Background
After Francisco Franco's death in 1975, Spain began its transition to democracy. Under Franco's rule the Catalan language had been banned, the culture suppressed, institutions abolished and people imprisoned for their political beliefs. In 1977, the president of Catalonia in exile came back to Catalonia and the Generalitat of Catalonia was restored. Following the approval of the Spanish constitution in 1978, a Statute of Autonomy was promulgated and approved in referendum. Catalonia was organized as an Autonomous Community.
Not satisfied with that level of autonomy, some organisations started to demand the full independence of Catalonia. The demand for an independent Catalonia had been present since the beginning of the 20th century but after the end of the dictatorship, it gained more notoriety among the Catalan society. This would lead to many people using violence to achieve that goal.
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