Police clash with Spanish revolution's 'indignados' outside Parliament

Police clashed on Wednesday with thousands of demonstrators that were gathered outside the Catalan Parliament in the Spanish city of Barcelona to protest against a vote by local lawmakers that would allow further cuts to social spending in the Spanish autonomous community.

Most protesters belong to the "indignados" (outraged) movement, a nationwide coordinated movement of young people who find themselves unable to find a job in the midst of the Spanish financial crisis.

They said they were trying to stop the parliamentary vote on the cuts taking place at noon local time (1000 GMT).

Several local MPs attempted to enter the Parliament but were heckled and chased away by protesters.

The protesters are angry about high unemployment, anti-austerity measures and politicians'' handling of the economy.

Nearly two years of recession have left Spain with a 21.3 percent unemployment rate, the highest in the eurozone, and saddled with debt problems.

In regional elections last year, the centre-right Catalan nationalists took over from a Socialist-led coalition and recently announced the region''s deficit was much bigger than previously known.

Last month, Spanish voters angry about austerity measures dealt the governing Socialist party a painful loss in local and regional elections, raising doubts over the country''s ability to enforce debt cuts.