As the clock ticks down for former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, he has vowed to make a dramatic return to Spain seven years after attempting to sever the region from the country. The former leader of the staunchly autonomous Catalonia has promised to be present at the Spanish parliament on Thursday, despite an active arrest warrant against him for his involvement in Catalonia’s unauthorised 2017 independence vote.
Just last week, the exiled separatist MP declared his intention to conclude his exile and be part of the installation ceremony of his socialist rival Salvador Illa, boldly challenging authorities after seven years on the run in Belgium. Anticipating his return, Spanish law enforcement officers have meticulously combed through Barcelona’s sewers and sealed all entrances to the Catalan parliamentary building, except one.
Yet, in a formidable twist just one day prior to the significant event, the ousted ex-leader divulged that he was already back in Spain and would attend this significant political gathering regardless of the standing warrant. In a cryptic video uploaded on Wednesday, Puigdemont affirmed: “I have to be there and I want to be there . That is why I have undertaken the return trip from exile.”
Nonetheless, the regional police force Mossos D’Esquadra has committed to apprehending him upon arrival and preventing his entry into the parliament this Thursday, August 8. This standoff has sparked rampant conjecture across Spanish news outlets.
Rumours are rife about the 61 year old potentially resorting to subterfuge by donning a disguise, or as Politico suggested, making a daring rooftop entrance aboard a hot air balloon, reports the Mirror.
Mr Puigdemont remains one of just two Catalan separatists under threat of arrest and imprisonment, despite a socialist-backed amnesty law passed by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez intended to mend the rifts caused by the 2017 illegal referendum and subsequent upheaval. Nevertheless, Spanish judges have determined that the former President is still answerable for misuse of public funds, an offence considered distinct.
The estranged Catalan leader aims to thwart Salvador Illa, his victor in Catalonia’s presidential race, who fell short of a majority but clinched parliamentary support with aid from fellow left-wing separatists, sparking resentment from Puigdemont’s camp.
In a bold declaration, the exiled official proclaimed: “If they arrest me, it won’t be the first time. I have been in a German prison and another in Italy, I have been arrested in a Belgian police station and I have been summoned by the French anti-terrorist police. All this, of course, by order of the Spanish judicial apparatus.”
He added: “It should be normal for me to be able to attend Parliament. The fact that I am able to do so would risk arrest, which would be arbitrary and illegal, is evidence of the democratic anomaly that we have a duty to denounce and combat, not because we are pro-independence, but because we are democrats,” as he addressed followers via a video statement this morning.
