With less than three days until Catalonia's national day, the Diada - on September 11th - the map of on-line registration for this year's independence movement demonstration shows that Avinguda Diagonal is filling up. Practically all stretches of the rally, between Palau Reial and Plaça de les Glòries, are now marked as "Almost full" or "High occupation". By Saturday, 350,000 people had registered for this year's protest, in what is the seventh consecutive year that the Catalan independence movement has held mass, festive gatherings to assert the right to Catalan self-determination. The slogan for the 2018 march is "Let's build the Catalan Republic".
How is it organized?
As in previous editions, organising civil group Catalan National Assembly (ANC) has opened a process of registration by internet for the event, using a map that allows participants to check how much space remains in the different stretches of the demonstration. Those intending to take part should bear in mind that, as you would expect, registration can increase rapidly as the day gets closer.
The march is divided into 37 stretches - each one corresponding to a block in Barcelona's Eixample district, in which most of the length of the march will be situated. As of Saturday, all 37 stretches had occupation in the 3 highest levels: "High", "Almost full", or - in three cases - "Full", as can be seen on the registration website.
What's planned?
This year, the ANC's intention is to create a sound wave that will travel up Barcelona's Avinguda Diagonal so that the voice of the Catalans will be the main protagonist of the demonstration. Since it is the aural aspect which has to be closely coordinated, the ANC is saying that this year, participants should bring any banner or placard they choose, with the specific slogan or message they want to give.
As is now traditional, the demonstration will formally begin at exactly 5.14pm - that is, 1714hrs, given the symbolism of 1714 as the year when Catalan national institutions were abolished after defeat by the Bourbon-led Spanish forces in the War of Spanish Succession. In particular, it was on September 11th, 1714, that the city of Barcelona fell to the troops loyal to the ancestor of Spain's current king.
Those taking part should plan to arrive at "their" stretch of Diagonal by 4pm, say the organisers. The sound wave will start at stretch number 37, at the Plaça de les Glòries, and will then move up the Diagonal towards Palau Reial. The organisation asks for marchers to be silent in the minutes before 1714hrs, so that the sound wave can be heard booming up the huge Barcelona avenue.