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Brexit: Madrid to host protest to demand People's Vote

The Local Spain
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Brexit: Madrid to host protest to demand People's Vote
Photo: AFP

A huge march on Westminister to demand a People's Vote on Brexit will take place in London on Saturday. And at the same time, people will also be gathering in central Madrid.

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In London on Saturday, just six days before Britain is (currently) scheduled to leave the European Union, hundreds of thousands of people are expected to take to the streets to demand that the public is given a final say on any Brexit deal.

The “Put It To The People March” will begin at noon on Park Lane for a march to Parliament Square. 

Among those leading the calls for for a People's Vote will be Britons resident in Spain, with a large contingent flying over to London especially for the event - among them members of Bremain in Spain.

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Photo: AFP

Sue Wilson, chair of Bremain in Spain, will be flying over to join the march to Westminster along with around 100 members of the campaign group.. "We've supported the campaign for another referendum from the start, and we've actively campaigned to give the British public another say in this debate. The Brexit that was sold was a lie, a fantasy, a pipe-dream. The British public deserves a chance to think again."

"The June 2016 referendum result started a Brexit nightmare for UK citizens living in the EU and EU citizens living in the EU. Since then, we've been working together to make our voices heard. We've been side-lined and silenced for too long. On Saturday, we'll be loud and proud and demanding
another referendum. Although most of us couldn't vote on our own futures in June 2016, and it's unlikely that we'll be able to vote in the next referendum, we wholeheartedly support a #PeoplesVote."

Wilson concludes: "The public must be able to make an informed decision based on the facts, not the fantasy. We must establish if Brexit really is the 'will of the people' before making this momentous decision. It's the only way forward that can start to heal the divisions created by Brexit. If Theresa May can keep asking parliament the same question, how can she deny the public a second chance? As our new banner says: we want a voice, a vote and a final say, because Brexit is bonkers!"

Madrid demonstration

But for those who can't make it over to the big event in London, a demonstration will be held in central Madrid to show the strength of feeling against Brexit amongst those that live here. 

The campaign group Eurocitizens have organised an event to take place at 12pm in Plaza Margaret Thatcher - the small square adjacent to Plaza Colon in the center of Madrid. 

The event is designed to call for the protection of the rights of the five million Europeans in the UK and Britons in the EU and to ask for a second Brexit referendum.

"We intend to have fun, with activities for children, poetry and music as well as the speeches, and to celebrate our European identity which is now in jeopardy," explain the organisers. 

"Because of Brexit, thousands of British and Spanish citizens have spent nearly three years living with mounting uncertainty. The imminent possibility of a no-deal Brexit makes all this even worse and affects the lives of thousands of people, especially those who are under thirty. In our opinion, this situation must stop."

Campaigners are demanding that citizens' rights included in the yet-to-be-ratified withdrawal agreement are ring-fenced to guarantee legal certainty and are calling for a second referendum in which all British citizens resident in the EU are allowed to vote - regardless of time spend abroad.

"An alternative to ring-fencing of citizens' rights is a People's Vote, because to stay in the EU is the best way of guaranteeing our existing rights. Because of this we are asking for a second referendum, with a franchise that includes all of the five million Britons in the EU and Europeans in the UK. If that happens, we are optimistic about a victory for Remain," explained Eurocitizens in a statement.  

"For EuroCitizens such a result would be the end of a long nightmare and would give us the possibility of continuing to live our European dream. We are Europeans. We feel European. We have exercised our European citizenship for years. And we want to continue being Europeans."

For more information on how to join either the march in London on the event in Madrid contact Bremain in Spain or EuroCitizens.

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