Independence Trial: Most Important Testimonies April 23, 24, and 25

April 23, Day 34 of Trial 

 – Vice-President Pere Aragonès exercised his right to not testify, alleging that the Court number 13 of Barcelona was investigating him.

– Jordi Jané and former government secretary Joan Vidal told the court that the Catalan government’s aim was to hold an agreed referendum with Spain.

– Jané, Meritxell Ruiz, and Jordi Baiget, who also testified during the day 34 of trial, resigned from their posts three months before the October 1^st independence referendum. They affirmed that their resignations were not connected to a potential unilateral vote, though growing tensions between the Spanish and Catalan administrations justified their resignations.

– David Badal, former responsible for government payments in 2017, denied that any payments were made to any printing company.

 

April 24, Day 35 of Trial 

– Former director general of the Catalan police, Albert Batlle, told the court that he resigned after jailed Joaquim Forn was appointed interior minister because he was “not comfortable” with how political events were “unfolding” in the run-up to the October 1st independence referendum.

– Joan Ignasi Elena, the former coordinator of the National Pact for the Referendum (PNR) told the court that the organization received no public money.

“The PNR was funded by private donations and the Catalan government was just one of the thousands of entities that joined,” said Joan Ignasi Elena

– Jordi Solé, MEP for ERC party on the September 20, 2017, Spanish police raids in Catalan government buildings: “It was not a tense situation. I saw neither any attacks nor threats.”

 

April 25, Day 36 of Trial

– Four witnesses, who were members of organizations overseeing the work of Diplocat, a public-private diplomatic body promoting Catalonia abroad, defended in court the “plurality” of the entity.

– Gerardo Pisarello, the deputy mayor of Barcelona, told the court that Diplocat always was plural regarding political issues, inviting both experts for and against Catalan self-determination to its conferences.

– Daniel García, a member of UGT, Spain’s largest trade union, explained that the organization “was neutral and let everybody explain their political position.”

– The director of the Barcelona Institute for International Studies (IBEI), Jacint Jordana, denied that Diplocat acted as an arm of the Catalan government.

– Former Catalan MP David Fernàndez (CUP) described the demonstrations during the October 1st independence referendum as “absolutely peaceful.”

If self-determination is a crime, I declare myself guilty and a repeat offender. And as long as it remains a crime, I’ll continue to disobey until it becomes a democratic right” — David Fernàndez

– Catalan MP Ruben Wagensberg (ERC) also defended the peaceful protests on September 20, 2017, against Spanish police raids  in Catalan government buildings: “Catalan citizens engaged in the greatest act of civil disobedience I’ve ever seen.”

Additional Information

On April 23, the day 34 of trial, sixty Portuguese politicians and intellectuals signed a manifesto under the title “For Democracy and Freedoms in Catalonia.” The manifesto calls for the “immediate release” of the Catalan political prisoners.

 

 

 

Independence Trial: Most Important Testimonies April 15, 16, and 17

April 15, Day 31 of Trial 

A Spanish Civil Guard officer affirmed that former speaker and government officials were “key” players in the bid to achieve independence. 

Former Catalan Speaker Carme Forcadell “was an essential figure to pass [independence] laws,” said the officer. Former Catalan police chief Josep Lluís Trapero was also “essential in the independentist strategy,” he added.

The same officer also affirmed that according to their investigations,  Catalan official Josep Maria Jové “was the person who had to authorize the expenses to hold the referendum.”

 

April 16, Day 32 of Trial 

Spanish police officers talked about alleged violence by voters during the 2017 independence referendum. They also accused their Catalan counterparts of inaction. “They didn’t act at all,” said a Spanish police officer.

 

April 17, Day 33 of Trial

Spanish police officers accused their Catalan counterparts of inaction during the 2017 independence referendum. “Whenever they saw us, they reported our arrival to someone and then left,” said a Spanish police officer.

Some officers claimed that their operation to stop the referendum was “exemplary,” and denied the use of violence against the voters.

 

Additional Information

The day 32 of Trial, marked one and a half years since the Catalan political prisoners Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez were unjustly jailed by the Spanish State.

On the day 33 of trial, Members of Canada’s Research Institute on Self-Determination of Peoples said the Spanish Supreme Court might be infringing defendants’ rights.

Professor of international and constitutional law at the Montreal University, Daniel Turp: “We believe there are issues relating to human rights, to the protection of the right of the accused, and maybe the larger issue of freedom of expression, of association, maybe even the issue of the right of self-determination of the Catalan people.”

 

Turp’s colleague Stéfanie Tougas: “The issue of how they are treated is going to be part of our report, because we don’t understand how they can be so badly treated.”

NOTE: Neither the police nor any court has been able to prove yet the veracity of any of the aforementioned police testimonies in the Independence Trial. Those statements appear rather to be just a mere police/court fabrication aimed at unjustly imprison the Catalan democratic leaders for many years, even decades. 

Independence Trial: Most Important Testimonies of April 9, 10, and 11

April 9, Day 28 of Trial 

Spanish police officers involved in operations in the town of Sant Carles de la Ràpita, Vilabella and Mont-Roig del Camp said that voters “kicked and threw stones at police during the independence referendum,” which caused them several injuries.

 

April 10, Day 29 of Trial 

– A Spanish police officer said that he was chased by “two Catalan plain-clothes-police officers wearing earbuds with microphones, in a car that was property of the presidency ministry [of Catalonia].” 

– A Spanish police officer said that no joint operation with the Catalan police was considered on what polling stations they would act.

– Another police officer said that leaving the polling stations was “the most difficult part,” recalling voters hitting police vehicles and “throwing stones at the officers.”

– Another officer said he saw voters carrying “sticks, helmets, and chains.” Although he denied seeing any concrete act of violence.

 

April 11, Day 30 of Trial

A Spanish police officer contradicted Diego Pérez de los Cobos, chief commander of all police forces during the referendum, and Enric Millo, Spanish delegate in Catalonia during the referendum, when he said that they received an order to stop the police actions in the afternoon of the referendum.

 

Additional Information

On the day 28 of trial, Jody Williams, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said outside the Spanish Supreme Court building in Madrid that she sees the trial against the Catalan political prisoners a “grotesque abridgment of human rights.” 

“By jailing the pro-independence leaders, the Spanish judiciary is already implying they are guilty. This is the message they’re sending to all people in all of Spain in addition to abridging the right of referendum. They’re abridging freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom of peaceful protest,” Williams added. 

On the day 30 of trial, the Supreme Court rejected a request from the Catalan political prisoners to leave prison in order to take part in the campaigns for the Spanish general election on April 28 and the local and European elections on May 26.

 

Independence Trial: Most Important Testimonies of April 2, 3, and 4

April 2, Day 25 of Trial 

Head of information of the Spanish National police in Catalonia during the October 1st independence referendum: “The demonstrators [voters] attacked the police officers who were carrying out a raid on the CUP party headquarters on September 20th, 2017.”

According to the officer’s testimony, the Spanish police were “surrounded” and forced to fire “blank shots in order to get out.” He also affirmed that the operation at the CUP party HQ was carried out on instructions of the public prosecutor after “propaganda” for the October 1^st referendum had been detected there.

The officer said “72 Spanish police officers were injured” during the operation to stop the referendum on October 1st, 2017, and he accused the Catalan police of being “passive,” and even “hindering” their work.

 

April 3, Day 26 of Trial

The second-in-command of the Catalan police during the independence referendum, Ferran López: “Puigdemont pledged to declare independence if there were ‘incidents’ during the 2017 independence referendum.”

López also affirmed that “the Catalan police never collaborated either in the preparation or in the execution of the referendum.” “In fact, the Mossos leadership expressed concern to [President] Puigdemont about the referendum day and the police chief Trapero asked Catalan government leaders to comply with the judicial orders and not to hold the referendum.”

López also assured that Mossos (Catalan police) officers were deployed in 2,300 polling stations during the referendum. “Mossos d’Esquadra officers seized 423 ballot boxes, 90,000 ballot papers, and 60,000 envelopes,” added López.

 

April 4, Day 27 of Trial

Former deputy chief of the Mossos (Catalan police) Juan Carlos Molinero: “The Catalan police never  carried out follow-ups on [Spanish] police forces during the referendum.”

Molinero insisted that the various police forces involved in the operation to stop the independence referendum on October 1st, 2017, held “equal responsibilities.” He also said that Diego Pérez de los Cobos, the Spanish Civil Guard colonel in charge of coordinating all police forces during the referendum, ”never objected the Mossos operation planned for the referendum.”

Molinero confirmed what the second-in-command of the Catalan police during the independence referendum Ferran López said the day before: “[President] Puigdemont said he would declare independence if there was an extreme situation or a tragedy during the vote.”

Molinero also said that former interior minister Joaquim Forn told the leadership of the Mossos that he “would not meddle in the police operation during the October 1st independence referendum.”

 

Additional Information 

On April 3, Ferran López, who was chief Trapero’s number two during the October 2017, challenged the version of the facts given a few days before by Spain’s Civil Guard Colonel Diego Pérez de los Cobos, the chief commander of all police forces during the referendum. Xavier Melero, the lawyer of the Catalan leader Forn, called for a careo, a special face-to-face session confronting the two witnesses. 

Manuel Quintela, a senior Spanish National Police officer said that the referendum weekend was started with “music, pajama, and night hot chocolate parties.”

Catalan National Assembly (ANC) Urges JxCat and ERC to Agree on a Unitary Blocking Strategy in Congress

Elisenda Paluzie, president of the ANC, has called on JxCat and ERC to agree on a unitary strategy in the April 28th Spanish elections and hopefully form a blocking minority in defense of the self-determination of Catalonia

In an interview with Europa Press, Paluzie explains that the blocking minority should condition their votes to the recognition of Catalonia as a “political subject” and “the exercise of the right to self-determination.”

“If you do not put these MPs at the service of a unitary strategy to achieve independence when you have a blocking minority; then, what is the sense of your participation in these institutions [Spanish Congress and Senate]?” asked Paluzie.

The ANC warns that if the independentist MPs do not promote this blocking strategy that the entity demands, the only thing that can be understood from this is a “renounce the goal of the Catalan Republic.” Paluzie recalled that JxCat and ERC did have the opportunity to reach agreements when power was distributed, as the agreement they have to govern Catalonia through the coalition executive that leads President Quim Torra. “What we know a little bit about it is that it’s easier to agree on things when you form a government.” So, if they agree to govern together, they should also agree on having a joint strategy in Congress. It is basic and obvious,” she summarizes. 

 Unilateralism

Paluzie argues that unilateral independence “has been done by most of the world’s independent countries,” and assures that this cannot be linked to a rebellion, nor to an insurrection or violence. She also regrets that independentism has no more self-confidence: “The State sometimes believes more in our possibilities than ourselves.”