( CNN ) -- The president of Spain 's Catalonia region , Artur Mas , signed a decree on Saturday setting November 9 as the date for a referendum on independence . However , the federal government in Madrid is staunchly opposed to any such referendum and says it is unconstitutional , setting the stage for legal and political confrontation and potential civil disobedience . The holding of Scotland 's independence referendum earlier this month buoyed other separatist movements around the world , despite Scottish voters opting to remain part of the United Kingdom . Mas , at the signing ceremony in Barcelona , said that Catalonia wants to speak , wants to be heard and wants to vote . On September 11 , Catalan national day , hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of Barcelona for the third year running demanding a vote on independence be held . But Madrid argues that Catalonia , which represents one fifth of Spain 's economy , already has broad home-rule powers , including its own parliament , police force and control over education and health . And it insists that the Spanish Constitution does not allow any of Spain 's 17 regions to unilaterally break away . The government in Madrid is expected to try to block the vote in Spain 's constitutional court . If the court accepts the case , as is widely expected , it would automatically suspend the vote -- leaving Catalonia to decide whether to try to go ahead with it . Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy , speaking at a news conference earlier this month , dismissed any idea of the referendum taking place . `` Quite simply , it is not legal so wo n't be held , '' he said . `` In addition to not being legal , it goes against our whole history and our feelings , against what the vast majority of the Spanish people think , against our past and against the future of the Spanish people that live in Catalonia and in the rest of Spain . '' Earlier this month , one of Catalonia 's key political figures , Oriel Junqueras , leader of the Esquerra Republicana -- or Republican Left -- party , said if the government in Madrid were to block citizens ' exercising their `` fundamental right '' to vote , there could be a need for civil disobedience . Those in the crowd in Barcelona earlier this month said that if Madrid blocked the referendum , people should still deposit their ballots . A long list of grievances against Madrid center on taxation and language issues . A referendum is expected to ask a two-part question : `` Should Catalonia be a state ? '' And those who vote yes to that can then go to vote on the second question : `` Should that state be independent ? '' Polls indicate that a majority of Catalans want to have a chance to vote but that less than a majority would vote for independence , given the chance . Those calling for independence in Barcelona earlier this month did not represent all the region 's 7.5 million people . A smaller gathering of several thousand took to the streets the same day in Catalonia 's second largest city , Tarragona , calling for the region to remain a part of Spain . One of those protesters told CNN : `` The reason we want to remain a part of Spain , is because we are a part of Spain . '' CNN 's Christine Theodorou contributed to this report .
Catalan President Artur Mas announced November 9 as the date for an independence referendum . The federal government in Madrid is firmly opposed to any such vote taking place . Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered earlier this month for a vote to be held . But opinion polls showed that less than a majority would opt for a split from Spain .