- Separatist leader Carles Puigdemont is on his way to Spain
Carles Puigdemont, seven years after his flight, is returning to Spain despite the threat of arrest. He announced on Wednesday via video on the X platform that he was on his way back to his homeland. Despite the possible arrest, he plans to attend a session of the Catalan regional parliament in Barcelona on Thursday to participate in the inauguration of a new regional president.
The investiture of the new Catalan regional president is scheduled for Thursday at 10:00 AM. The leading candidate is former health minister and socialist chief Salvador Illa. Before the session, Puigdemont's party, Juntos per Catalunya (JxCat), has planned a welcome event for their former leader and ex-regional president in front of the parliamentary building.
Puigdemont faces arrest in Spain for his 2017 failed attempt to secede Catalonia from Spain. Puigdemont's Junts party has been the majority provider for Sanchez's government in the national parliament in Madrid. Whether Junts will continue to support the minority government if Puigdemont is arrested is uncertain.
Carles Puigdemont – as combative as ever
"It would be unnecessary and irrelevant for a member like me to announce my intention to participate in this session under normal democratic conditions," Puigdemont said in the video published on Wednesday, in which he appeared in front of a Catalan and an EU flag. "But Spain is not under normal democratic conditions."
On the one hand, supporters of Catalan independence face "a long persecution" for their initiative to hold a banned referendum on secession from Spain, Puigdemont said. On the other hand, the country's highest court refuses to comply with the passed and enacted amnesty law.
"This challenge must be answered and overcome," Puigdemont said. "That's why we're returning from exile." Given the "rebellious stance of some judges on the supreme court," he and his comrades "cannot remain silent."
Amnesty for all, but not for Puigdemont
In early July, Spain's highest court dismissed the case against Puigdemont due to formal errors, but the Spanish justice system still pursues him for embezzlement of funds and the charge of sedition.
A few days earlier, the supreme court denied Puigdemont a pardon, despite the controversial amnesty law, citing the charge of embezzlement and keeping the 2017 arrest warrant in effect. Puigdemont appealed this decision.
The amnesty was intended to benefit Catalan activists prosecuted by the Spanish justice system after Catalonia's failed secession attempt in 2017. Puigdemont was the leading initiator of the referendum that plunged the country into one of its worst political crises. After fleeing into exile, Puigdemont was elected as an MEP in 2019. He has been living in Belgium recently.
The promise of amnesty was a prerequisite for independence supporters in parliament in Madrid to enable socialist Pedro Sánchez to secure a second term as Spain's prime minister in November.
The Commission, as of yet, has not issued a decision regarding Puigdemont's potential immunity as an MEP. Regardless of any decisions, Puigdemont continues to express his determination to attend the Catalan regional parliament session.
