The 11th of September has a special significance for many Catalans. Demonstrations on this day are traditional, as it marks the Catalan defeat against Bourbonic troupes in the war of the Spanish Succession in 1714 and the loss of autonomy, institutions and freedoms that ensued. But they have been growing in the last few years as support for independence surged: two years ago, an unprecedented 1.5 million-strong march ignited a political process towards an independence referendum that continues to this day. That was followed by a huge human chain last year from the French border to Valencia – you can see thousands of photos that Catalans shared with the Guardian here, and a selection here.
2014 is special for many reasons. Not only it represents the tercentenary of the historic defeat, but the national day or Diada also comes two months before a scheduled vote for independence on 9 November. Uncertainty still surrounds that consultation – not referendum, as that’s not allowed by the Spanish constitution – as the Catalan and Spanish governments are in a stand-off about its celebration.
This year, hundreds of thousands of people will take part in a massive V-shaped demonstration in Barcelona, organised by civil and cultural organisations – the V stands for “via” (way or path), “voluntat” (will) and “votar” (voting). It will be a mosaic with the colours of the Catalan flag. More than half a million people have signed up for it and more than 1,500 buses will bring people to the Catalan capital.
If you are taking part in this year’s V demonstration, share your photos and videos with us. There have also been over 100 Vs in other countries – if you took part, we would love to see your images and videos too. You can share your photos, videos and stories by clicking on the blue ‘contribute’ button to share your story on GuardianWitness. To improve our ability to verify the images we receive, we request that you submit the original, unmodified files captured by your digital camera or smartphone. Please don’t crop or color-correct the images after capture.
We’ll use the most interesting contributions in our reporting of the event.
Compartiu les vostres fotos i vídeos de la V de la Diada
Participareu a la V de la Diada? Ens agradaria veure les vostres fotos i vídeos, tant dels preparatius, els objectes que hi dureu o l’ambient com de l’acte en si. Després de l’èxit de la nostra crida per la Via Catalana de l’any passat, volem veure com viviu la del 2014. Si heu participat en alguna de les més de 100 Vs celebrades arreu del món, també volem veure les vostres imatges.
Podeu enviar fotos i vídeos fent clic al botó blau ‘contribute’ – o us podeu descarregar l’aplicació gratuïta per a smartphones GuardianWitness i compartir els vostres continguts des d’allà on sigueu. Per fer més ràpid el procés de verificació de les imatges, us demanem que envieu l’arxiu original, sense modificacions, de les fotografies que feu amb càmera o smartphone. Intenteu no retallar-les o canviar-ne els colors.
Usarem les contribucions més interessants en la nostra cobertura de la Diada.
- GuardianWitness is the home of user-generated content on the Guardian. Contribute your video, pictures and stories, and browse news, reviews and creations submitted by others. Posts will be reviewed prior to publication on GuardianWitness, and the best pieces will feature on the Guardian site.
