands of police and soldiers started sealing the densely populated capital from most domestic travelers in one of Southeast Asia’s most drastic containment moves.

Meanwhile, China, where the virus first appeared late last year, continued to relax its drastic restrictions, illustrating the way the center of gravity in the crisis has shifted westward toward Europe. The virus has infected more than 150,000 people worldwide and killed over 5,700.

In a nationally televised address Saturday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez detailed the battery of exceptional measures put in place as part of a two-week state of emergency to fight the sharp rise in infections.

Later Saturday, Spain’s government said Sánchez’s wife has tested positive for coronavirus. Begoña Gómez and the prime minister are in good health, the goverrnment said.

Two ministers of Sánchez’s Cabinet, the minister of equality and the minister of regional affairs, had already tested positive earlier this week. The others member of the Cabinet have tested negative.

In a lockdown similar to the one already imposed in Italy, people will be allowed to leave their homes only to buy food and medicine, commute to work, go to hospitals and banks, or take trips related to the care of the young and the elderly. All schools and universities were closed, along with restaurants, bars, hotels and other non-essential retail businesses.

“From now we enter into a new phase,” Sánchez said after a Cabinet meeting that lasted over seven hours. “We won’t hesitate in doing what we must to beat the virus. We are putting health first.”

Spanish authorities said the number of infections climbed past 5,700, half of them in the capital, Madrid. That represents a national increase of over 1,500 in 24 hours. The country had 136 deaths, up from 120. Spain has the fifth-highest number of cases, behind China, Italy, Iran and South Korea.

For most people, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people recover in a matter of weeks.

Despite please for calm from authorities, shoppers packed supermarkets in Spain in the morning. But overall, the normally bustling streets of the country’s two biggest cities were noticeably quieter as the message sank in that social distancing is the only way to stop the pandemic.

“We had to close and remain shut for 15 days,” restaurant owner Rachel Paparardo said in Barcelona, which was already under regional restrictions. “But this is nothing. It is just so more people don’t get infected and we can recover from this.”

Some flights bound for Spain turned around as word spread of the lockdown.

In the Philippines, new restrictions for metropolitan Manila — home to more than 12 million people — that went into effect Sunday mean the suspension of domestic travel by land, air and sea to and from the capital region.

Large gatherings like concerts, movies and cockfighting are prohibited and most government work in executive department offices will be suspended in the metropolis for a month. School closures at all levels were extended and curfew was in the works.

“If you’ll go to work, go. If you need to go out for medical treatment, go. If you’ll buy food, go, but other than that, stay home,” Philippine Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano told a news conference.

Countries around the world have been moving to prevent their health systems from collapsing under the load of all the virus cases.

Paris followed other cities in shuttering major tourist attractions, and France announced the closing of all restaurants, cafes, theaters and nonessential shops starting Sunday. France has recorded at least 3,600 infections. It has banned all gatherings of more than 100 people, ordered all schools closed and asked companies to allow workers to stay home.

France pressed ahead with plans for nationwide municipal elections on Sunday but ordered special measures to keep people at a safe distance and to sanitize surfaces.

In Italy, the worst-hit European country, the number of deaths climbed past 1,400 and infections surged roughly 20 percent overnight to more than 21,000 because of what authorities characterized as irresponsible behavior by people still socializing despite the nationwide lockdown. Many Italian cities, including Rome and Milan, decided to close playgrounds and parks, too.

Premier Giuseppe Conte has said production — particularly of food and health supplies — must not stop. On Saturday, union and industrial leaders reached an agreement to keep factories running.

At noon, people around Italy came out on their balconies, terraces or gardens or leaned out their windows to clap for several minutes in a gesture of thanks to medical workers.

In Britain, the death toll nearly doubled from the day before to 21, and the number of people infected rose to over 1,100. Ireland had 90 confirmed cases and one death as of Friday. Greece’s infection total approached 230 with three deaths, and police there arrested 45 shopkeepers Saturday for violating a ban on operations.

The US has seen 59 deaths — including the first in New York, Louisiana and Virginia — and more than 2,100 cases. In hard-hit Washington state, where 40 have died and and more than 550 have been infected, officials said the disease is straining the supply of protective gear available to medical providers despite shipments from the federal government.

Trump has tested negative for the new coronavirus, the president’s personal physician said Saturday.

European countries took steps to isolate themselves from their neighbors.

Denmark closed its borders and halted passenger traffic to and from the country. Travelers will be turned away at the border if they are unable to show that they have “a legitimate reason” to enter — for example, if they are Danish citizens or residents.

Poland planned to close is borders at midnight and deny all foreigners entry unless they lived in Poland or had personal ties there. The Czech Republic and Slovakia took similar action. Lithuania said it was introducing border checks at the frontiers with Poland and Latvia.

Russia said its borders with Norway and Poland will be closed to most foreigners beginning Sunday.

In the Middle East, Iran’s death toll reached 611, with nearly 13,000 infections, including senior government officials.

In the Pacific, New Zealand announced that incoming passengers, including citizens, will be required to isolate themselves for 14 days, with few exceptions.

The measures increasingly mirror those taken by China, which in January quarantined more than 60 million people, starting with the epicenter, Wuhan, in the province of Hubei.

The spread of COVID-19 in China has slowed dramatically, according to the National Health Commission. After reporting thousands of new cases per day only a month ago, the commission said Saturday that there were 13 new deaths and just 11 new cases, including people who recently arrived in China from other affected countries like Italy.

Wuhan is now the only city in Hubei still designated “high-risk.” Several Hubei municipalities are gradually resuming public transportation and reopening businesses. Parks, museums and art galleries have reopened in Shanghai. AP

BARCELONA, Oct 31: Spain moved Monday to put Catalonia’s secessionist leaders on trial for alleged crimes that carry maximum sentences of decades in prison, and some of the ousted government figures went to the Belgian capital, where an official said they might be able to request asylum.

As Catalonia spent its first working day under the direct rule of Madrid, following its regional parliament’s unsuccessful efforts to create a new country, Spain was venturing into new political terrain amid an unprecedented crisis.

An early regional election on Dec. 21 is on the horizon, when both separatists and unionists will present candidates, but before that the country is likely to endure weeks of political uncertainty.

Cranking up the tension, Spain’s state prosecutor said he would seek rebellion, sedition and embezzlement charges against members of the region’s secessionist government.

Chief prosecutor Jose Manuel Maza said he would ask judges for preventive measures against the politicians and the governing body of the Catalan parliament that allowed a vote to declare independence on Friday. Maza didn’t specify if those measures would include their arrest and detention before trial.

The rebellion, sedition and embezzlement charges carry maximum sentences of 30, 15 and six years in prison, respectively. It wasn’t immediately clear when judges would rule on the prosecutors’ request.

Those facing charges include ousted regional leader Carles Puigdemont, and his No. 2, Oriol Junqueras, as well as Catalan parliamentary speaker Carme Forcadell — high-profile figures in the region of 7.5 million people and its capital, Barcelona.

Puigdemont’s whereabouts was a mystery early Monday. The uncertainty continued the game of political cat-and-mouse with which the Catalan leader has tormented the national government since he announced almost two months ago that Catalonia would hold an independence referendum on Oct. 1 — a ballot the government rejected as illegal.

It later emerged Puigdemont had traveled to Brussels, a trip that was confirmed by Spanish officials and a Catalan member of the European Parliament, though Puigdemont was not seen in public.

Belgian Asylum State Secretary Theo Francken said over the weekend that it would “not be unrealistic” for Puigdemont to request asylum. Spanish media reported that five other members of Puigdemont’s government went with him to the Belgian capital.

Belgian lawyer Paul Bekaert told VRT network that Puigdemont had consulted him, adding “he is not in Belgium to specifically ask for political asylum. That is not decided yet.”

Belgium allows asylum requests by citizens of other European Union nations, and in the past, some Basque separatists were not extradited to Spain while they sought asylum, causing years of friction.

Still, it would be exceptional for Belgium to grant asylum to another EU citizen based on arguments that repression would endanger the full exercise of one’s rights.

By targeting Puigdemont and some of his entourage, Spanish authorities apparently hoped to send a message that attempts to break up Spain will not be tolerated. The country has 17 autonomous regions, including Catalonia, but the constitution says Spain is “indivisible.”

After Catalonia’s regional parliament proclaimed independence from Spain in a secret ballot on Friday the Spanish government fired the government and regional police chief, dissolved the legislature and called the early election.

Puigdemont has vowed a peaceful and “democratic opposition” to his Cabinet’s dismissal.

The prosecutor’s announcement in Madrid came as Catalonia’s civil servants returned to work for the first time since Spain imposed direct control on Friday. There were no immediate signs of open disobedience and separatist parties agreed to run in the new elections, in a move that implies acknowledging that they can’t deliver a viable independent state.

In addition to the rebellion charges, Spain’s government has said the fired leaders could be charged with usurping others’ functions if they refuse to leave their government jobs.

The Catalan parliament was formally dissolved Monday and Forcadell, its speaker, was to head a transitional committee of lawmakers until the regional election is held.

Both parties in the coalition that ruled Catalonia until its government was disbanded last week indicated they were ready to contest the early regional election, dismissing fears the pro-independence parties might boycott the ballot to deny it legitimacy. Puigdemont’s center-right PDeCAT party vowed to defeat pro-union political forces in Catalonia.

As dozens of journalists, curious onlookers and bemused tourists gathered in the square outside the Gothic government palace in central Barcelona, residents expressed confusion about who was actually in charge of Catalonia.

“I don’t know — the Catalan government says they are in charge, but the Spanish government says they are,” said Cristina Guillen, an employee at a nearby bag shop. “So I have no idea, really.

“What I really think is that nobody is in charge right now,” she said.

At least one portrait of Puigdemont was still hanging on a wall inside the Catalan government’s Generalitat building.

Spanish authorities said deposed officials would be allowed to take their personal belongings from official buildings. Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido said Monday that the government was giving the separatist politicians “a few hours” to do so because the goal was “to recover normality in a discreet way and under the principle of minimal intervention” by central authorities. AP

BARCELONA, Oct 30: Hundreds of thousands of Catalans took to the streets of Barcelona on Sunday to voice their opposition to the region’s declaration of independence amid vast political uncertainty for the region in northeast Spain.

Catalonia’s political leadership was fired Saturday by central authorities in Madrid who are trying to tame the worst political crisis Spain has seen in decades. So far, Catalan’s former leader has insinuated that he won’t step down.

Waving Spanish, Catalan and European Union flags, the protesters described themselves as the silent majority who have been ignored during the wealthy region’s bid for independence, which came to a head Friday when the regional parliament voted to secede from Spain.

“We have organized ourselves late, but we are here to show that there is a majority of Catalans that are no longer silent and that no longer want to be silenced,” said Alex Ramos, head of Catalan Civil Society, a pro-union grassroots group.

The organizers said more than 1 million people turned out but police put the figure at 300,000. There was no way to immediately reconcile the figures.

The mood at Sunday’s rally was festive. “We won’t let Spain be torn apart into pieces,” read one banner. “The awakening of a silenced nation,” read another.

In response to the lawmakers’ secessionist vote, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy triggered unprecedented constitutional powers, firing Catalonia’s secessionist regional government and calling an early regional election for Dec. 21.

Monday will be the first working day since the region declared independence and its leadership was fired. It was not known how Catalonia’s estimated 200,000 public workers would react to their bosses’ dismissal.

Ousted regional leader Carles Puigdemont has called for Catalans to engage in peaceful opposition to Spain’s takeover of regional affairs, saying he and his fired cabinet would keep “working to build a free country.”

Separatist parties and grassroots groups have spoken of waging a campaign of disobedience to hamper the efforts by central authorities to run the region.

Puigdemont and his ministers could face prison for their separatist actions. Spain’s government has said the ousted Catalan leaders could be charged with usurping others’ functions if they refuse to comply with their firing. Spanish prosecutors have also said they may consider rebellion charges against leading separatists.

Oriol Junqueras, the ousted vice president of Catalonia’s rebellious government, wrote in an open letter Sunday saying that separatists should consider participating in the election Rajoy called for Dec. 21. Some secessionists have argued to boycott the vote.

The top politicians for pro-union parties hoped to use Sunday’s rally to launch their election campaigns.

“It’s time to take over the streets and take over the ballot boxes,” said Albert Rivera, the leader of the center-right Citizens party.

Separatists won 48 percent of the vote in Catalonia in the 2015 regional election, although they took more seats in the regional parliament because of an election law that gives more weight to sparsely populated areas.

Organizers said the rally’s goal Sunday was to defend Spain’s unity and reject “an unprecedented attack in the history of democracy.” Three weeks ago, the same group organized another mass rally that brought hundreds of thousands onto Barcelona’s streets — the largest pro-union show of force in Catalonia in recent years.

“Catalan leaders have broken the law. The central government has let this situation go for too long, for even 30 or 40 years, thinking that we were never going to arrive at this extreme, but here we are,” said Angelita Cuesta, a 66-year-old retiree at the rally.

“Our society is fractured, there are family members and friends who no longer can talk about politics to avoid conflict,” she added.

The Catalan parliament’s vote to secede came after an Oct. 1 referendum in favor of independence that was deemed illegal by Spain’s constitutional court.

There are fears the political turmoil in Catalonia could have a severe economic impact, both in the region and on Spain itself.

Addressing the crowd at Sunday’s rally, Josep Borrell, former European Parliament president, said the central government’s move to take control of some regional affairs was the only thing preventing a full-blown economic crisis in Catalonia.

If the government had not triggered its constitutional powers to run Catalonia, “many of you would have lost your jobs” he said. “If that hasn’t happened, it’s because … businesses and markets understand that there won’t be (secession).”

Some 1,700 companies have already relocated their headquarters to other parts of Spain in recent weeks amid the political turmoil. AP

BARCELONA/MADRID, Oct 28: The Madrid government sacked Catalonia’s president and dismissed its parliament on Friday, hours after the region declared itself an independent nation in Spain’s gravest political crisis since the return of democracy four decades ago. A new regional election will be held in Catalonia on Dec. 21, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said in a televised address on a day of high drama.

As well as removing Carles Puigdemont as head of the autonomous region, he also fired its police chief and said central government ministries would take over the Catalan administration.

“Spain is living through a sad day,” Rajoy said. “We believe it is urgent to listen to Catalan citizens, to all of them, so that they can decide their future and nobody can act outside the law on their behalf.”

As he spoke, thousands of independence supporters packed the Sant Jaume Square in front of the Catalan regional headquarters in Barcelona, their earlier joyful mood somewhat dampened by Rajoy’s actions.

In a stunning show of defiance of Madrid, the Catalan parliament had voted in the afternoon to make a unilateral declaration of independence.

Despite the emotions and celebrations inside and outside the building, it was a futile gesture as shortly afterwards the Spanish Senate in Madrid approved the imposition of direct rule.

Several European countries, including France and Germany, and the United States also rejected the independence declaration and said they supported Rajoy’s efforts to preserve Spain’s unity.

The crisis has now reached a new and possibly dangerous level as independence supporters have called for a campaign of disobedience. Immediately after news of the vote, Spanish shares and bonds were sold off, reflecting business concern over the turmoil.

ALARM AROUND EUROPE

Catalonia held an independence referendum on Oct. 1 which was declared illegal by Madrid and marred by heavy-handed national police tactics to stop it.

Although the referendum endorsed independence, it drew only a 43 percent turnout as Catalans who oppose independence largely boycotted it.

The independence push has caused deep resentment around Spain. The chaos has also prompted a flight of business from Catalonia and alarmed European leaders who fear the crisis could fan separatist sentiment around the continent.

Catalonia is one of Spain’s most prosperous regions and already has a high degree of autonomy. But it has a litany of historic grievances, exacerbated during the 1939-1975 Franco dictatorship, when its culture and politics were suppressed.

In Barcelona, Jordi Mercade, a 32-year-old engineer celebrating with friends, said he had mixed feelings about the day’s events.

“It’s a day for history but many of us here also know we are not independent. They have the force. We are proud to having declared independence but we know this is not something definitive.”

It is not certain whether the new election can resolve the crisis, as it could increase the numbers of independence supporters in parliament.

Also unclear is how Rajoy’s other measures will work on the ground, because of the reactions of civil servants and the regional police, know as the Mossos d‘Esquadra, who are reported to be divided in their loyalties.

The main secessionist group, the Catalan National Assembly, called on civil servants not to follow orders from the Spanish government and urged them to follow “peaceful resistance”.

“Tensions are likely to rise significantly over the coming days,” Antonio Barroso of Teneo Intelligence said in a note.

“Demonstrators might try to prevent the police from removing Catalan ministers from their offices if the central government decides to do so. This increases the risk of violent clashes with the police.”

SHORT-LIVED LIBERTY

A big crowd of independence supporters gathered outside the regional parliament in Barcelona, shouting “Liberty” in Catalan and singing traditional songs as the independence vote went through.

Among them was Monica Sanz, 44, a university lecturer who wore a Catalan flag around her neck.

“We tried all peaceful means. Moderate people have reached this point because it was impossible to make an agreement with Spain,” she said.

The motion, passed after a passionate debate from advocates and opponents of independence, said Catalonia constituted an independent, sovereign and social democratic state.

Lawmakers from members of three national parties – the People’s Party, the Socialists and Ciudadanos – walked out before the vote. Members of the pro-independence parties and the far-left Podemos then voted 70-10 in favour, in a secret ballot aimed at hindering any attempt by Madrid to lay criminal charges on them. REUTERS

MADRID (AP): Army troops and police are to march Thursday in Madrid as Spain’s celebrates its national day, amid one of the country’s biggest crises as its powerful northeastern region of Catalonia threatens independence.

King Felipe VI, accompanied by national and regional politicians, will preside over the colorful annual parade as Spain awaits a response to a government request to Catalonia’s leader to clarify by Monday if he has already declared independence — in which case Spain warns it may apply Article 155 of its Constitution and begin taking direct control of the region.

Catalan regional President Carles Puigdemont announced Tuesday that he was using the claimed victory in a banned Oct. 1 secession referendum to proceed with a declaration of Catalan independence, but proposed freezing its implementation for a few weeks to allow for dialogue and mediation with the national government in Madrid.

Speaking in the national parliament Wednesday, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said Puigdemont’s response to the ultimatum would be crucial in deciding “events over the coming days.”

In a tweet later, Puigdemont said, “We demand dialogue and the response is to put article 155 on the table. Message understood.”

Puigdemont’s deputy, Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras, also tweeted: “A sincere dialogue is what the international community wants and what Catalonia expects, not confrontation and new threats.”

Thursday’s holiday is known as Dia de la Hispanidad, or Hispanic Day. It commemorates Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the New World and is also Spain’s armed forces day

Regional leaders are invited to attend the parade but for many years officials from the Basque and Catalan regions, where independence sentiment runs high, have boycotted it.

Several town halls in Catalonia have said they will ignore the holiday and work as normal.

About 2.3 million Catalans — or 43 percent of the region’s electorate — voted in the independence referendum. Catalonia said 90 percent favored secession and it declared the results valid. Opponents boycotted the vote.

The day was marred by violence as police under court orders tried to prevent voting taking place.

Polls indicate that Catalonia’s 7.5 million residents are evenly divided over secession. The region contributes a fifth of Spain’s 1.1 trillion-euro ($1.3 trillion) economy. AP