Spanish The government will pardon Catalan separatists convicted of organizing the 2017 independence referendum on Tuesday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday.
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“Tomorrow, following this spirit of constitutional forgiveness, I will propose to the Cabinet to approve the pardon,” he said. Barcelona At the Liseo Theater, Sanchez said.
The prime minister added that his government had “decided to reconcile” and expressed confidence that the controversial decision to pardon separatists would “pave the way”.
Meanwhile, dozens of protesters at the theater demanded the amnesty of convicted separatists.
Manels Kantero, a 59-year-old teacher among them, told AFP that Catalan leaders should be amnestied because they “have nothing to pardon.”
He added that the Catalans had only exercised their fundamental rights by holding an independence referendum.
Sanche, who represents the Socialists, has in recent weeks sought to gain support in the general public for the idea of pardoning Catalan leaders, saying it was the key to breaking the political stalemate that had developed. Catalonia independence.
The independence referendum held in 2017 by the Regional Government of Catalonia in defiance of the Madrid ban and the subsequent declaration of independence by the region have led to the deepest political and constitutional crisis since the restoration of democracy following the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.
In 2019, the Spanish Supreme Court sentenced 12 Catalan separatist leaders to severe penalties, ranging from nine to 13 years in prison, for participating in a referendum.
The ruling provoked days of unrest in Catalonia, which often escalated into violence.
53% of Spaniards oppose the pardon of separatists, while 68% of Catalans support it, according to a poll by Ipsos.
The Supreme Court, as well as the right-wing opposition parties, have also spoken out against the pardon.
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Madrid on 13 June to protest against Sanchez’s plan.
Many Conservatives point out that Sanchez’s real goal is to stay in power, because the minority government he leads, which the Socialists form along with the far left, depends to a large extent on the parliamentary support of the Catalan parties.
But last week, Sanchez received unexpected support from CEOE, the largest organization of Spanish entrepreneurs, as well as from the Catholic Church of Catalonia.
Speaking in favor of pardoning the separatists, Spanish Foreign Minister Aranca Gonzalez Lao said on Monday that it was “an expression of the public’s desire for forgiveness”.
Experts point out that Sanchez has decided on such a risk, hoping that he will still be able to overcome the damage that his decision to pardon the separatists could do to his popularity before the upcoming parliamentary elections in 2024.
“Over time, pardons will seem ridiculous if the economy is doing well,” said Pablo Ferrandis, a sociologist at Charles III University in Madrid.
He also recalls that Spain will be one of the biggest beneficiaries when it starts receiving funds from European Union Fund for Economic Recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, it is not yet clear whether the pardon of Catalan leaders will facilitate dialogue between Madrid and the Catalan regional government, which has been led by moderate separatist Pere Aragoness since May.
Aragoness represents the Left Republicans of Catalonia (ERC), led by Urial Juncker, who has been sentenced to 13 years in prison.
Urial Bartomeus, an associate professor of political science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, acknowledges that the pardon of separatists is the “key” to unlocking the situation, but warns that it will not be easy.
Catalan separatists are calling for a formal independence referendum, which the Sanchez government categorically rejects.
At the same time, clemency will “force separatists to leave the past” of the failed 2017 referendum and “offer something new,” Bartomeus said.
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