The Latest Events in Catalonia
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meet to approve a decree appointing him to the role temporarily. Once this was done there had to be approval for a new president to be elected, and it was another foregone conclusion that there would be no agreement. Quim Torra's party refused to nominate anyone else to take over. As a result, after two months of further deadlock, Pere Aragonès would have to call for new elections for the whole parliament that take place 54 days later. This was entirely short circuited on October 2nd when new elections were announced for February This came as no surprise to anyone as it was a 14th. With pro and anti-independence and traditional foregone conclusion that this would happen. Last parties, any real stability following these elections December 19th, the Catalan High Court found Qium is highly unlikely. Torra, a hard-line suppor ter of Catalan independence, guilty of disobedience for refusing to take down a banner from the Catalan parliament, during the campaigning ahead of elections in May last year, supporting jailed separatist leaders. He had also refused to remove yellow ribbons from public buildings which are a symbol of the independence movement. Spain’s National Electoral Board had ruled that they violated the rules on maintaining neutrality during election campaigns, and this was never in dispute, apart from Quim Torra who claimed it was a freedom of expression. Quim Torra He was given the ban on holding public office for 18 months with a fine of 30,000 euros plus court Following the illegal declaration of independence in costs but appealed this to the High Court. His refusal October 2017, the Spanish Parliament invoked article was stupid, taking into account that he is a lawyer, 155 of the Spanish Constitution that allows central as the predicted outcome on October 28th has government to take over a regional government in plunged the parliament into new problems and the event of a constitutional crisis, in this case disarray that could have been avoided. Catalonia. Their parliament was dissolved, new elections were mandated and various politicians He has been the Catalan President for just under were taken to court for sedition (treason), two and a half years and always stated that he was misappropriation of public funds, and disobedience. a “stand-in” for Carles Puigdemont, the President Six senior politicians and two heads of political at the time of the illegal referendum and illegal organisations were given prison terms of nine to declaration of independence in October 2017. Carles thirteen years. A lawyer has put in an official request Puigdemont fled Spain to avoid arrest and has been for pardons, and this has to be acted on. The Spanish living in Belgium ever since with a Spanish arrest Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, has announced that warrant over his head if he ever comes back to this will be considered by the Ministry of Justice, but this has caused consternation between other Spain. political parties. If agreed in parliament, any eventual The deputy president of Catalonia, Pere Aragonès, pardons would have to be submitted to the Spanish replaced Torra and the Catalan government had to King for his approval. n September 28th the Spanish High Court unanimously confirmed a sentence against Quim Torra, the President of the parliament in Catalonia, of a ban on holding public office for 18 months for a “stubborn and obstinate” refusal to obey electoral regulations. This meant that from September 29th he was no longer the president, no longer an MP, and banned from holding any political position in local, regional, national and international government.
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