200 organizations march against far-right in Barcelona

Some 200 organizations marched against the far-right Vox party in Barcelona on Saturday afternoon, a week before the anti-migration party holds its own protest in the Catalan capital.

3,500 people attended the demonstration, according to the local police.

"Stop Vox" was the slogan for the march, which began in the Jardinets de Gràcia at 5pm, and that went as far as the Gran Via Avenue, at the same time as a series of anti-fascist protests were taking place around the world.

Organized by the Unity Against Fascism and Racism platform, Saturday's march included the pro-independence Òmnium and ANC groups. The organizers say they decided to focus the protest on Vox because in Spain the far-right "is not an abstract thing."

The following Saturday, on March 30, the Vox party is planning to hold its own demonstration in Barcelona, on the Reina María Cristina Avenue, at the foot of Montjuïc mountain, under the slogan “Catalonia for Spain."

The party says that its protest is in response to the Barcelona council's decision to withdraw permission for it to hold an event in the Palau Sant Jordi stadium. According to Vox, the council's decision was based on "exclusively political reasons."

"No impunity" for far-right, council warns

Barcelona deputy mayor, Jaume Asens, warned the Vox party this week that the local authority will keep a close eye on the protest and will not hesitate to take legal action should it see the least reason to do so.

"We will not let the far right act with impunity in our city and we will be on our guard to make sure that what it says remains within the law. If they overstep the mark by a millimetre, we will act," Asens warned.