On October 1, residents of Spain’s autonomous region of Catalonia are due to go to the polls to vote on becoming an independent state. There’s just one problem. The Spanish constitution makes secession illegal. Ever since the vote was announced, Madrid and Barcelona have been on a collision course. This week, they finally crashed head-on. Under orders from Madrid, Catalan officials have now been arrested for facilitating the referendum.
Local mayors have been threatened with removal from office. Ballot papers have been seized. Pro-independence Catalans have deemed the government’s moves an attack on the region’s autonomy and called for mass pro-independence protests. On the other side, Catalonia has threatened to arrest postmen who refuse to deliver ballot papers, something of a Catch-22, as Madrid has threatened to arrest them if they don’t refuse. Anti-independence activists have accused the Catalan government of not setting a minimum threshold for participation, meaning independence could be declared with a turnout of only 35 percent (the same turnout as the 2014 referendum). At this point, it is unknown whether the vote will go ahead, what will happen if it does, and how Madrid will react if Barcelona tries to declare independence. Expect chaos in the next two weeks.

http://listverse.com/2017/09/22/10-mind-blowing-things-that-happened-this-week-92217/