BARCELONA, November 9 (RIA Novosti) — At 9 a.m. today (07:00 GMT) the unofficial polls to answer two questions: "Do you want Catalonia to become a state?" and "If so, do you want Catalonia to be an independent state?" have opened in Catalonia, Spain.
The organizers of the so-called consultation have acknowledged that the questions could be formulated better; nevertheless, they think that those questions give everyone a possibility to express their opinion.
There are 6,430 ballot-boxes installed in 1.255 schools and colleges. More than 40,000 volunteers will assist the Catalans during the consultation. More than 5.4 million official residents of Catalonia aged 16 and older will have the possibility to give their answers to the questions about Catalonia's future.
Eight deputies from Belgium, France, Slovenia, Sweden and the United Kingdom will observe the consultation. The international observers have planned to visit about 30 schools this Sunday.
Catalan President Artur Mas signed a decree on September 27 scheduling an independence referendum for November 9. The Spanish government announced that it would block the motion by appealing to the Constitutional Court. On September 29, the court suspended the referendum, declaring it illegal.
Mas then suggested an alternative, stating that the voting in November will not be carried out as an official referendum, but as a consultation. However, Spanish central authorities again turned to the Constitutional Court, which blocked the vote. Catalonia has stated that will carry out the consultation despite central government's protests.
