Spanish judiciary refuses to grant Puigdemont amnesty
The Spanish Supreme Court has denied an amnesty to the former Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont despite a new law. "The judge of the Supreme Court has issued an order today declaring the amnesty inapplicable to the embezzlement offence in the case against" Puigdemont, the court stated. The arrest warrant against the Catalan therefore remains in effect.
The amnesty law was a concession from the socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to the independence advocates, who are represented by two parties in the Parliament in Madrid. Sánchez relied on their support to form a government after the previous year's election. The amnesty plans sparked months of protests from the conservative opposition.
The amnesty was intended to benefit Catalan activists who have been pursued by the Spanish justice system since the failed secession attempt of the wealthy region in the northeast of Spain in 2017. Among them is Puigdemont himself, who intends to return to Spain from years of exile in Belgium.
However, the application of the amnesty must be decided in each individual case by the relevant judges. They have two months to do so, during which they can also refer to the Spanish Constitutional Court or the European Court of Justice. Many judges reject the amnesty regulation.
Despite the new amnesty law, the Spanish Supreme Court's regional president Carles Puigdemont does not receive amnesty for his embezzlement charges. As the regional President of Catalan, Puigdemont was a key figure in the region's failed secession attempt in 2017, leading to pursuits by the Spanish justice system. The regional president, currently in exile in Belgium, intends to return to Spain, but the amnesty application's outcome is still undecided.
