Work resumes normally in Catalonia as Spain enforces direct rule

BARCELONA/MADRID – Work resumed normally in Catalonia and calm reigned on the streets on Monday despite calls for civil disobedience from secessionist politicians, in early signs the direct rule imposed to stop an independence bid was taking hold.

Although some public sector workers have yet to tell their new bosses whether they will accept orders, the lack of unrest came as a relief for financial markets, which rose.

Catalonia, a prosperous region with its own language and culture, triggered Spain's biggest crisis for decades by holding an independence referendum on Oct. 1, which Spanish courts called illegal.